Nothing will make you realise just how old this console generation is than today's Total Recall, which looks at the very first concept art ever put down on paper/computer for the project that would become Assassin's Creed.
It was put down in 2004.
That's eight years ago, and while a lot has changed for the series since then, a lot...hasn't! You can see in many images that they already had Altair down, a look that the first hero would then pass on to his descendants like Ezio and Connor.
The larger "portraits" were taken into the very first meeting about the project, while the image with a concealed blade was the first time the idea of the series' trademark weapon had ever been shown.
These images were so early that, at the time, the team wasn't even sure what they were making. In one image, with a boy on horseback, the artists thought they were rescuing the Prince of Persia as a boy, as it was their belief they were making a PoP spin-off.
There's even an image in here showing the main character as a female.
Every image you see here was drawn by artist Khai Nguyen, and every one of them was drawn in 2004. For reference, the first Assassin's Creed wasn't released until the end of 2007.
Assassin's Creed 1 Early Concept Art [Facebook]
Total Recall is a look back at the history of video games through their characters, franchises, developers and trends. You'll find Total Recall stories every Mon-Fri between 11pm and Midnight ET.