Assassin’s Creed Mirage: Who is Basim? – Identity explained

Basim has become one of the most important characters in the Assassin’s Creed franchise thanks to his double identity, but who really is the protagonist of Assassin’s Creed Mirage? Here’s the complete explanation.

There’s a lot more to Basim in Assassin’s Creed Mirage than meets the eye, with his storyline in the long-running series being somewhat mischievous. Basim made his debut in Assassin’s Creed Valhalla as a mysterious member of the Hidden Ones visiting Scandinavia on a mission for his masters. He would serve as a mentor and friend to Valhalla’s protagonist Eivor, before the truth about his identity would be revealed during the game‘s climax.

Following this story, AC Mirage serves as a sequel to Valhalla, but it will also retell Basim’s origin story in flashbacks that make up the bulk of the game, which also serves as a prequel to Valhalla and the original Assassin’s Creed game. Most of Assassin’s Creed Mirage’s story is still under wraps, but Basim’s true identity was revealed at the end of Valhalla, here’s what you need to know to be up to speed on the story.

Who is Basim in Assassin’s Creed Mirage?

While Basim is a legendary member of the Hidden Ones (Assassin’s order) the character’s history actually predates humanity itself. Basim is simply the name of his reincarnated human form which rose to prominence in the year 861 in Baghdad. However, his original form was that of an Isu noble called Loki whose legend would go on to inspire the trickster god of Norse mythology.

In fact, Loki, Odin, and a group of other prominent Isu figures would go on to build the entire Norse pantheon around themselves, just like other Isu’s did with other pantheons of gods. They essentially got humanity to worship them, and this worship continued and became a legend long after the Isu race had been destroyed in an apocalyptic solar flare.

Loki was able to cheat death and reincarnate as the human Basim but had no memory of his former life. We expect Assassin’s Creed Mirage will explain how Basim learned he was really Loki, as the Basim we meet in Assassin’s Creed Valhalla is already aware of his Isu heritage and is trying to make Eivor remember that they are the reincarnated Odin.

Past, present, and future

Loki’s personality starts to become dominant over Basim’s in Valhalla, wanting to bring his children and wife back, and due to an ancient grudge against Odin, attacks Eivor who is able to trap him in an ancient Isu computer, where he remains for centuries. Laya switches places with Basim who finds himself free to move around the world again in the year 2020.

Basim realizes that his, Loki’s, and the Assassin’s agendas are all aligned, so he joins forces with Desmond’s father William Miles against his old enemies the Templars, and enters the animus to search his ancient memories. Basim also aims to track down Loki’s missing Isu children. Basim will be the playable character in the present and past segments of Assassin’s Creed Mirage, he’ll also be the first character to enter the Animus to explore his own memories.

He’ll also be one of the only characters from the ancient world to survive and successfully navigate modern Earth, meaning either as Loki or Basim, the character has existed in three separate time periods of Assassin’s Creed.

For more Assassin’s Creed Mirage content check out some of our below guides:

Assassin’s Creed Mirage system requirements | Is Assassin’s Creed Mirage coming to Xbox Game Pass | Assassin’s Creed Mirage: Release date & more | Assassin’s Creed Mirage Preview | Is Mirage coming to the Nintendo Switch? | How long does it take to beat Assassin’s Creed Mirage?