Assassin’s Creed 3

Developer: Ubisoft Montreal
Publisher: Ubisoft
Systems: PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, Xbox One, WiiU, Nintendo Switch, PC
Year of release: 2012
Genre: Action-Adventure
TCU Archive Access: Yes- available for checkout
Outside Access: Available for retail purchase

Time period: 1754-1783
Location: American Colonies
Tribe: Mohawk
Character Types: Player Character, Indigenous Non-Player Characters

“My people come first… A warning to you both: choose to follow me or oppose me and I will kill you.”

– Ratonhnhaké:ton [Broken Trust cutscene]

TBA

Assassin’s Creed III (ACIII) brings players into the events surrounding the American Revolution through the perspective of Ratonhnhaké:ton or Connor*. The plot is surrounded by Desmond Miles’s original quest to save the world by acting as his ancestors. In this game, there are two playable ancestors, Haytham Kenway and Ratonhnhaké:ton, though the player also spends time as Desmond. Ratonhnhaké:ton is a member of the Mohawk Nation. 

Although Ratonhnhaké:ton is the main protagonist of this game, he is not a playable character for the first couple of sequences. Players are introduced to the mechanics of the game by playing multiple missions as Haytham, Ratonhnhaké:ton’s British father. These sequences occur before Ratonhnhaké:ton’s birth and serve to not only introduce the player to the world and mechanics, but also to introduce Haytham and Ratonhnhaké:ton’s mother, Kaniehtí:io.

Kaniehtí:io is introduced in Sequence 2 when she demands that Haytham free her. After this mission, Kaniehtí:io appears as a guide for the player, leading Haytham on his next sets of missions (where she also presumably falls in love with him) until it is revealed that Haytham is actually a Templar agent. After this reveal the player is then introduced to Ratonhnhaké:ton and his heritage (including his Templar father). Kaniehtí:io is killed in Sequence 4 when the village is set on fire by (presumably) the Templars. Although Ratonhnhaké:ton tries to save his mother, he is unsuccessful and her death is used as one of his motivations to track down his father and kill him.

Ratonhnhaké:ton’s introductory missions take place in and around his home, Kanatahséhton. While you are given subtitles and the majority of the rest of the game is in English, this section especially uses only Ratonhnhaké:ton’s native language. Through these missions, you are also introduced to Ratonhnhaké:ton’s friends who appear occasionally as side characters throughout the game. This introduction to Ratonhnhaké:ton’s culture and people is important as they will be used as Ratonhnhaké:ton’s motivation and justification throughout the game.

While ACIII is supported by Desmond and company’s overarching quest to save the world from the Templars, a good portion of this game revolves around Ratonhnhaké:ton’s struggle with his father and their different beliefs. Because of this, Ratonhnhaké:ton’s heritage is never far offstage even in scenes where the main focus is the American Revolution.

*Ratonhnhaké:ton is given the name Connor by his mentor Achilles. While he is addressed as Connor for the majority of the game, since this is not a name he chose for himself our game summary will be using only Ratonhnhaké:ton.