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Summary
- Basim’s rags-to-riches story in Assassin’s Creed Mirage provides a compelling narrative arc, making it easy to root for his success in the battle against the Order of the Ancients.
- While Basim doesn’t reach the same charismatic heights as Ezio Auditore or Edward Kenway, he still stands out as an endearing figure among other serious protagonists like Connor Kenway.
- Basim doesn’t bring a major new angle to the Assassin’s Creed series, but his journey and character development make him an interesting and likable middle-of-the-road protagonist.
The Assassin’s Creed Mirage protagonist Basim is the most recent in a long line of leading player’s in Ubisoft’s Assassin’s Creed franchise, and stacking him up against the others can reveal how likely it is for him to make a mark. Assassin’s Creed protagonists tend to share some core traits, with a set of skills that let them parkour across rooftops and take down enemies and a link to the Assassin Brotherhood or the HIdden Ones. Basim doesn’t necessarily break fundamentally new ground, but he also isn’t a carbon copy of any of his predecessors.
Assassin’s Creed Mirage isn’t Basim’s first appearance in the Assassin’s Creed series, as the character originally showed up in 2020’s Assassin’s Creed Valhalla. His personality, however, is very different in Mirage, which tells the story of his younger years and his introduction into the Hidden Ones. The setting of Baghdad during the Islamic Golden Age also allows for a look at Basim in his home environment, where his knowledge of the streets and the personal stakes of protecting the land he knows can inform the journey he undergoes as a fledgling Hidden One.
Basim Is An AC Mirage Diamond In The Rough
Assassin’s Creed protagonists have come from a wide variety of different backgrounds, although they tend to feature some innate characteristics that make it possible to mold them into a great Assassin or Hidden One. Basim starts out as a street thief in Assassin’s Creed Mirage, giving him a set of skills that transition well into the role of a cloak-and-dagger Hidden One. This story choice plays on familiar rags-to-riches elements to make for an immediately compelling narrative arc, as seeing Basim rise to a higher calling and hone his skills makes it easy to root for his success in the battle against the Order of the Ancients.
Having a character with such humble origins isn’t a common choice for the Assassin’s Creed series. Ezio Auditore da Firenze, arguably the most iconic protagonist to ever grace the franchise, was raised as a cocky nobleman, and even characters who grew up in less high-class environments have often had significant lineage, whether that came in the form of direct Assassin ancestors or proper royalty. Through the organization of the Hidden Ones, Basim is still able to come into contact with major historical figures of the era and interesting philosophers and scientists, so it doesn’t prove an obstacle to the classic historical shoehorning.
Basim Is Charismatic To A Point In Assassin’s Creed Mirage
Basim’s likability is helped along by a generally engaging personality, but he doesn’t necessarily reach the heights of the very best franchise protagonists in this regard. Ezio’s charisma is still memorable 15 years later, and Edward Kenway of Assassin’s Creed 4: Black Flag has held up in a similar regard for a decade. Basim has an easy charm in Assassin’s Creed Mirage and sometimes ventures into lightly comedic remarks to balance his general earnestness, but he isn’t very likely to make a mark on the same level.
That being said, Basim easily stands out above some of the more serious protagonists as an overall endearing figure. Connor Kenway from Assassin’s Creed 3, for example, is an interesting protagonist in a number of regards, but his lack of charm subjected him to plenty of criticism when coming in directly after Ezio had wrapped up a trilogy. Assassin’s Creed has also managed to do more serious protagonists well, perhaps most notably with Bayek in Assassin’s Creed Origins. Basim comfortably occupies a middle ground that avoids any of the major foibles of weaker protagonist but doesn’t quite compare to the very best.
Basim Doesn’t Break New Ground In Assassin’s Creed
The most memorable Assassin’s Creed protagonists have typically brought a major new angle to the series, something that Basim doesn’t entirely manage to do in Assassin’s Creed Mirage. Change isn’t always welcome — a point proven by the reception to Connor — but done skillfully, it can make things feel fresh in a way that garners attention. Ezio’s attitude in Assassin’s Creed 2 was wildly different from Altaïr’s in the original game, helping him to stand out. Kassandra marked the first time the mainline series offered a solo playable female protagonist, and that exciting stride worked with her compelling personality to make her one of the franchise’s best.
Basim’s biggest standout feature is his aforementioned rags-to-riches story, but although it hasn’t exactly been done before in the series, it isn’t entirely without precedent. Edward Kenway had to work himself up from a low point regardless of his lineage, and Assassin’s Creed Syndicate protagonists Jacob and Evie Frye took on a criminal lifestyle in the name of fighting against a corrupt elite. Assassin’s Creed Freedom Cry protagonist Adéwalé holds the ultimate claim to the throne, rising from a birth into slavery to join the West Indies Brotherhood of Assassins.
Basim Is A Middle-Of-The-Road AC Protagonist
Taking everything into account, Basim ultimately lands comfortably in the middle of the pack for Assassin’s Creed protagonists. He’s unlikely to spur the apathy or dislike that some protagonists have, and his sincerity, character journey, and willingness to struggle with emerging doubts about the Hidden Ones make him interesting and likable on a fundamental level. At the same time, Basim doesn’t reinvent the wheel or command the screen in the same way as the best Assassins and Hidden Ones have, a gulf that’s made slightly more noticeable by the ways in which Mirage calls back the style of Assassin’s Creed 2.
In a series as long and storied as Assassin’s Creed, ending up on the better side of things is an overall impressive accomplishment, even if Mirage doesn’t propel Basim to the very highest heights. Like Assassin’s Creed Unity‘s Arno Dorian or the Frye siblings, Basim is unlikely to reside on the very top or bottom of anyone’s list. Fitting in well with Assassin’s Creed Mirage‘s back-to-basics approach, Basim gets the job done as protagonist with no major hitches, and sometimes that’s enough.
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