Connor, the hero of the upcoming Assassin's Creed III, is supposedly non-partisan. Sure, he'll be swinging his tomahawk right through the middle of the American War of Independence, but like other games in the series, there's the expectation that he's out to get Templars, not the British, or Hanoverians, or the Native Americans.
So it's been disappointing that, until this week, every single piece of marketing we've seen for the game has been bordering on the Mel Gibsonian, revelling in a cry of "KILL THE REDCOATS" that sits ill at ease with the historical neutrality shown throughout the rest of the franchise.
But that was until this week! We've now got out first look at Connor leaping from a great height to kill an American. Or, given the fact there are other men there alongside him, perhaps Americans.
WARNING: I'm prone to mad bouts of blabbering historical speculation when it comes to this series. What follows continues that tradition.
And what an interesting image it is: Ubisoft's PR had the picture labelled as starring Benedict Arnold, the famous traitor to the Continental cause who despite early acts of heroism later defected to the British. Yet here's Connor trying to kill him while Arnold looks to still be on the American side.
Maybe it's a chance for historical revenge. Give American players the chance to scrub out one of their history's most notorious villains before he's even had a chance to turn his coat. Or it's a tease, and you screw up, not actually killing him. Because in the actual war, Arnold ended up in England and died years after America had secured its independence.
Curiously, there's also a Union Jack flying above the ramparts of the fort, which given the number of American soldiers on the screen (and Arnold's current allegiance) hints that the attempted hit might take place during a battle early in the war, like the assault Arnold led in the famous capture of Fort Ticonderoga in 1775.
Or, you know. It's just a mis-labelled screenshot, and this is just some guy. Whatever! At the end of the day, that's Connor about to kill (or try and kill) an American, maybe plural, and while this might not be a big deal to Americans, for those outside of the US hoping that the game wasn't entirely a protracted cry of AMERICA FUCK YEAH, it's a welcome sight.
It must also be a welcome relief to the developers, who despite having programmed American murders into the game months ago have had to sit silent while the marketing team did their thing. Then again, with the American-focused E3 behind us and all eyes on Europe's GamesCom this week, it's hardly a big surprise, either!
UPDATE - Reader FMNikku spotted a few Americans on the wrong end of a blade in the night-time sections of this trailer from earlier in the month. So, same basic point applies, only rewind the date by two weeks!