fledged member of the Assassin Brotherhood. The decision to have Desmond killed off in Assassin's Creed III also proved controversial, as both critics and players noticed a significant decrease in the importance of the series' modern-day storyline after his death. Nevertheless, Desmond is considered to be a significant part of the franchise's identity. Creation and development According to his voice actor Nolan North, the original plan for Desmond was that he would feature in six games, acquiring the skills of his Assassin ancestors to become "The Ultimate Assassin", and at some point would be able to time-travel between different time periods. North became greatly interested in the concept but was scrapped. Adding upon this, North commented that he saw Desmond as a boring protagonist who ultimately had no direction to go forward, describing the character as "a fork in the road". Desmond has been defined as a MacGuffin, namely that "he exists to move the story forward, but he provides little substance." Following the release of Assassin's Creed III and the conclusion of Desmond's storyline, lead designer Steve Master said: "What we're trying to do is bring some finality to Desmond's story. To actually wrap up what you've opened and experienced with him." Jean Guesdon, the creative director of the series, later said that Desmond is an important character in the Assassin's Creed series, and that despite his death, he would continue to play an important role in the franchise. In 2016, Michael Fassbender starred in and co-produced a film adaptation of the series, titled Assassin's Creed. Initially thought to be cast as Desmond, Ubisoft later stated that Fassbender would play a new character, named Callum "Cal" Lynch. Appearances Assassin's Creed In the first Assassin's Creed, Desmond is introduced as a former Assassin leading a simple life as a bartender in New York City. In order to hide his identity, he lives under assumed names and uses only cash to protect himself. Despite this, he is eventually tracked down and captured by Abstergo Industries, a pharmaceutical company used as a front by the modern-day Templar Order. Once inside Abstergo's facility in Rome, Desmond is forced to enter the Animus, a machine that allows him to relive the memories of his ancestors stored in his DNA. The Animus translates these memories into a three-dimensional environment, where Desmond retains some degree of control, but must remain synchronized with his ancestors' exact actions