acting alone (and maybe present day gameplay?)
been catching up on some syndicate stuff since i didn't play it.
notable is that the modern assassins are apparently breaking contact with the initiates and scattering across the world, assigned to choose their own targets so long as it follows the creed, until they are needed for a specific objective
another thing is obviously the leak of the next AC game being set before the Order formally exists, which means we'll presumably be playing as a lone assassin who perhaps sows the seeds for a future order.
and third, there's that assassin's creed movie coming out, which incorporates a similar premise to the first game, including a present day simultaneous plot and the concept of the animus.
i feel like these things fit together in a way:
-we're not going to be playing as an initiate in the next game, which you could presume to mean we'll be one of the scattered modern Assassins.
-the next game seems to be establishing a different tone, where we aren't so beholden to any one group, and our story and path through the world will be more personal. The idea of choosing your own targets for reasons other than them being Templars could be reflected in the modern day as well.
-the new movie was perfectly free to ignore the modern storyline of Assassin's Creed, yet it seems to be embracing it. regardless of how it does, I think that's a statement by Ubisoft about what Assassin's Creed is: that they think parallel storylines are an essential component of it.
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Basically, I think that in a lot of cases, Assassin's Creed has been trying to represent the Assassins as being structured in a way the gameplay has trouble supporting. Unity touched on this a bit: as traditionally represented, the Order makes it hard for people to pursue their personal matters or act according to their immediate judgement of the situation.
When every kill must be specifically sanctioned because each sect of the order is playing a very delicate political game through their kills, it stifles the ability to tell a good story. It's all well and good for Templars, because you don't need the opposing force in a single player game to be reactive and dynamic on a large scale: that's the player's job.
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It seems to me that the plan for the future is going to be to focus on Assassins (upper or lower case) who have autonomy in their actions and pursuits, fitting more accurately with the player's experience and the way they move through the game.
It also seems to me like they are going to attempt to fulfill the idea of being a modern assassin in the expected sense, probably with some amount of (optional?) assassinations set in the same region the historical action takes place, with the Animus adventure being something the modern agent is doing in their spare time.
Reliving history in order to learn more for learning's sake, rather than a macguffin being the main goal. (though probably they'll incidentally find some leads on some PoE, the idea that the assassin is interested in and following this ancient person's life justifies further sequels with the same character)
it might not happen exactly the way I imagine it, but i feel like this is the general direction and theme ubi has in mind going forward