assassin's creed
- Platform: Xbox360/PS3
- Genre: Action/Adventure
- Developer/Publisher: Ubisoft Montreal/Ubisoft
- Release: 19/11/2010
Not prepared to drop the series’ most successful and interesting character yet, Ubisoft have brought back Ezio Auditore for another round; the 20 plus hours of gameplay and a brand new multiplayer mode prove that this is no add-on-pack, but rather the best Assassins creed yet.
Picking up where the previous game left off, you take control of Ezio in 15th century Italy. This time, rather than allowing you to explore the different districts of Italy, the game is set in Rome. This doesn’t mean that it’s much smaller than the previous titles, the city of Rome and its surrounding country side gives Ezio a huge playground to, well... play in. Without spoiling too much of the story, Ezio returns to Rome to put together a brotherhood of Assassins to take down the Templars, and his new arch enemy Cesare Borgia, the man responsible for the death of your family.
The story is fascinating, deep, kind of historically accurate (!?) and part of something much bigger. The plot behind the plot, for anyone who doesn’t know Assassins Creed, is that you are in fact playing as Desmond Miles in the year 2012. Desmond is part of the new Assassins brotherhood attempting to foil a new templar plot to take control of the world. The only way to solve this problem? Climb into a machine called the Animus, and access the genetic memories of your ancestors. Obviously. This is part of what makes Brotherhood so special, at any time you can pull Desmond out of the animus and explore the modern day surroundings, it makes your time in the animus seem like something that is genuinely occurring and making a difference.
So that is where Ezio comes in, free-roaming around Roma, building up a reputation for himself and his new brotherhood. For anyone new to the series, the mechanics are simple, you use parkour style moves to run across rooftops, sneak amongst crowds to take down the city guards and fight your opponents with an addictive combat system. The sandbox style gameplay eventually allows you to purchase houses around the city, explore Rome at your own leisure and pursue the assassination contracts or story based missions at your own speed.
Once you have trained the assassins up you can call them into help you on missions in the main quest, and they are incredibly effective, taking down opponents in one hit or creating a diversion so you can escape on the brilliantly animated horses
The main plot can last up to 20 hours and includes such a huge variety of missions it would be impossible to list here; stray off the beaten path and you can find other side quests, such as working for the thieves’ guild or searching for hidden treasures in secret tombs. There is so much to do, but at no point did I feel overwhelmed. The map is split into three main areas, and has 12 Borgia towers scattered across it. As in the old style of gameplay, you have to climb the towers to unlock the viewpoint, consequently opening new missions and areas to explore. However, just like everything else in the game, this has been stepped up a level by the inclusion of a guard captain you must kill before being able to access the viewpoint, destroying the Borgia influence in the area, unlocking much more.
15th century Rome looks amazing, the countryside looks beautiful and the character models and animations are close to perfection. The artwork is eye candy, and helps you to be able to stare at the screen for the five hour plus game sessions this addictive game will inevitably lead you to. The city and its surrounding areas are bustling with beggars, guards and thieves. All of the NPC’s fill the game world with believable extra’s; simply existing in this universe is a pleasing experience. Ezio Auditore’s character design is refreshing and cool; everything from his assassins cloak that blows in the wind to his scars look and feel new, making him one of the most memorable video game characters in recent years.
The new addition to the core mechanic comes in the form of a new sim-mode, and leaves you wondering why no company has yet picked up sim-assassins. In the old games, approaching a pigeon coop would allow you to accept the various assassination contracts that were on offer. In Brotherhood this option is still available, but now you can run a whole team of assassins, send them off on individual quests, upgrade your assassins through an experience points system and earn money. Once you have trained the assassins up you can call them into help you on missions in the main quest, and they are incredibly effective, taking down opponents in one hit or creating a diversion so you can escape on the brilliantly animated horses. The menu system to do this is a bit complicated at first, but like the rest of the menus in-game, the stylish animus aesthetic doesn’t deter you from coming back. This game within a game (within a game), becomes increasingly addictive, and the mini-game that involves tracking down the oppressed citizens of Rome, to then train them up into the killing machines you need is also surprisingly satisfying.
The parkour elements of the first two games returns, with the same satisfying feeling you get when you leap from one building to the next to escape pursuing guards. The simple but effective combat system remains, picking different weapons like the deadly hidden blade or the long sword to dispatch your enemies in a variety of imaginative ways. The further you get into your combinations and flow of battle, the deadlier you become; eventually you pick up the gun attachment for your wrist, you can combine the melee combat with this, getting multi-kills. The combat system just works, and makes you feel like the silent killer that Ubisoft Montreal intended.
