Assassin’s Creed II

10 Review to this product

• 

  SDP
  November 18th, 2009 on 8:33 am

  Rating

  With it’s expansive world and sandbox style game play this is a large improvement over the original, although fun it could get old by doing the same three side missions over and over. So far the setting of old time Italy, which is gorgeous, is more enjoyable than the middle east of the last game. Ubisoft listened to their fans gave this great series a re-hauling that it deserved, if you enjoyed the first game you’ll definitely enjoy this one.
• 

  Marvelous07
  November 18th, 2009 on 4:01 pm

  Rating

  The ubisoft office based in Montreal is becoming my favorite developer and publisher by far. Here we have creators that actually took feedback from the consumers, soaked up all the ideas and redelivered a more entertaining sequel than its predecessor! Assassin’s Creed II comes back revamped, improved, and flawless in everyway imaginable; the game literally picks up right after the first, and it keeps you inclined to progress with as much of your free time as possible.

  First and far most you will notice better graphics, in-comparison to ACI where as the opening sequence takes place in the very same room you completed the game in. I’m not one to reveal any kinds of spoilers, so I will avoid any description of the story as I describe my first 6 hours with this game. The story its self is much more compelling this time around, you will be drawn into this fictional world that is a mix of historical facts.

  The controls have very much improved; being much more interactive this time around; you will find yourself sometimes missing ques to push certain buttons during cutscences. The voice acting is near perfect, with some of the better lip syncing thus far on this generation of consoles. There is also more incentive to explore the city this time around, with discoveries of chests filled with money, shops to upgrade and errands to run.

  The fighting is one of my favorite improvements this time around, not only is there more variety of moves with your sword, but disarming guards and killing them with their weapon is very entertaining. Also very important was the add-on of punching combinations, grabbing guards and head butting, or even throwing guards off ledges! The new vanish system is much more realistic this time around; blending in with the crowds or hiring prostitutes to distract guards just adds to the “fun factor” of interactive game play. You are much more intertwined with the story this time, feeling like a mix of role playing and adventure!

  Regardless if you’ve played the first Assassins Creed or not, you will pick up the controls fairly easy with this one. It’s a holiday title that will NOT disappoint, with a campaign stretching over 40 hours long, multiple missions and exploration… You’ll discover hours have past and it’s already time to go to bed. Don’t just take my word for it, rent or purchase it for yourself!

  UPDATE 11/20/09

  I’ve had a couple more days and about 8 more hours of game play added to my Creed time and I’m just astonished with everything they’ve added to this game. It just amazes me that you even have an option of going to a tailor and changes the appearance of your assassin clothes! I have Ezio wearing black now, and as I’ve said before this game pushes the interactive buttom more than once. I also finally had the pleasure of killing two guards with two blades, and I it’s literally as bad ass as everyone has previously stated… Pulling guards off ledges is awesome, and they’ve even added a Splinter Cell Element to the game of picking up dead guards and hiding them in a different location!

  All the side missions keep this game from ever getting repetitive, and another awesome feature is granting you the ability to control a city in terms of reconstruction and wealth… Depending how you delegate your cash, you can upgrade shops and take anyway from 5 – 15% of the profit. Giving you another task of taking earnings and moving them to a different location. Exploration never gets boring, as there are plenty of things to find, such as feathers, chests, and/or stealing from others… Also when you are notorious and on high look out from guards, you can now lower your wanted level by tearing down posters, killing guards in the area or bribing others to not talk about you.

  I absolutely love this game, I also own MW2 and I haven’t played it in the past two days because I’m having so much fun with AC2… BTW, they also added underground Assassin tombs to be explored under the city, and it’s so reminiscent of Prince of Persia, Sands of Time that it adds to this games value!
  
• 

  Michael Corona
  November 18th, 2009 on 4:21 pm

  Rating

  Assassins Creed 2 – Circa 2009

  GOOD:
  
  - A good story mixes elements of historical fiction and a Sci-Fi epic.
  
  - Really impressive graphics and first-rate animations, that looks just as good as games like Uncharted 2 on PS3 and Gears of War 2 on 360.
  
  - The game world is even bigger then the last one (it really rivals games like Fallout 3) also IF taking a horse across the land still takes too long some times don’t worry there are warp points now as well.
  
