Heaven, Hell, and....Atlantis?

The journey of warrior Kassandra (who, I've got to admit, I'm not enjoying as much as assassin Kassandra) has now officially moved beyond the beautiful shores of ancient Greece into the realm of mythology.  The Fate of Atlantis DLC for Assassin's Creed:  Odyssey  finally decides to move the story out of the real world (thank baby Jesus...or Zeus in this case--a change of scenery is much needed).  Similar to Legacy of the First Blade, Fate of Atlantis was released in an episodic fashion and, in this case, it makes sense.

(SPOILERS AHEAD for the part of the main storyline and possibly for part of the Fate of Atlantis DLC--fair warning!)

One part of the story that I originally found highly unsatisfactory was the entire weirdness with Layla Hassan (of the modern day) being handed the staff of Hermes Trismegistus and trying to wrap my head around several things--1.) Kassandra was still alive (the staff granting immortality is explained, but it was still surprising) and then you get to watch her die and 2.) There was absolutely no explanation about why handing the staff to Layla was so important.  Luckily, if you've purchased the Fate of Atlantis DLC it attempts to fill in the blanks of that strange part of the story.  Honestly, it's all still a bit confusing.

It turns out that Kassandra and Layla have a sort of strange connection bestowed by the Isu.  The story reveals Kassandra's unique DNA (the "bloodline") and the fact that she is next in line to take control of the powerful artifact.  As it turns out, her job isn't to simply guard the staff, but it is to unlock its true potential as a conduit of Isu knowledge--she is bestowed the role of "keeper."  After she has unlocked the Isu knowledge and juiced up the staff, her other job is to wait to hand it off to an unspecified "heir of memories."  (Layla Hassan...of the present day...the part of the story that was originally very unclear)

Powering up the staff is no laughing matter and it requires Layla to once more enter the animus and guide Kassandra to the many locations where this hidden information can be unlocked.  The even more complicated aspect of this is that the information has been hidden by the Isu (namely the pro-human and helpful Aletheia) in simulations cleverly disguised as parts of Greek mythology.  Each "episode" sees Kassandra travelling to a different location, becoming wrapped up in the current difficulties within that region, and ultimately working to unlock the true potential of the staff.

Elysium is filled with gorgeous landscapes.

 The first episode takes place in the heaven-like land of Elysium.  The land of Elysium is ruled by Persephone, the wife of Hades--it's also her prison which she has crafted into a beautiful land of clear, glassy water, floating rock islands, and swaying fields of colorful flowers.  You can't help but feel a sense of wonder and happiness in Elysium...buuuuuut, everything is not perfect.  In order to unlock the true potential of the staff, Kassandra finds herself at the whims of the godlike rulers (the actual "gods" in the mythology sense are actually Isu who rule the realms) who aren't willing to give up their secrets without something else in exchange.  Not only that, but there is trouble brewing on the horizon in the form of humans in Elysium who want to rebel against the rule of Persephone.  Elysium provides a new area to explore; new enemies with differing abilities; the opportunity to alter certain talents into new abilities; and also way more choice making than in Legacy of the First Blade.  I won't go into too many details about how the story plays out.

Persephone's palace in Elysium is nothing to scoff at.

The Underworld is a stark contrast to Elysium.

Episode two sees Kassandra thrust down into the bowels of the Underworld.  It's quite a jarring change to go from the scenic, flower filled world of Elysium into the barren, hellish landscape of the Underworld.  Hades, ruler of the Underworld, also has problems that need solving in exchange for his help unlocking more staff secrets.  It turns out that Hades is kind of a bastard though...who would've guessed?

I've just recently exited the Underworld and now Kassandra is adventuring in the mysterious world of Atlantis.  Atlantis provides another visually stunning, mythological zone to explore and even more Isu secrets to unravel.  I enjoyed the whacky afterlife scenarios in Origins and am digging Fate of Atlantis as an entire DLC.  There are still a few pieces of the story that I don't understand, but hopefully completing the entire thing will help it make more sense.  Even though I am enjoying it, I'm also feeling like it's time for the adventures to end (AKA...I'm ready to play something else for awhile).

Welcome to hell!