Immortals Fenyx Rising is Ubisoft's take on Breath of the Wild

With a dash of Assassin's Creed thrown in

In context: Ubisoft is no stranger to pulling mechanics and themes from other popular games and implementing them in its own titles where appropriate, and that's precisely what it's doing with Immortals Fenyx Rising (formerly known as Gods and Monsters).

The RPG focuses on Greek mythology, but the structure of its open world, its exploration mechanics, and even its puzzle-solving features have all been heavily inspired by Breath of the Wild. You can climb up just about any surface, and as you do so, a BoTW-like stamina meter will deplete. You can also fly and glide through the air using a pair of enchanted wings (again, similar to BoTW's glider), and you can use telekinetic abilities to lift and toss objects.

Since this game is being developed by the same folks that have made more recent Assassin's Creed titles, it probably won't come as much of a surprise to hear that it shares similarities with those games -- particularly Assassin's Creed: Odyssey.

Though the combat is more flashy and arcade-like (complete with air attacks and combos), it still looks similar enough to Odyssey's, and the dodging animation almost looks re-used. The UI, skill, gear, and inventory systems are also distinctly Odyssey-like.

To be clear, there's nothing wrong with a game sharing mechanics or ideas with other titles. Indeed, Odyssey itself did so quite successfully, with its Witcher-like dialogue system and side quests. However, it's much harder say whether or not Immortals: Fenyx Rising will pull off the same trick.

Of course, that's not to say there's nothing unique about Fenyx Rising. It has a full character creation system that neither the Witcher nor the Assassin's Creed games have, and its art style is much more vibrant, colorful, and cartoonish.

There are also plenty of fantastical enemies to fight, ranging from harpies and griffins to minotaurs and towering cyclops.

If Fenyx Rising sounds like your cup of tea, you'll be pleased to hear that it's releasing this year: on December 3, to be specific. It'll arrive on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch (good luck, Ubisoft), Xbox Series X and S, PlayStation 5, PC, and Google Stadia. If you grab the game on current-gen consoles, you'll be able to upgrade it to its next-gen counterpart at no additional cost.

You can pre-order either the Standard or Gold Edition of Fenyx Rising right now through Ubisoft's website. If you decide to hold off and wait for reviews before making your purchase, feel free to tide yourself over with the trailer and gameplay videos above.