  - In the first Assassin’s Creed there was about 5 different mission types (chase someone, pickpocket someone, save someone from getting beat up, spy on targets, and then stealth kill, ect) in Assassin’s Creed 2 there is like 15 different mission types now from all out battles, trailing a targets, beating up unfaithful husbands and lots of different types of stealth killing also all the old types in Assassins Creed 1 are here as well.
  
  - You have a better opportunity to be a more cunning assassin now due to newer weapons, techniques, and skills.
  
  - You can now swim, no more letting water be your foe heck you can even drive gondolas if you wanted.
  
  - like the first title this one has great sound track too that mixes music of the era during the clam points of the game and more modern type of music during the chase points of the game.

  BAD:
  
  - Some small problems from the first are still there – although they are a lot more minor now like some times roof top running (parkour) can be a tad sloppy in a tense situations and you’ll get killed (small camera problems). (I didn’t really see this in my play through but some people have told me it happens so I am letting you know here)
  
  - Losing that cool sword: you have the ability to disarm enemies and kill them with their own weapons now (this never gets old) – BUT – you also drop you own original sword in the process making you having to dig among the bodies to find it again and hope it’s not lost. ::UPDATE:: I put this wrong it seems, you never lose your weapons when doing a disarm attack (it yes it never gets old); you only seem to lose your weapon when a stronger enemy (usually a knight in a suit of armor) knocks it outta your hand, and this is still a bit rare. Then you would have to find your weapon though or pick up a new one later.
  
  - Too much Money? When you first start the game money is a bit hard to come by and weapons/armor are pretty expensive, while this can be a bit frustrating at first it builds gameplay and gives you goals outside of the missions to work towards. Now after you play for few hours and missions give you better pay and you fully upgrade your villa/town (this will automatically give you tons of free money; sorta like owning property in Fable 2 or GTA: Vice City) money becomes a non issue. Then getting paid at the end of missions seems pointless as well as doing Templar Secret location missions, which while fun, the entire point is to find a treasure room for yet more now pointless money. Anyways a few hours into the game and the in-game economy is broken to the point were you feel they should have done like Assassins Creed 1 and never had in-game money and just give you all your weapons/items based on mission progress.

  IF IT FITS YOUR TASTE:
  
  - A Stealth/action game set during the late 15th century and early 16th Italian Renaissance. You play as a man who becomes an Assassin in order to carry out revenge of his family.
  
  - You spend more time in the Animus and less time as Desmond over all.
  
  - The control is broken down mainly into two areas of gameplay there is a passive action and an aggressive action to almost everything you can do in the game. For example you can lightly tap people to move out of your way while walking down crowed the street (hold the B button to do this) or shove people as you run down that same street (hold the R button and the B button to do this). This duality applies to all your actions and it becomes necessary because during the game you must be able to move freely between these two states (passive and aggressive) to run and then hide from people the out to get you as well as to sneak up on and kill your victims.
  
  - You can now hire help like as body guards to protect with you might or street-walkers to use their bodies to distract armed guards.
  
  - Lot of what you will be doing is climbing and jumping from buildings this plays similar to the Prince of Persia games also made by ubisoft (the sands of time series). Although in this game the controls are more streamlined and user friendly as you can climb way more effectively as well as more realistically (even more then the first game).
  
  - In the first game most of the gameplay is not so much assassinating people but gathering Intel on your targets. This game retains some of that but expands on the concept so much you’ll never think you’re doing busy work (like the first) and you have a lot more big kill targets as well.
  
  - Combat has been refined by adding things like hammers, clubs, smoke bombs, and the hidden (now dual) assassin blades of course, plus you can steal enemies’ weapons and use it against them too. The combat has a bit more over all intelligent flow from the first game, although it builds on that idea.
  
  - Mix up you clothing colors by buy buying dyes for you outfit (in colors like red, green, and black) as well as unlocking new capes for your character. Also buy things like health potions, poisons, new weapons, new armor, and even treasure maps and famous paintings for your villa.
  
  - You even get a villa (which is basically works like a small personal town) which you can upgrade by renting out space to local store owners and then getting goods (the main house seems to be the only place you can swap weapons and armor apparently).

