User blog comment:Peter Griffen Boy/Where will ACIII take place./@comment-1681720-20100620160938

I think most of ACIII will take place in modern times (or more accurate: the not so distant future). Japan seems unlikely because there's completly no link between Ezio/Altaïr and Japan. So it will be all or at least mainly modern times. Somethig I hope for but probably isn't going to happen: An assassin's creed game in WWI. This is very plausible as Ubisoft has said that they want to make games in times that aren't used that much, and while there are like a million WWII games. WWI is almost never featured in any game.

So I gues it will be Desmond at least most of the time. But WWI would be very cool too.

P.S.: I agree that Desmond will probably be able to visit his ancestors now and then without the Animus, but i have no idea how this will be done in-game.