What order should you do Assassin’s Creed Mirage missions in?

Starting with 2017’s Ghost Recon Wildlands, Ubisoft games have grown less and less linear, and Assassin’s Creed Mirage is no exception. It can be overwhelming for new players to jump in and be greeted with a whole board full of missions to choose from, especially when there’s absolutely nothing pointing them in the direction of the optimal path.

Luckily, there is a way to ensure that the story makes as much sense as possible despite this—and all you need to do is keep a few fairly simple tips in mind as you play.

What’s the correct mission order in Assassin’s Creed Mirage?

After the mission First Order, which sees Basim take down his very first target for the Brotherhood, Mirage opens up in a major way. The linear structure of the prologue is dispensed entirely in favor of letting you choose how you want to tackle the investigation into Ra’s Al-Af’A, the Order’s mysterious leader.

Each of the three paths going forward will be tied to one of three new Assassin Bureaus in the city, so for best results, you should tackle one Bureau’s story at a time as the plot will otherwise feel disjointed and unfocused. This was the same approach Ubisoft took with Far Cry 5, but hopefully, Mirage will have fewer random kidnappings in store.

As for which Bureau to start with, the answer to that question is more subjective. All three of them are located in Initiate-ranked areas, and as Basim will automatically be promoted to Initiate upon completing First Order, the choice is entirely in the player’s hands.

Since difficulty isn’t a factor, it’s more down to which of the game’s supporting characters you want to meet up with first—unlike the aforementioned FC5, there’s no obvious nudge sending you in any one direction. My vote is for the Karkh Bureau, however, as the stoic and centered Roshan is easily the most memorable of the game’s supporting cast. It also doesn’t hurt that the vibrant aesthetic of the merchants’ district it’s located in looks absolutely stunning.

Ultimately, you can complete Mirage’s plentiful main missions however you wish, but one Bureau at a time feels like the intended experience to ensure you’re getting the most out of the game’s story. After all, the last thing you want is to keep hopping across the city and forgetting who every character is when the threat of subjugation is looming over Baghdad.