  GAME ITS MOST ASSOCATED TOO:
  
  - Assassins Creed (360/PS3/PC)
  
  - Grand Theft Auto 4 (360/PS3)
  
  - HitMan: Blood Money (360)
  
  - Prince of Persia (Xbox/PS2)
  
  - Metal Gear Solid 4 (PS3)

  ADDITIONAL NOTES:
  
  - Ezio the star of Assassins Creed 2 is related to Altaïr of the first game and Desmond is related to both of them
  
  - Assassin’s Creed: Lineage, a small set of mini movies (with real actors and CG effects) telling the story leading up to Assassins Creed 2 about Ezio’s father (who was also an Assassin). These movies are made by Ubisoft and are found on the internet for free – so go see them.
  
  - Assassin’s Creed: Bloodlines (starting Altaïr of the first game) is a PSP game with Connectivity with the PS3 version of this game that can unlock six exclusive and unique weapons in Assassins Creed 2.
  
  - The game skips chapters 12 and 13 – These chapters come in as two downloads for this game. One called The Battle of Forlì and the other called Bonfire of the Vanities. There is also a version of the download Bonfire of the Vanities which comes with the three bonus missions (more Templar Secret locations) previously only found on the limited edition version of Assassins Creed 2.
  
  - At the start screen of Assassin Creed 2 (and also in Splinter Cell: Conviction) you’ll see an option of something called Uplay. Uplay is a systems set up by Ubisoft to give players who unlock achievements/trophies in this game bounces for playing Assassins Creed 2. Some things you can unlock in Assassins Creed 2 are a theme for your Xbox 360 or PS3, more throwing knifes for your character, or even unlocking Altaïr’s assassins robes from Assassins Creed 1 (which is really cool), and even a new secret assassins tomb under your villa/town.
• 

  M. Squires
  November 19th, 2009 on 2:42 am

  Rating

  I haven’t finished this game yet, but I guess I better make my review before too many 1 star idiots show up and destroy the reputation of a brilliant game.

  If you enjoyed the first game for the great story line and graphics, but found the game play to be a little repetitive and glitchy, you should definitely like this game. Ubisoft really managed to keep everything that was brilliant from the first game while fixing most of the issues and annoyances.

  The scenery is still brilliant and the characters in the cut scenes look so realistic that sometimes it felt like I was watching a movie. The voice acting is also brilliantly done; both of these aspects really help suck you into the excellent story that this game gives.

  The combat system is much improved from the first game; as soon as you get DaVinci to repair your “wrist blade” contraption, you can start stabing unsuspecting guards in the neck….even more fun than it sounds.

  The game starts out a little slow; you’ll be beating people up a lot, but you don’t get any weapons for a little while. This is all part of building a great story though, so don’t give up on it too early (the blood will come).

  If you didn’t play the first game, you might want to rent it or at least read an story overview online. The game presents a few back story cutscenes, but if you didn’t play AC1, you might feel that the story is lacking a little. It is after all a continuation from the first game.

  Game ratings:
  
  Graphics: 10/10
  
  Audio: 10/10
  
  voice acting: 10/10
  
  Combat System: 10/10
  
  Controls: 9/10 (Sometimes I jump up on something when it’s not what I intended; however, this is what allows you to scale building and run around so fast and easily, so it’s an acceptable consequence. Once you get a good handle on the controls, this shouldn’t be a big issue)

  All in all, I think that this was the sequel I was hoping for and I’m eager to finish it and see where the story goes.

  Don’t usually review games this early in play, but I hate seeing 1 star reviews already bashing it and bringing down the rating. It’s a shame to see such a great game with an overall 3.5 star rating.

  14Dec2009
  
  Update:

  I’ve since finished playing this game and I have to say, “Wow”! It was just great all the way through, and kept me wanting more. My only gripe would be a little bit of a rehash for the repetitive game play people loathed in the first game. If you don’t collect all of those codec’s, it will make you before you can finish the game. Don’t worry though; they’ll give you a map that tells you where they are at least. I’m still a little disappointed that I have to collect them at all though; it’s all too familiar with what I hated about the first game.

  Despite the few repetitive monotonous game play tasks that surface, the game is most excellent. The story gets pretty crazy, but in a good way. Some things are explained, but many mysteries surface. Overall though, much better ending that the first game that didn’t leave me feeling as confused and empty. It definitely should leave you wanting more; too bad I have to wait two years to finish the story…at least Mass Effect 2 will be coming out, and of course there’s still COD.

