Summary
Assassin’s Creed Mirageseems to be trying its hardest to replicate the earliest days of the franchise rather than the RPG games that burnt the fanbase out. Not only has it shortened the experience and brought players to a familiar feeling locale, but Ubisoft also brought back numerous fan-favorite features. While many players seem to be talking about howthe stealth gameplay inAC Mirageis the best it has been for a while, another feature that deserves just as much praise is the pickpocketing. Not every player may use the feature, however, those that do may find themselves falling in love with it.
After multiple games left pickpocketing out,Assassin’s Creed Miragehas brought it back with a twist. Instead of just having players click a button to pickpocket, they now have to actually time their button presses correctly, or they may get found out. While series veterans may not find that mechanic too difficult, its inclusion really helps add a more realistic feeling to the feature. Couple that change with the fact that pickpocketing is actually in the game, and it makes it feel like the ultimate throwback to the franchise’s greatest hits.
RELATED:Assassin’s Creed Mirage: It’s Time to End the Hidden Ones
AC Mirage’s Pickpocketing is a Great Addition to the Formula
Pickpocketing used to be a fun little side activity intheAssassin’s Creedfranchise. Players could sneak through crowds and swipe money off of unsuspecting NPCs whenever they pleased. As ofAssassin’s Creed 3, they could also use it to gather ammunition off of guards, as long as the guard was not looking at them. It may not have been game-changing, but it was a nice little addition to the open world.
For some reason, Ubisoft chose to remove the mechanic as the series evolved.Assassin’s Creed Unitywould be the first game that did not let players pickpocket anyone they wanted. Instead, they could only do it for specific mission objectives, which felt like a strange change.Syndicatewould continue this trendwhileAC OriginsandOdysseywould end up removing it from missions too.Valhallawould re-introduce the concept by letting players pickpocket important items again, but it too prevented players from stealing money from anyone they wanted.
After years of not letting players pickpocket civilians,AC Miragehas brought the feature back. While players cannot steal from every NPC, they can steal from anyone carrying a coin purse if they want. Plus, there are specific collectibles that can only be earned via pickpocketing. It is great to see this mechanic return, and it is made even better by the fact Ubisoft added a little twist to it this time around.
Instead of just letting players hold down a button to steal,AC Miragehas made things a bit harder. Now, when players attempt to pick someone’s pocket, they must time their button press correctly. Once they press the pickpocket button, a blue shape will appear with a moving white line surrounding it. Players must click the button again the second that white line hits the blue one. If they fail, the NPC will notice them, and chaos will likely ensue.
WhileAC Mirage’s pickpocketing minigame is not that difficult, it does make it feel a bit more real. PastACgames would just let players steal on a whim, but now they must also master their timing if they want any chance at making it out with the goods. This feels like a fantastic change to the formula, so hopefully Ubisoft sticks with it. Now that pickpocketing has returned withAC Mirage, there is seemingly no reason the studio should take it away from players again.
Assassin’s Creed Mirageis available on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.
