In Assassin's Creed, the Animus is the fictional machine that lets users relive genetic memories.
The device appears in the modern-day sections of the series. A person enters the Animus and experiences memories inherited through their ancestors, allowing the games to shift between contemporary characters and historical protagonists.
Abstergo Industries originally develops the Animus as part of its research and control of genetic memories. The Assassin Brotherhood later uses related technology for its own investigations. The concept provides the series with a narrative explanation for exploring different centuries and locations.
The Animus is not the same as an Apple of Eden. Apples are powerful Isu artifacts that influence minds, while the Animus is a machine used to access ancestral memories. “Helix” is the name of a later entertainment and memory-experience platform within the fiction.