  One question though: In this game it’s explained that you’ll learn to become an assassin in real life from the simulation you go through. How is it that you didn’t learn squat the in the first game? Apart from eagle vision that is. I thought it was a cool aspect to incorperate into the game, but it’s never really explained how you didn’t learn to fight from playing as Altier. Just wondering.
  
• 

  Carl Carter
  November 19th, 2009 on 10:22 am

  Rating

  I’ll be the first to admit that the first Assassin’s Creed had it’s faults. However, I did enjoy it quite a bit. Although I was pretty sure I would enjoy Assassin’s Creed II, I had no idea exactly how much I would love it. Read on for the full review, or skip to the BOTTOM LINE for the short and to the point recommendation.

  GAMEPLAY
  
  Admittedly, I haven’t finished the game yet. However, I can tell you that the structure is greatly improved from the first one. Gone are the rigidly structured assassinations where you must complete a certain amount of the same sidequests. Now, you can see the sidequests on your map (including race, beat-up random guy, etc.) but they are completely optional. Another part of the first Assassin’s Creed that I didn’t like was the insane amount of collectibles placed in the various cities in the form of flags. These are gone as well. There are still things to collect (statues in the home city and codex pages), but they are a lot more fun to find and, in the case of the codex pages, are marked on your map. In addition, there are secret glyph puzzles and crypts to find and explore, but these are revealed to be near when you get close to the buildings that house them. The combat system has remained largely the same, but you get many of your abilities much faster. You can also customize Ezio with various types or armor and weapons. But by far the most fun is the hidden blade, which has been improved for the sequel. How, you ask? Well they just gave us another one to play with. This leads to some truly spectacular assassinations, as Ezio leaps from a roof to take down two guards at once. If you invest the time and effort to remain undetected, you feel truly powerful as you pick off guard after guard, then leap from the shadows to quickly eliminate your target. You truly feel like an assassin. And further into the game, I am told that you can acquire even more toys to kill your foes in even more inventive and, most importantly, fun ways.

  STORY
  
  This is another area that the first game fell short, in my opinion. Half way through I just got bored and had to take a few weeks off to play other things. This game has succeeded in completely drawing me in. You truly care about Ezio, and, without revealing any major events, his motivations make him a very realistic character. As he is ripped from his youthful shenanigans into a plot bigger than himself, he grows into that assassin’s cloak in ways that Altair never did. Simple gestures like sometimes removing his hood when talking to friends and allies make him seem more real, like there’s a real person under that getup that I’m actually interested in seeing through to the story’s end. As I mentioned before, I haven’t completed the game, but it looks as though Ubisoft has succeeded in making me feel emotionally invested in the story and the characters in a way that the first Assassin’s Creed never came close to.

  GRAPHICS
  
  Some people have said that the game’s graphic engine is beginning to show it’s age. Maybe in some ways that’s true, but in others ways this game is truly beautiful. The cities have a busy feel to them, much like the first game, and when perched high above the ground in one of the many viewpoints, the scenery can truly take your breath away. To be fair, there are some clipping issues with Ezio’s clothes and weapons, but that’s true of most any game. And the characters themselves could look a little better, but that would be nitpicking. Overall, this game has a beautiful environment that represents classic Italian cities very well.

  SOUND
  
  Sound is usually one element of games that I don’t notice as much. But I found myself noticing subtle touches added in to enhance the experience that really work well. Like the best game music, it’s unintrusive, but enhances what you’re seeing if you pay attention to it. No complaints here.

  BOTTOM LINE
  
  This game is excellent. It takes elements of sandbox games, stealth games, action games, and even a few quicktime events (but undressing your lover is an acceptable use of this often overused mechanic) and turns them into a game that exceeded my admittedly high expectations. It’s attention to detail is impressive, and it strives to be historically accurate where it can be. The voicework is good, and I like that they included some Italian to be true to their setting. The story is good, and does its job in making the characters interesting and three-dimensional. It’s even quite funny at times. And if you’re interested, there are a lot of very interesting lore-type bits of items to find and obsess over that really develop the already interesting Assassin’s Creed world. So, if you liked the first game you should get this. If you found the first game too boring, you should get this. If you like Italy, you should get this. If you are even remotely interested in the premise, you should get this. In short, this game is excellent and should be on your list of must-haves for either console.

