Assassin's Creed

I have been waiting for this game for literally months. I remember when I first purchased my XBOX 360 almost a year ago and this game was being talked about then. I pre-ordered as soon as I could and have been waiting patiently for it to arrive. Fortunately I had Bioshock to keep me occupied in the meantime (actually unfortunately, as Bioshock highlights how inadequate Assassins Creed actually is)

The game finally arrived a few days ago and I had the weekend to burn really getting into the game. The first disappointment was that this game is actually set in the future. The character you control, a decendant of Altair has been kidnapped and is forced to enter a machine called the 'animus' which transports him back to the 1100's and lets him control the action.

Firstly, why?! Whilst you're back in the 1100's the game is visually beautiful. I'd have thought that there was enough material to come up with a decent storyline that was set in era of the Crusades, one of the biggest events in history, so why the modern take? It just slows the game down and gets really irritating after a very short time.

This issue aside, as mentioned, the game is a visual treat. The cities are extremely detailed as are the people that wander around in it, but games should be about more than just looking good. The gameplay and storyline really leave a lot to be desired.

Once I'd gotten to grips with the controls for sword-fighting, I actually started to enjoy getting into scrapes with a large number of guards, but very soon I found that there was no need to avoid them at all. Once you've got most of your weapons back, it's quite easy to face off against 10 guards, then dodge, counter and knife-throw them all to death within a few seconds.

The missions are also extremely samey and no matter how good the game looks, after you've jumped off your 50th building into yet another conveniently placed haystack, it's really lost it appeal.

I have to admit that I did get a lot of satisfaction after each successful assassination, but the main problem I have is that I've spent £40 on a game that I won't play again. I purchased Bioshock pre-owned for £29.99 after a friend recommended to me and I have to say, it puts this game to shame. Not only does it have the right mix of gameplay and graphics, but real work has gone into the storyline here.

Somehow Ubisoft have taken what should have been a epic story and turned it into one of the biggest flops of the year.

It's a shame, I really, really wanted to like this game.

First of all may I commend what Lumington has said in his review, my respect Lumington and Ninja 1507 for writing a proper review that looks at both sides of the coin.

Assassins Creed had been playing on my mind for over a year, I pre-ordered it from game and recieved it on the 15th Nov, a day before it was released.

I was initially dissapointed with the futuristic storyline, so much memory has been wasted there that could have been used to further enhance the medieval experience.

However, when the future lapsed for a while I became extemely impressed with the fighting system and loved the animation on the running and climbing aspects. The graphics are the best no doubt. I began to forget about the future and believe that this was a great game. The swordplay is unmatched in my opinion by any other game to date (in one on one circumstances) the counter kills, strikes and attacks are revolutionary. The sound track is good and helps to maintain the medieval aura around you. I also like how u can change the view in cut scenes and the chats Altair has with his victims once he has stabbed them in the neck. There are good points to the story line and it holds the inspiration to complete the game. The investigations are at first entertaining and enjoyable, especially the interrogations. Climbing to view points is also a good trait and allows you to see the effort Ubisoft have exerted into the atmosphere and detail factors.

Unfotunately, it is time to move onto the bad points of the game.

I will bring up a couple of valid points that Lemington gave, the AI is terrible, guards dont seem to be aware of what is occuring around them and have a habit of jumping off buildings and killing themselves when they fail to find you.

Onto the negative aspects of the combat, after getting used to the controls and situations the fighting becomes painfully easy, in a real-life situation when you have 10-15 trained soldiers/guards around you, "not a chance" comes to mind. Plus the issue that only one guard at a time attacks throws realism out of the window, and this is a great shame because the combat system had pontential to be the best to date. To say that Altair is hard to kill is an understatement, he is human and when a human has been slashed several times with a sword he is not going to be as he was when the combat commenced.

Onto the investigations, extremely repetative and potentially irritating, Ubisoft have failed to incorporate variety and this leads to boredom, they become a chure. The futuristic side of the game poses a very negative aspect in my eyes, I think im right in saying that players have no interest in this whatsoever.

Another point of Lumingtons, the voices, as an Englishman I can also identify an American making a poor attempt at a southern accent. It irritates me that Altair's and others voices are American, in this era an American accent did not exist, however small an issue this may seem it destroys some of the atmosphere.

A few small points of my own, All guards/soldiers carry swords and swords only, I find this dissapointing, a variety of maces, clubs, axes, ball and chain, shields etc. would have been much more realistic and fun. Altair is ristricted to his weapons which can get repetative. Also in the trailer, I see a small crossbow on Altairs back, where is it?? These points may seem small but have a big effect on the game for me.

The story line is not complex enough and is too strict. There are no alternative routes or side missions that can be completed after the main quest. Barely any buildings can be entered.

Overall, a good experience but not a great game, people with a built up expectation will be dissapointed.

Ironically, though, the game's friendly controls are also its biggest shortcoming; killing your target normally instigates a chase sequence where you freerun across the rooftops and make fearsome leaps of faith to dodge your pursuers. But as there's no jump button and your hero will perform most acrobatic moves automatically - Legend Of Zelda-style - the controls strip the game of the visceral thrill of making moves at precisely the right moment like you did in the developer's earlier Prince Of Persia: The Sands Of Time, making AC's most exciting moments feel flat and as if they're being played by someone else.

What may not be clear from the title and the box is that this is more of a game within a game. The actual plot has you as some modern day guy who's forced to use a machine that recalls memories of his past life as an assassin. During the game there are intentional PC glitches all over the place, which are also used to mask the quite long loading times. Once you get used to the idea that every time you do something wrong some random PC text will appear over the screen and get into the game it becomes very enjoyable. The combat system is spot on, enabling you to react quickly to the situation and also pull off some fancy counter-attacks. Another great aspect is the free running; hold down a couple of buttons, decide where you want to go and your character leaps around interacting with the entire environment. The plot is interesting, although from the beginning it's clear that it's all going to climax with some moral dilemma or other. In many ways it's a medieval GTA, with horses instead of cars - although the environment isn't entirely open; going from one city to the next is slightly more restrictive, but still fun. All-in-all it's a knock down from the best Xbox games available, but it certainly offers more value-for-money than say something like Bioshock.

If you like prince of persia, then you will like this because assassins creed is prince of persia in everything but name.
This game could have been so much more, as it is after the first two levels then you might aswell not bother.
Every level is the same apart from location - climb for eagle view, pickpocket, interogate, evesdrop then kill the target.
There is no feeling of time passing, all mission are in daylight, no difference in weather (always bright and sunny).
Once you have dispatched an enemy or guard you cant retrieve their weapon or your weapon ie arrows/throwing knives.
In my view if you want to play this game wait a couple of months for the price to drop, then buy, because it is certainly not worth its current price