Assassin's Creed: Odyssey or Origins?

Warning: Minor Spoilers

I just finished the family story quest line in Odyssey but still have two major quest lines to finish not to mention add ons. The map is not yet fully explored and is still cluttered with incomplete objectives. Still, I feel I’ve given the game a fair enough shake to compare it to my Origins experience.

It’s clear that the same development environment was used for both games but Odyssey leans heavily towards RPG and Origins leans slightly more to sandbox. The maps are equally stunning. If I had to recommend one over the other, I would pick Odyssey for it’s game play improvements. Systems are so similar you could almost describe Origins as a game length tutorial for Odyssey albeit a very entertaining one.

Both games offer loads of optional content but Odyssey offers more incentives to engage with that content. This is due to more elaborate equipment and naval options. Origins usually rewards some coin and XP plus a purely cosmetic item or a weapon/shield with special attributes. After enough progression, these things are fairly easy to shrug off. Odyssey intertwines upgrades and abilities with quest and character progression. Sometimes to get X you have to do Y to get Z. A lot of equipment enhancement unlocks simply through game play but if you want to target specific enemies or focus on a play style you’ll find yourself pursuing particular challenges. Cosmetic options unlock as you acquire armour pieces. There are some cosmetic upgrades available as rewards or for purchase but for the most part everything you do in Odyssey enhances your character in some satisfying way.

Odyssey’s abilities tree is a substantial improvement over Origins’. In Origins you have to spend points on abilities that should have been automatic or buy abilities you don’t want to get the ones you do. Some abilities seem pointless or difficult to execute. Control assignments are arbitrary. Odyssey cleans all of this up. This makes combat slightly more enjoyable for me and yes that Sparta kick is cool. The only problem I have is with switching the ability wheel. Sometimes I expend adrenaline I don’t want to.

You get your choice of immortal horse in Odyssey and to my delight you can crouch and perform assassinations from horseback. Phobos is not nearly as balky as Origin mounts and I have never had to abandon him near a mountain top.

Branching dialogue choices , knock out abilities and non-fatal solutions are a welcome change. I was queasy with Bayek’s default kill approach.

For all that’s added and enhanced in Odyssey, what’s removed from Origins is notable too and that tempers my enthusiasm. Tools are removed in favour of more direct combat abilities. You can still play off of the environment in Odyssey but not to the same degree. I spent much of Origins learning what kind of disruptions I could cause. The point of some abilities became more obvious as I went along. It seems like Odyssey has quests popping up and disappearing constantly. Origins has more random events. In Odyssey, I became obsessed with upgrading my ship which requires so many resources that I selected lucrative contracts and bounties over side quests. I know I missed many quests related to my in game choices but the map is so time consuming I keep grinding. Low yield time limited quests are just a no no. Origins has its grindy parts too but they can be fun. One time I collected chariots by hanging around an intersection and ambushing convoys for precious metals.

I miss the random events and the friendly animals. I climbed onto a small boat on a river bank and a cat jumped on board with me. I panicked when we were immediately attacked by hippos but we escaped with kitty unharmed. I don’t know what happened to it. It was gone when I returned to the boat but it’s one of my favourite moments. I took screen shots of my horse being goofy. I engaged in a lot more mounted combat. For all Phobos’ virtues he goes down at the drop of a hat. I trashed things, set them on fire, threw sleeping powder in campfires, poisoned entire garrisons and hid in moving wagons.

Because of some positive changes in equipment management in Odyssey some merchant types are no longer necessary. Collectibles are often under guard or marked for a bounty. This makes locations interesting strategically but dull to explore. I was bitterly disappointed in Athens compared to Alexandria. I love Alexandria and returned often. Athens has two inconveniently located blacksmiths and is brutal to navigate. That’s fine. There’s better places to go. But I liked revisiting places in Origins. I checked out all the shops, visited with Reda and explored buildings I hadn’t been through yet. I do explore new areas in Odyssey but it’s mostly to reveal map markers. I don’t investigate as much because I’m not expecting anything unusual or funny to happen.

I still have quite a lot to do in Origins including the Pharoahs DLC but I’m tempted to just go back and do the discovery tour. Herodotus is another Odyssey disappointment. He rides around on the boat but he doesn’t say all that much. If there ever was a character you would like to be chatty it’s him. Perhaps Ubisoft has plans for him who knows? I’m still playing Odyssey and I keep on unlocking stuff. I haven’t tired of it yet.

In some ways the structure of the two games suit the main characters. Bayek is a loyal Egyptian deeply connected to the people and the land. His story is a linear one. A story of tragedy and betrayal that transforms him from a respected arbitrator and protector to a dissident and avenger. It was always going to end the same way. Odyssey’s story is a little more open ended. The main character is also driven by revenge but gets to make moral choices. He/she has a chance for forgiveness and to forgive. Bayek questions himself but ultimately believes that he’s on a moral path as do future assassins. Bayek evolves into an assassin but Kassandra/Alexios starts out as a mercenary. It makes sense that weapons, skills and equipment would be a preoccupation.

Kassandra is a great character but I think I would have enjoyed Alexios just as much. I like Bayek and Aya a lot even though they made me queasy sometimes. Both games are filled with entertaining NPCs. Both games also get criticized for fetch quests but it’s inevitable with that much space and content. I’m not sure about Odyssey because I picked those kind of quests on purpose. The main quest line I have finished is good I think. I thought quests in Origins were varied enough to keep it interesting.

I find Odyssey engaging and rewarding to play but I miss the unscripted fun I could have in Origins. I’m sticking with my recommendation of Odyssey’s deeper and well implemented systems. It all depends on style though. Not everyone will grind resources because they can’t work a virtual ship effectively like me. If you don’t care that much about character and inventory management and have a tolerance for imperfection then Origins might be the better game.