  A note on the rating:
  
  This game is rated M for a reason. While the aforementioned “undressing your lover” scene is quite tame compared to other love scenes in video games (or virtually every prime-time tv show) it could be a little much for the munchkins. Also, there is a lot of blood. You are an assassin, after all. Particularly brutal murders are shown, like stabbing people through the face. This is not overdone, and all you see is blood spray, but this is not a game for the kiddies. In addition, there are several cases of harsh language, including some uses of the f-word. You have been warned.

  A note on religion:
  
  The game opens with a screen explaining that it was developed by a multicultural team of various faiths. This is because, to put it simply, the story of this game may be offensive to those of religious faith. It is not truly hostile toward religion, and I would compare it to Dan Brown’s “The Da Vinci Code” in terms of offensiveness. I viewed it as entertainment, as a fictitious story, and I took no offense at the story. But once again, this game and its story are for intended for those who can appreciate it for what it is: a somewhat violent and (relatively) realistic take on Renaissance Italy society with mature sci-fi themes thrown in. Adjust your buying decisions accordingly.

  Edit (11-22-09):
  
  Finished the game. Wow. If, like me, you liked the sci-fi style near-future storyline of Desmond, then you’ll love the ending. It literally blew my mind. The story is immensely satisfying and comes to a completely awesome conclusion that sets up for the next game. If you despise the collection elements of the game, you might be disappointed by some mandatory collection at the end. I was lucky enough to have collected 29 of 30 codex pieces and so only had to find one more, but it is kinda jarring to be made to stop right at the climax of the story to find a few things you may have forgotten. Thankfully, they mark every missing piece on your map, but it still breaks the flow of the game. While this was a little irritating, the next hour of gameplay more then made up for it.

  The much-hyped flying machine sequence was (thankfully) a short one time thing that, honestly, seems like it was included only for the awesomeness factor and didn’t, in my opinion, really seem to fit in with the rest of the game. Ezio’s character really develops into a mature and intelligent protagonist, even going so far as to lament about the seemingly endless killing that doesn’t bring him any closer to realizing his goals, exactly at the point when I was thinking the same thing. He is incredibly well written, and this makes him one of the more believable characters I’ve seen in a video game.

  Since finishing the game, I can honestly say with certainty that this game is everything the original should have been. The story, while starting off slow, kept my attention the entire time, so much so that I finished the game in roughly four days. The length seems about right, and I finished in about 23 hours. If I go back and find all the collectable feathers I could probably get an additional five or so hours of playtime. The replay value isn’t very high, as there is no other difficulty level or any other reason to play again, besides a desire to see the admittedly good story again. And I’ll say it again: the story is very, very good. The difficulty is on the low side, and I don’t think I ever died, other than from long falls resulting from bad jumps and trying to get the Flyswatter achievement during the flying segment (the only missable achievement, fellow achievement hunters). The graphics and sound grew on me even more as I played through the rest of the game and experienced the other cities and locales. The many weapons and skills made for even more fun and amusing ways to kill my targets. The story missions stayed varied and fun, and I never got bored with them. I tried out every type of optional side mission and while they were amusing once, I didn’t feel the need to do any more of them, with the possible exception of the assassination missions.

  In short, after finishing the game, my initial impressions remain accurate. This game is very good, and is well worth adding to your collection.
• 

  Allen Woods
  November 19th, 2009 on 11:58 pm

  Rating

  The first AC was a great game that suffered from overambition on the part of the developer. Even AC 1′s most diehard fans will admit that there were some pretty deep flaws in the game. With AC 2, the developers have actually justified that ambition. AC 2 is exactly what a sequel should be: more things to do, an even deeper story, and more weapons and equipment. There are a lot of great additions to the game that give it a pseudo-rpg feel: you can buy weapons and armor, and also upgrade them, as well as visit doctors and buy medicine. The developers hit it spot on by choosing the Italian Renaissance. Theres no other game that will let you run pretty much freely through famous Italian cities at the height of their glory, much less meet Leonardo da Vinci. But hey, its just a game. Another thing is that the graphics are absolutely fantastic, and this is from someone who almost exclusively plays pc games. With all the great improvements in AC 2, I will have to put a word of warning: even with all the new additions, It plays pretty much exactly like the first game, and I have to say that if you didn’t enjoy the first game, then there isnt much that can change your mind about this one. However, for fans of the series, this game really couldnt be any better.
• 

  kkorrinna
  November 20th, 2009 on 10:56 am

  Rating

  The first assassins creed game was fun but had some things to work out. Like falling in the water and the camera angels.
  
