Ubisoft prides itself on a certain amount of historical accuracy for its much beloved Assassin's Creed franchise, incorporating historical events, persons, and locations almost seamlessly into the game's storyline, provided a few exaggerations sprinkled here and there. The newest chapter, Assassin's Creed 3 is no exception, letting players meet George Washington, Ben Franklin, and visit the fledgling cities of Boston and New York in a Revolutionary War-era America.
For all the non-history buffs out there, there's another American city that was arguably of similar historical significance as Boston and New York (playing host to the Constitutional Convention and once acting as an early capital to the nation), that of Philadelphia.
So why wasn't it included in Ubisoft's latest Creed game? You can't blame the city's poor reputation, as Assassin's Creed 3 takes place long before the city of brotherly love became known as a city whose animalistic fans pelted Santa Claus with snowballs, and opposing teams with batteries.
During an Q&A session with Reddit, Assassin's Creed's Team Historian Maxime Durand revealed that they left Philly out because of the team's utter contempt for cheesesteaks.
Kidding.
Actually, they left it out because the early Philadelphia was, well, boring. Said Durand, "Although there was a lot of historical evidence to recreate it, it would have been technically ugly. At the time of the Revolution, the city was mostly made out of a grid. Imagine how boring navigating through that would have been, with no points of orientation... Also the loading on a street that stretches for kilometers would have been problematic."
I suppose it's just as well. Eagle vision in Philly could've made for some awkward, but funny moments.
