Leak Suggests Assassin's Creed Hexe Drops Magical Abilities, Plus Rumors of an AC1 Remake

Fresh leaks suggest major changes for the upcoming witchcraft-themed Assassin's Creed Hexe, along with hints of an Assassin's Creed 1 remake. Following the full reveal of Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced by Ubisoft, attention has shifted to other projects in the franchise. Over the weekend, reliable insider j0nathan shared details about behind-the-scenes changes for Hexe, following the departure of another top developer.

As reported yesterday, Hexe's game director Benoit Richer recently left the project and Ubisoft itself for unknown reasons. His exit follows that of creative director Clint Hocking, after a major internal reshuffle that saw veteran Jean Guesdon promoted to Assassin's Creed Head of Content and also serving as Hexe's creative director.

Now, in a social media post, j0nathan claimed that Hexe has undergone changes since Guesdon's promotion, including a decision to "get rid of everything that was 'magical' in Hexe." He added, "For example, we were supposed to control a cat, well, ultimately that's been canceled."

Assassin's Creed has always dabbled in sci-fi or magical elements—its core premise involves accessing memories stored in DNA and wielding special powers from an ancient civilization. However, the inclusion of more dramatic superpowers has varied over time. Compare Assassin's Creed Odyssey, where protagonist Kassandra becomes a demigod, to the more grounded Assassin's Creed Mirage.

While little is officially confirmed about Hexe's focus, it's expected to be set in 17th-century central Europe during the witch trials. Magical powers seemed likely, but they would have been explained through artefacts like the Apple of Eden, bloodline abilities like Eagle Vision, or hand-waved logic. Controlling animals has been possible since Assassin's Creed Origins introduced eagle drones, so cat control seemed plausible—but it sounds like that won't happen.

In another leak, j0nathan stated that Ubisoft was working on an Assassin's Creed 1 remake a couple of years ago, with no word of cancellation. This isn't surprising, given Ubisoft's confirmation of multiple remakes and the positive response to Mirage, which echoed AC1. The original AC1 is now the most dated entry, even with backward compatibility, and could benefit from modern advances like those in the Ezio trilogy. A remake might combine its large areas into an open world and expand its story with hints to later entries.

Before all that, Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced arrives on July 9. Assassin's Creed Hexe isn't expected until 2027.