  Assassins creed 2 has worked out most of the problems (still has a problem with the camera) and added some new things that the main character can do. Like he can now swim and take weapons from the guards. you can also earn money and build your own village. There is also many side missions in this game that you can do. My favorite is “The Truth.” It makes you solve puzzles to figure out the truth of the assassins. To figure out the puzzles you have to use your brain. Meaning you have to think. After solving the puzzles it unlocks a series of videos. There are also hidden easter eggs in the game. If you liked the first game I believe you will love this game.
• 

  Katie-Bell
  November 20th, 2009 on 11:36 am

  Rating

  Where do I begin? I’ll spare everyone the storyline and who the main character is, assuming that you all already know. There is also a nice summary on the page. Let’s get down to the basics of my review.

  Assassin’s Creed II blew me away with its stunning graphics, talented voice acting, and awesome storyline. Ubisoft succeeded in making this game packed with extras and enhancing fighting techniques. When I saw Ezio use two blades on two guards for the first time my jaw dropped. When it comes to fighting, the techniques are awesome, as they were in the first game.

  I do want to say that I really loved the first AC game. I have nothing bad to say about it except for the viewpoints. Needless to say I like the repetitive missions in the first game. But the missions in the second game were a bit more enjoyable. And, again, my only problem in the second game was the view points. It got so annoying to me that I eventually stopped finding them. It’s time consuming every time you want to play the game again. So, with that said, I guess AC2 is an “improvement” but I don’t really think there was anything to improve from the first game. In game trilogies, the game evolves with the series. So the developers are constantly thinking of new things and keep in mind that with the coming of time there are new techniques and environments to consider.

  What I really loved was that Ubisoft didn’t take too much away from the first game. They kept it on a realistic scale and there was a lot of symbolism that reverted back to AC1. I just know that sometimes a game series can get worse because they change things too much. Not in AC2. The series just got way better and I am already eager for the final installment. AC2 will HOOK you in. You don’t want to stop playing it. I beat it in about 16 hours, over the course of two days. I wish I could have dragged it out a bit but I was so eager to see how it ended. And let me tell you, the ending is not what I expected, but it was good.

  As for the games flaws, there weren’t many. Sometimes when I would start a mission the marker wouldn’t appear, and at the end of the game two of the markers didn’t appear so I got confused and ended up leaving the area and then dying. When it took me back to the area the two markers had appeared that time. So yeah, some glitches when it comes to markers on missions sometimes but other than that it’s flawless. A lot of people complain about trying to jump to one place but landing somewhere else. I have also experienced this, but I also experienced it in AC1 and the Prince of Persia games. The thing is, there are so many places you can jump or climb to that it’s probably hard for the game to figure which one you’re really directed at. I find that when I’m climbing or jumping to fast (such as in the assassin’s tombs) I tend to fall. But when I take it slow and time my jumps I succeed.

  Awesome game, great storyline, and now my new favorite game trilogy!! Thank-you Ubisoft for making such an awesome game! It was worth the $60.
• 

  Cloud
  November 23rd, 2009 on 8:15 am

  Rating

  Even with all the high profile games that came out this year and especially this fall, one that I seemed to want the most was Assassin’s Creed II despite my hate/love with the original. Like many, I thought the original had a great concept, looked stunning and seemed to at least break the mold of action games only it got bogged down by repetition and an open world that wasn’t quite as open as one would like and let’s not forget those ****ing flags. Taking the complaints and suggestions from fans and critics into account, Ubisoft seemed to go all out in presenting a game that felt more bigger and better than the first game but then the crux of the matter is did Ubisoft just deliver what the first one should’ve been or actually went beyond? Well this game shows that there is legs in this series and whereas the sequel to the first one was inevitable just in terms of sales, this looks like it has the makings to be an actually worthwhile franchise as a whole and it starts here…with nitpicks I hope they fix.

