Assassin's Creed: Origins' first DLC will arrive next week

The Assassin's Creed: Origins expansion The Hidden Ones, a showdown between the new Brotherhood of Assassins and the Roman occupiers of the Sinai, will be out on January 23, Ubisoft announced today. Set four years after the events of the main game, The Hidden Ones will introduce four new Legendary weapons, new outfits and mounts, and increase the level cap to 45. 

Ubisoft confirmed in an FAQ that players will continue to roam the sands of Egypt as Bayek in The Hidden Ones, with all progress from the original game carried over into the expansion. Some supporting characters will also return, and new ones will be introduced, but the story itself will be an entirely separate affair. 

"The Sinai is mountainous region with a strong Roman military presence," the FAQ explains. "Players will witness the Roman occupation as they discover many well-guarded Roman military camps, harbors, and construction sites where Romans are taking apart Egyptian monuments. This steep region will offer many new opportunities for parkour and traversal gameplay, as well as challenging fights." 

The Hidden Ones is included in the Assassin's Creed: Origins season pass and will also be available for standalone purchase for $10.

Ubisoft also announced the release date and pricing for the second expansion, an investigation into an ancient curse plaguing Thebes called Curse of the Pharaohs, which will be out on March 6 and go for $20 for players who don't have the season pass, and the "combat-free living museum" Discovery Tour, which will arrive between the expansions: It's coming on February 20, free for all owners of the game or $20 as a standalone purchase for everyone else.  

Andy Chalk

Andy has been gaming on PCs from the very beginning, starting as a youngster with text adventures and primitive action games on a cassette-based TRS80. From there he graduated to the glory days of Sierra Online adventures and Microprose sims, ran a local BBS, learned how to build PCs, and developed a longstanding love of RPGs, immersive sims, and shooters. He began writing videogame news in 2007 for The Escapist and somehow managed to avoid getting fired until 2014, when he joined the storied ranks of PC Gamer. He covers all aspects of the industry, from new game announcements and patch notes to legal disputes, Twitch beefs, esports, and Henry Cavill. Lots of Henry Cavill.