2018’s Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey was the biggest game of the entire series both in scope and in ambition. It is also arguably one of the best installments in a franchise that now spans over thirteen years worth of titles.
After spending countless hours combing through the vast and varied land of Ancient Greece that Ubisoft crafted and finishing every side activity and checking every optional box, I found it easy to dive right in to the DLC without much thought to its difficulty or story implications.
Many players may just now be finding this game for themselves and do not have the luxury that I had in completing it so early. So many may be asking, “When is the proper time to start?” to either one of the excellent add-on campaigns that are now available.
To answer your tentative question quickly, “Play everything in the order it was released in. Both in terms of addition to the gameplay experience and the storyline, you will be better served to hang on until the end of the campaign to start these well made DLCs.
If you have already begun to play through the game, you may have already noticed that the leveling system and standard of progression is not too different from any modern RPG. That is because it is in all reality actually an action/adventure game with quite a few RPG elements thrown in.
Fans and regular players of Role Playing Games probably do not need to read an article such as this because they would know where to look to see if their stats match up to the prospective task or quest. But Assassin’s Creed has only looked like this for a few years now so there are bound to be some who may not quite understand.
The first DLC was made available in six shorter sections called The Legacy of the First Blade and, although it did have some pacing issues and boring stretches, was a mostly welcome addition to the story of Cassandra/ Alexios. You only need to make it through the first major section of the main game to access it, but it does have some minor story spoilers so it is recommended that you wait until you have finished said main game.
The second DLC, called The Fate of Atlantis, came in three slightly larger portions and is, in my opinion at least, the better of the two. But if you were to choose between the two to start before finishing the main storyline, I would strongly encourage you NOT to pick this one because its second section in particular can spoil a significant portion of the best moments from the base experience.
As for leveling, it is recommended that you be a level 50 or above to fully enjoy The Legacy of the First Blade and around a level 60 to enjoy The Fate of Atlantis in the same way.
Both are excellent additions to a fantastic game to say the least. I can’t wait to see what exciting innovations and changes Ubisoft brings with Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla and beyond!