  Story: You once again “control” Desmond, a bartender turned captive by Abstergo Corporation who’s using him to locate the Pieces of Eden, mythical artifacts tied to mythology and history. When him and technician Lucy Stillman break out, they bring him back into the past via a new Animus into the life of Ezio Auditore da Firenze, an Italian living in 1476. After his father and brothers are betrayed and executed, Ezio becomes an Assassin and takes to the streets of Florence, Venice and many other places to track down the conspirators behind his family’s death and how it ties into Desmond’s struggle in the future.

  One thing I will say about the story is that 2 things: one, they definately changed the structure of the game and it’s no longer repetitive and some missions do take a different take and give you a lot more options to proceed. Not to mention the story is a lot more engaging and while I was at times concerning the many, many names that pop up and figuring out who was the last dude I had to kill versus who’s actually a friend, it’s a more compelling story and when it combines mythology, paintings and historical photographs, it’s a really cool storyline they got set up.

  Graphics: Can’t fault Ubisoft in the graphics department and like this, Far Cry 2 or Prince of Persia, they have a really great idea for amazing looking visuals and it goes right down to the architecture and I wouldn’t be surprised if they recreated Florence or Venice perfectly. Character detail is good, animations during parkour are fluid and certain graphical details such as the “glitches” you’ll occasionally spot look awesome. As far as actual glitches or bugs, I barely ran into any and if there was, I didn’t catch them. My one complaint is that the “countryside” areas where it’s more forest and meadows look a bit too barren and not really full so to speak.

  Sound/Music: An absolutely stellar soundtrack with some really haunting and peaceful themes playing throughout and the more dramatic or action-y moments are nicely done. Voice acting as well is spot-on with many voice actors actually sounding like they’re from the era and place as opposed to Altair’s odd American-sounding accent and it’s not the fumble that was Far Cry 2′s voice acting. As far as sounds are concerned, everything works and the annoying comments when you climb buildings (“what’s he doing, he gone mad?”) have been toned down so that they’re no longer heard EVERY time you climb something. Oh and I’d recommend playing with subtitles because characters have this habit of switching between English and Italian very frequently.

  Gameplay: While the basics are the same, there’s been so many improvements it might be hard to replay the previous game since you don’t get access to the new parts. For one combat has been improved and counter kills have now given way to disarming opponents and using their own weapon against them, double assassinations, smoke bombs for easy getaways or poisoning them so they go crazy on nearby NPC’s. Don’t want to fight anyone and slip by unnoticed? Hire courtesans to distract them, thieves to lure them away or mercs to fight for you. Not to mention there’s a lot more added missions with the familiar races but also there’s assassination contracts, courier missions, beat-em-up parts where you pummel cheaters and many others. As far as collecting is concerned, there is some of that found in the feathers but there’s only 100 as opposed to 100 in each city but then we have glyphs. Uncover a building and find an icon and you’ll see somewhere on the building is a glyph, strange markings easily found by using Eagle Vision and scanning them prompts a really intriguing story about Subject 16 where you decode messages, find clues embedded in photographs are doing some riddle solving. While some are really taxing, they’re kind of fascinating. Oh and found in Italy are assassin’s tombs, basically a mixture of Prince of Persia-esque platforming sections and some combat where you’ll uncover treasure; find all 6 and you’ll get a cool gift as opposed to just an achievement/trophy and that’s it.

  Another added element is the idea of money. Remember those “please sir I’m poor and sick and hungry, just a few coins!” women from the first game? Well remember how you never actually had money to give her and you just had to push her away or if you were feeling devilish, stab her? Well now there is money (though no beggar women, though there’s these lute players that get on my nerves) and they can be spent on upgrades such as better armor, better weapons, replenish your poison blades, smoke bombs, buy paintings or tint your cape. Buying paintings or upgrading your villa, a sort of central hub of sorts, will give you more money and like most sim games, depending on how awesome your villa is and the more visitors you attract, the more money you make. One element that isn’t as successful is the idea of notoreity. Do more killing and bad stuff than the city can tolerate (which isn’t much) and the guards will be more suspicious of you so while before they’re a bit more suspect of you, at full notoreity they’ll practically want to kill you on sight. How do you bring it down? Find posters that no guard would see, kill officials that don’t exactly run that fast or bribe heralds and naysayers instead of…I don’t know, roughing them up mafia-style and threatening to break their knees?

