We knew it wasn't going to take long. A game doesn't sell 1.5 million copies worldwide in its first week and ship 8 million copies in three months without getting a sequel. And while Assassin's Creed III isn't slated for release until April 2011, Ezio Auditore da Firenze will be slitting Templar throats a bit earlier than that.
From an anonymous tipster, Kotaku received an image of GameStop-branded pre-order box art for a game called Assassin's Creed Brotherhood. The back cover text fits with what we previously knew about the title. The text reads, "Live and breathe as Ezio, now a legendary master assassin, in his struggle against the Templar order. Lead your own brotherhood of Assassins and strike at the heart of the enemy. Rome. And for the first time, take part in an innovative multiplayer layer allowing you to embody an assassin of your choosing and define their killing style. A never-before-seen online multiplayer experience. Lead your own brotherhood of assassins, as Ezio, and conquer Rome."
Ubisoft later confirmed to Kotaku that the art was in fact real: "Ubisoft confirms the authenticity of this image and will provide more information next week." The title looks to be coming for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC in Fall 2010. Pre-ordering through GameStop will also net players an "exclusive multi-player character." Bets on Altair anyone?
