Jerusalem occur and Damascus the three
cities of Assassin's Creed the game that
kicked off the franchise and set the
tone for the series historical
playgrounds it's here in these cities
that alter year was tasked with
dismantling the Templar order but why
these cities what made their cultures
unique and how exactly do the team at
Ubisoft Montreal bring those
characteristics to life
to find out we're gonna take a walk
around these cities circa 1191 in the
original Assassin's Creed
if nowhere to run now share your secrets
with me
it's 1187 the Sultan of Egypt in Syria
Salah had been recaptures Jerusalem from
European Crusaders
two years later the Third Crusade began
in European forces once again invaded
the Middle East in an attempt to reclaim
the holy lands the focal point of this
conflict the city of Jerusalem in the
Dome of the rock a site that has sacred
significance for three major
monotheistic religions Islam
Christianity and Judaism
wander around Jerusalem enough and
you'll notice that Ubisoft Montreal
portrayed the city as a religious
melting pot from this location alone
perched atop this mosques minaret you
can clearly see both a church and a
synagogue while the city has many
religious buildings the shining jewel of
Jerusalem was the Dome of the rock
believed to be the site that housed the
Ark of the Covenant the location where
Abraham was asked to sacrifice his son
and the site where the Prophet Muhammad
ascended to heaven
shaped like an octagon and symmetrical
on nearly all sides it's one of the
finest examples of Islamic central
planned architecture
[Music]
however because the crusade saw
Jerusalem change hands between Christian
and Muslim control the building actually
served as a church at one point before
salahuddin took back the city
eventually the Crusaders led primarily
by England's King Richard the first
better known as Richard the Lionheart
signed the Treaty of Jaffa with
salahuddin this left Muslims in control
Jerusalem but allowed worshipers of all
religions to make pilgrimage to the holy
site
next up is ocker if the Crusaders were
gonna make any headway they would first
need to capture this important port city
in 1191 the year Assassin's Creed takes
place they did just that if you control
a port city you control trade so you're
rich and you can easily reinforce and
resupply your troops so you're well fed
and you keep your numbers strong visit
ocker in-game and you'll see that parts
of the city lie in ruin thanks to the
Crusaders recent conquests take this
minaret for example unlike the pristine
ones you can find in Jerusalem and
Damascus this one the only one that
exists in the city has been destroyed
it's a clear signal that Crusaders have
driven the Islamic influence out of the
city come up to the rooftops and you'll
notice how Ubisoft Montreal and it's
subtle architectural details to
communicate a city under European
Crusader control many of the buildings
feature heavy rough masonry and pitch
routes pitched roofs are normally
reserved for buildings and inclement
weather so snow and rain doesn't
accumulate on rooftops this isn't a
problem ocker would likely have the
inclusion of these architectural touches
helps communicate the european
occupation of the pivotal port city
the final city on our tour is also the
first you'll visit Damascus the capital
of Syria without much religious
significance for the Crusaders and
minimal strategic significance the
Crusaders had little interest in taking
this capital and as a result it appears
with Islamic architecture prevalent
throughout look no further than the
numerous minarets that dot the city
these towers typically attached to
mosques are used to announce the Muslim
call to prayer five times a day
unlike ocker here you'll notice the
mostly flat roofs which are much more
typical for this region be sure not to
miss the most important landmark in all
of Damascus the Great Mosque of Damascus
also known as Lou Mayan mosque built
under the Umayyad dynasty the same
dynasty that originally constructed the
Dome of the rock the mosque is nearly as
old as a slam itself today the building
contains the tomb of svaha dean
following his death in 1193 while each
of these cities differs in landmarks
religious buildings and architectural
details the team at Ubisoft Montreal
wanted players to be able to
differentiate between locations when
they were deep in a shadowy alley or
eavesdropping from a park bench what you
propose is madness you've probably
already noticed it by now but each city
has a distinct color palette as a
war-torn city occurs portrayed through
the lens of deep grey and blue tones
it's meant to appear bleak and ravaged
Damascus fans in stark contrast and
appears bright and opulent with golden
yellows and sunkissed ornate buildings
Jerusalem exists somewhere in the middle
with a wider color range than either of
the other cities symbolizing the variety
of cultures held within the city
Assassin's Creed exists within the deep
and rich history of our own world thanks
to the real-world inspirations and
settings knowledge is baked into nearly
every aspect of the game the people
locations and events that take place in
Assassin's Creed are some of history's
most influential and if you pay
attention and carefully observe your
surroundings you just might learn a
thing or two about them