I know that Assassin’s Creed 2 has been out for a little while now, but lets not forget where it all began.
Initially my reaction when I first saw this game advertised on a popular gadget related show on TV was one of scepticism. It looked like a rip off of the popular Prince of Persia games which had been making a rocky re-entry into the gaming world and I decided against purchasing it as I had seen it all before….or so I thought.
When I eventually made the decision to purchase the game my mind was instantly changed for the better. From the very beginning when you are placed into the initial training mode section, to the very end (which I will not spoil for those of you yet to play this game) the story flowed as easily as any Hollywood blockbuster. You play the role of a bartender called Desmond Miles who is captured by a scientific organisation to test out their new machine, the Animus. The Animus is integral to the plot of the game as it allows Desmond to visit and control one of his past lives through his genetic memory. The past self known as Altair is the character you will be playing as throughout most of the game with Desmonds sections being little more than plot filler. It is when you step into the past that the game really hits its high. Altair is a trained assassin with some formidable skills at his disposal, at least to start with. He displeases his clan and has to earn the right to use his weapons again and through this allows you as the player to learn the finer points of the control system.
The game is a fun blend of stealth, action and treasure hunting of a sort with an expansive world which is truly beautiful to behold. And at last there is a game which at least tries to explain the strange invisible walls that so often appear in so called open world games. You can only go to places which Altair has visited himself as you are only following along the genetic memory of Desmond. If Altair hasn’t seen it or been there then there is no way for you to visit the areas either. Also the memories have to be unlocked in sequence so you can’t visit places until you have completed the tasks in a linear method. Talking about the places you can visit, Altair is skilled in Parkour/freerunning so you can pretty much run, jump and climb your way up every building and through every street that your memories allow you to. This makes your job as an assassin much easier to perform.
There are so many ways in which you can achieve your goals in this game, but the main aim is stealth, after all you are an assassin and whoever heard of an assassin who could kill people in public with no consequence? If you do get caught however a meter appears and lets you know the extent of the trouble you are in, guards will be summoned and you will be chased throughout the area until you either lose them or you are killed. This is where your free running skills come in handy.
My major problem with this game is that there is no way to skip cut scenes unless you have played them already and the loading screens seem to take forever. Also the scenes with Desmond, although interesting, could put casual gamers off, they are overly long and there is absolutely no action involved. I enjoyed these scenes but to be honest if there had even been something extra to do other than chat and look at the computer in these sections I would have been happier, it takes away from the fast paced adventure section.
The controls of the game are simple and easy to use after around 10 minutes of playing the main adventure. The only tricky parts are learning the more advanced moves but these also become second nature as you continue to play. My only problem was the urge to run through towns instead of using the blend in control option which often caused my imminent death.
The free running element of the game is controlled by a single button press and the rate at which Altair runs through the city is not superhuman, just simply skilled as he climbs up buildings using obvious handholds. He is not Spider-Man however and can only climb using these aforementioned handholds, but when you get to the top of some of the highest buildings the view is spectacular.
It is hard to find bad points about this game and you can tell that a lot of effort has been put into making it as comfortable an experience for the gamer as the designers could mention. That’s not to say there aren’t little bugs and annoyances as befits any game of this calibre, but the pro’s far outweigh the cons and this should be a part of any adventure loving gamers collection.
This is one of the better titles that Ubisoft has to offer and at the moment due to the sequel being released recently it is a bargain to buy.
VideogameUK verdict: 8/10
