The Animus is the device that lets users relive their ancestors' genetic memories in Assassin's Creed.
Abstergo Industries develops the Animus as a machine capable of reconstructing memories inherited through a user's DNA. The first game uses it to make Desmond Miles experience Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad's life during the Third Crusade.
The device provides the franchise's transition between modern-day science fiction and historical settings. Users remain in the present while viewing and, through the game's interface, interacting with reconstructed ancestral experiences. The series later presents several Animus models, including versions used by Abstergo and by the modern Assassin organization.
The Animus is often confused with the Bleeding Effect. The Bleeding Effect is a side effect in which skills or memories from an ancestor can influence the user after extended exposure. The Animus itself is the machine, not the effect. The term is also separate from fictional locations and artifacts such as the Observatory and Pieces of Eden.