The voice acting is superbly done, and the writing is excellent. Not even the biggest story within games haters will find themselves skipping the brilliantly directed cut scenes. The calming orchestral music compliments the setting well, and the music picks up around the action packed moments to really ramp up the sense of pace. With the addition of multiplayer and a fantastically long and satisfying campaign mode, this game is an absolute must play; it will have you wishing you could put on your robes and run across rooftops before you can say ‘Requiescat in Pace’.
Verdict: 9/10
Female First Edward Lewis
- Platform: Xbox360/PS3
- Genre: Action/Adventure
- Developer/Publisher: Ubisoft Montreal/Ubisoft
- Release: 19/11/2010
Not prepared to drop the series’ most successful and interesting character yet, Ubisoft have brought back Ezio Auditore for another round; the 20 plus hours of gameplay and a brand new multiplayer mode prove that this is no add-on-pack, but rather the best Assassins creed yet.
Picking up where the previous game left off, you take control of Ezio in 15th century Italy. This time, rather than allowing you to explore the different districts of Italy, the game is set in Rome. This doesn’t mean that it’s much smaller than the previous titles, the city of Rome and its surrounding country side gives Ezio a huge playground to, well... play in. Without spoiling too much of the story, Ezio returns to Rome to put together a brotherhood of Assassins to take down the Templars, and his new arch enemy Cesare Borgia, the man responsible for the death of your family.
The story is fascinating, deep, kind of historically accurate (!?) and part of something much bigger. The plot behind the plot, for anyone who doesn’t know Assassins Creed, is that you are in fact playing as Desmond Miles in the year 2012. Desmond is part of the new Assassins brotherhood attempting to foil a new templar plot to take control of the world. The only way to solve this problem? Climb into a machine called the Animus, and access the genetic memories of your ancestors. Obviously. This is part of what makes Brotherhood so special, at any time you can pull Desmond out of the animus and explore the modern day surroundings, it makes your time in the animus seem like something that is genuinely occurring and making a difference.
So that is where Ezio comes in, free-roaming around Roma, building up a reputation for himself and his new brotherhood. For anyone new to the series, the mechanics are simple, you use parkour style moves to run across rooftops, sneak amongst crowds to take down the city guards and fight your opponents with an addictive combat system. The sandbox style gameplay eventually allows you to purchase houses around the city, explore Rome at your own leisure and pursue the assassination contracts or story based missions at your own speed.
The main plot can last up to 20 hours and includes such a huge variety of missions it would be impossible to list here; stray off the beaten path and you can find other side quests, such as working for the thieves’ guild or searching for hidden treasures in secret tombs. There is so much to do, but at no point did I feel overwhelmed. The map is split into three main areas, and has 12 Borgia towers scattered across it. As in the old style of gameplay, you have to climb the towers to unlock the viewpoint, consequently opening new missions and areas to explore. However, just like everything else in the game, this has been stepped up a level by the inclusion of a guard captain you must kill before being able to access the viewpoint, destroying the Borgia influence in the area, unlocking much more.
15th century Rome looks amazing, the countryside looks beautiful and the character models and animations are close to perfection. The artwork is eye candy, and helps you to be able to stare at the screen for the five hour plus game sessions this addictive game will inevitably lead you to. The city and its surrounding areas are bustling with beggars, guards and thieves. All of the NPC’s fill the game world with believable extra’s; simply existing in this universe is a pleasing experience. Ezio Auditore’s character design is refreshing and cool; everything from his assassins cloak that blows in the wind to his scars look and feel new, making him one of the most memorable video game characters in recent years.
The new addition to the core mechanic comes in the form of a new sim-mode, and leaves you wondering why no company has yet picked up sim-assassins. In the old games, approaching a pigeon coop would allow you to accept the various assassination contracts that were on offer. In Brotherhood this option is still available, but now you can run a whole team of assassins, send them off on individual quests, upgrade your assassins through an experience points system and earn money. Once you have trained the assassins up you can call them into help you on missions in the main quest, and they are incredibly effective, taking down opponents in one hit or creating a diversion so you can escape on the brilliantly animated horses. The menu system to do this is a bit complicated at first, but like the rest of the menus in-game, the stylish animus aesthetic doesn’t deter you from coming back. This game within a game (within a game), becomes increasingly addictive, and the mini-game that involves tracking down the oppressed citizens of Rome, to then train them up into the killing machines you need is also surprisingly satisfying.