A main Assassin's Creed game could feature a female protagonist in the future — in fact, it "wouldn't be surprising," said Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag director Ashraf Ismail in an interview with IGN.

Asked why Black Flag features another male lead, Ismail said that Ubisoft planned long ago that Assassin's Creed 3 and Black Flag would "tell the story of the Kenways." For that reason, he said, "We actually never thought, 'Could this be a woman?'"

But Ismail said Ubisoft isn't against having a female lead in a future Assassin's Creed title.

"I would say it wouldn't be surprising to see a female assassin coming up in a mainline Assassin's Creed," he told IGN. To date, the only Assassin's Creed game that has starred a female character is the PlayStation Vita title Assassin's Creed 3: Liberation.

"I actually don't know what the brand team is working on for the next few games," Ismail added. "But the concept of a female assassin — I can tell you it's not a no-no, it's not something we're trying to avoid at all."

Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag launches Oct. 29 on PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and Wii U. It will also be available on Windows PC, PlayStation 4 and other next-generation consoles. For all the details on Black Flag, check out our preview with video here.