The next Assassin's Creed game may be about Vikings

A couple of weeks ago, Assassin's Creed Wiki user AlifMorrisonudin noticed something very interesting in The Division 2: A poster in the game that he thought could be an Assassin's Creed Easter egg. This eventually led to excited conversations on Reddit and at least one YouTube video explaining why it might be significant.

The poster has a Viking-looking fellow, wearing what could be an Assassin's style cloak, holding a spear and gazing stoically out over what I imagine is the sea, or maybe a winter-swept field or something appropriately Nordic. The word "Valhalla" is plastered across the top, in case there's any doubt about where this guy comes from.

But what really sells it as an Assassin's Creed tease is the orb he holds in his hand, which bears a distinct similarity to the Apples of Eden, technology created by the humanity-preceding race known as the Isu that are basically deus ex machina gizmos that do whatever they need to, whenever it's needed. If you want to get really deep into the lore, a Viking connection to the Apples of Eden was established all the way back in Assassin's Creed 2 through the Nordic goddess Idun.

Taken altogether, it's pretty convincing, especially since Ubisoft has done this sort of thing previously. But what really seals the deal, at least as much as a deal can be sealed when it's still purely rumor, is this Kotaku report saying that its own anonymous sources said a few months ago that the upcoming game will in fact be about Vikings. Kotaku has a pretty good record when it comes to this sort of thing, and the fact that it's willing to go to print with the rumor lends it considerably more credence.

No other details are known (or rumored) at this point, and probably won't be for quite a while. Ubisoft said last year that the next Assassin's Creed game won't be out until 2020.

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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.