Following up on its scholarly Discovery Tour download for Assassin’s Creed: Origins, Ubisoft released a new interface for PC that lets you go under the hood of the game and tinker with some of its core settings. Sorry, console gamers — this is a PC-only exclusive.
The free Animus Control Panel lets you do things people normally do with mods by adjusting 75 different sliders within 11 categories. You can modify your saved game so you run twice as fast, nerf enemy soldiers, or even increase the number of animals you can tame. You can also swap your avatar with various characters in the game. If you’ve ever wanted to cruise through Giza as Aya on a war chariot with a posse of hungry hungry hippos in tow, here’s your chance.
The dizzying array of settings can be somewhat overwhelming at first, so Ubi has included some pre-set configurations to get you started. Hardcore Stealth, for instance, amps up enemy awareness so they will alert to the slightest noise, but you can assassinate even high-level characters with one stab. God Mode is pretty much what you’d expect, and Mad World makes enemies and the environment more aggressive.
There’s a basic guide for using the Animus Control Panel at the Ubisoft forums, and would-be assassins are encouraged to share their settings and discuss the different parameters of the various configurations.
You can access the ACP in the main game menu or in the save files overview screen. You’ll need a Uplay account in “online” mode and a save file to modify. After tweaking the settings, your new save file will be labeled “Animus Hacked.”
As might be expected, drastically changing some parameters can prevent objectives in the story mode from unlocking.
In addition to Discovery Mode, Ubisoft has followed up the release of Origins with two DLC expansions and numerous free updates, including a New Game+ mode, a Final Fantasy crossover, and the ongoing Trials of the Gods weekly challenges. If you’re just getting started in Egypt, we’ve got a beginner’s guide to get you going as a neophyte Medjay. And watch out for those Phylakes!