Watch Dogs Should Have Been Canon to Assassin’s Creed (2024)

Back in 2014, Ubisoft brought its tried and true open-world formula to a modern setting with Watch Dogs. The game introduced players to a fictional version of the world where technology rules. Citizens are heavily monitored through the ctOS and hacker groups like DedSec are seeking to change that. It seemed like the perfect set up for a game, but Ubisoft has struggled to figure out just what it wants the franchise to be, and the reviews have never been very strong.

While the Watch Dogs franchise has struggled to get off the ground, Ubisoft has been going strong with its Assassin's Creed franchise. Just recently, Assassin's Creed: Valhalla became the highest earning title in the long-running franchise. Ubisoft seems committed to expanding upon this franchise with two games rumored to be in development and TV shows set in the universe through Netflix. The Watch Dogs franchise is nowhere near the success of Assassin's Creed, but there may be a simple way to fix that. The two series share very similar mechanics and ideas, so maybe making them canon to each other would have gone a long way to helping Watch Dogs achieve success.

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The Story of Watch Dogs

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Watch Dogs brings players to various cities around the world where ctOS has been implemented. This software watches every citizen, collects data on them, and use said data to make the world a safer place. However, this has created many problems as many feel it is an invasion of their privacy and the people in charge of the OS are visibly corrupt. This causes hacker groups like DedSec to be formed to combat the companies in charge of ctOS in hopes that they can take down the intrusive software.

The first Watch Dogs followed Aiden Pearce in the streets of Chicago as he vowed to get revenge on those who killed his niece. The second title in the franchise took a more comedic tone and gave players control of Marcus Holloway in San Francisco as he fought back against the Blume company. Watch Dogs: Legion took the series in a completely different direction by giving players control over everyone in London and had them do battle against a private military company known as Albion. While each game was very different from the last, the core concept of ctOS controlling the world connected all of them.

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Assassin's Creed Easter Eggs in Watch Dogs

The companies in control of ctOS and the concepts found in the game feel very similar to what Abstergo wants to do in Assassin's Creed. There are also so many little hints that the two franchises may actually be connected, including a full on crossover in Watch Dogs: Legion. However, Ubisoft has made it clear that the two series are not actually connected to one another and that they are simple nods. The evidence is continuing to mount that says otherwise, and it seems like an odd choice to continue to claim that they are not canon to each other.

Throughout the Assassin's Creed and Watch Dogs games, there are so many hints at a much larger shared universe. For starters, many things point to the fact that Assassin's Creed games exist in the Watch Dogs world. Players can find copies of the various games as well as a magazine cover that says Assassin's Creed 3 is one of the best games of all time. While this could be a simple nod, Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag revealed that Abstergo was in fact turning the memories of the ancestors into playable games as a cover for searching for the apples of Eden. This could mean that the games players see in Watch Dogs are in fact developed by Abstergo.

In both franchises, players can also find a lot of references to the major companies that exist in the games. In Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag, players can overhear Abstergo employees discussing the Blume company from Watch Dogs. On top of that, players can find various Abstergo employees throughout Watch Dogs which essentially confirms that these companies exist in the same world. Black Flag also contains an email between Abstergo and Blume in which Abstergo is asking if Blume could be their security provider, but Ubisoft still claims that the two franchises are not connected.

The biggest connection that the two franchises have had is the addition of a playable Assassin in Watch Dogs: Legion. In a post-launch update, Ubisoft added a brand-new member of the Assassins' Brotherhood to the game with Darcy Clarkson. She is supposedly a descendant of Jacob and Evie Frye from Assassin's Creed: Syndicate, but is considered non-canon to the franchise, She brings with her new story chapters that task players with combating the Templars, a staple of the Assassin's Creed franchise. This crossover is said to be a fun nod for fans of both franchises, but it feels so much more than that.

Watch Dogs and Assassin's Creed Should Have Been Connected

With all of these connections between Watch Dogs and Assassin's Creed, it seems silly that the two franchises are considered non-canon to each other. Not only is there confirmation that the companies of both franchises exist in both universes, but there is a literal Assassin in Legion. Ubisoft continues to add connections like this, but has stayed committed to the fact that the two are not related in any fashion. However, if these connections were more than mere nods then Watch Dogs would be better for it.

Throughout its three entries, Watch Dogs has always struggled to gain an audience and find its identity. The Assassin's Creed franchise has evolved greatly since it was first introduced, but it has not been struggling to gain a foothold in the industry. Connecting the two franchises right off the bat could have helped Watch Dogs gain traction right away. If Assassin's Creed fans knew that the Watch Dogs franchise would be set in the same universe rather than a brand-new one, it may have given them much more of a reason to pick up the title.

Rumors are circulating that Ubisoft may be quietly retiring Watch Dogs because it never found its audience, but it could have. There are way too many connections between Watch Dogs and Assassin's Creed to count them as mere nods, and if Ubisoft were to say they were canon to one another then it would have given fans more of a reason to pick it up. There is no real reason that the two franchises are not connected, and not canonizing them was a missed opportunity that could have helped market Watch Dogs immensely, and help build out the modern landscape of Assassin's Creed.

Watch Dogs: Legion is available now on PC, PS4, PS5, Stadia, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.

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