  My one complaint about the game and it’s a somewhat big one is the controls. I don’t know if Ezio is too sensitive or he needs too precise commands but at times you’ll find yourself swearing at him for doing something you never intended to do. He’ll drop and hang from a ledge when you intend to jump, he’ll run up walls when you intended to go into a door should your aim be off and most unfortunate, he can fall and sometimes to his death because he decided to jump off a building instead of up it. It’s of course fun to do the parkour elements but to drop completely to the bottom of the streets cause of a missed jump or not judging the distance right can be frustrating. Oh and while it’s a welcome change from Altair’s snail pace, the parkour elements up a building are a tad unbelievable and athletic ability aside, you’d wonder how the hell Ezio can even climb half of this stuff at the speed he does. Oh but on that note? Ezio can finally swim and while he can’t go underwater and dive like Mario, he can actually go in the water and even use boats as transports though rooftop travelling tends to be faster.

  For those of you curious, I bought the Master Assassin’s Edition so I’ll detail what was in it. Found first inside of course is the game but it comes with a bonud DVD where you can listen to tracks from the soundtrack, watch trailers and developer diaries but the soundtrack looks slightly skimpy for a game this size and the “Part One” with no inclusion of any others bugs me. Oh and the developer diaries were far more numerous online than what we have here. Underneath that is the really cool artbook showcasing weapon detail, character designs and concept art for the cities. Still doesn’t beat the Fallout 3 book for me but it’s a notable one nonetheless. And of course under that is the Ezio figurine with some cool details and in a pose like seen on the cover. He’s not posable but meh, it’ll do. Included also in the game is 2 “bonus” areas: basically at a certain part in the game, an icon will appear on your map marked a “templar lair” and these are basically obstacle course type levels which’ll yield a nice big cash sum at the end. Nothing completely awesome like new weapon or different armor but they’re cool nonetheless. Also, in a welcome move on Ubisoft’s part, apparently these areas will be made available for download sometime later as opposed to “either pre-order it or you’ll never get it” offers given by other developers.

  Is it my Game of the Year? Hard to say given the sheer amount of great games that came out this year but I’ll say I definately enjoyed playing the game issues aside and would love to say a part III very soon.
• 

  Annihilatrix1138
  December 1st, 2009 on 9:57 pm

  Rating

  When the first Assassin’s Creed was released, it was preceded by a mountain of hype and high promises that proclaimed that this was to be the game to revolutionize everything that followed. After all the tech demos and previews of the game that were shown, I certainly had no room to disagree. It look absolutely marvelous. And when it was released, it still looked marvelous, but it played too much like the tech demo that we’d all seen.

  After a few hours of a convoluted story, repetitive missions, gameplay hindered by lack of polish (not to mention the middle-eastern protagonist speaking with an American accent…somehow!) I put the game down and never picked it up again. I am very glad it was only a rental.

  Two years and an onslaught of mediocre reviews later, ASSASSIN’S CREED 2 is unleashed upon the masses. Needless to say, even though I am a big fan of the Renaissance Era, I waited for the first volley of reviews before I went out and bought this game.

  ASSASSIN’S CREED 2 not only redeems its predecessor’s many follies, but it is most definitely one of the best games of the year.

  You are once again playing as Desmond Miles playing through the memories of his ancestors. This particular ancestor is Ezio Auditore da Firenze, a citizen of Italy during the Renaissance Era. After members of his family are executed by way of betrayal, Ezio takes up his birthright and begins to walk the path of his father in becoming an Assassin.

  The STORY, after everything is said and done, is amazing. It’s thick with superb characterization, surprising plot-twists, and a conspiracy that’s so intricate and spans so many centuries, it would probably give LOST a run for it’s money. I came to love Ezio’s character (as opposed to loathing Altair) and how he changes so much from the time he takes his first life, to when his story comes to an end. And since you are learning many techniques along with him, you will feel as though you are growing as he grows.

  The WORLD through which Ezio skips through is probably one of the best sandbox-type worlds I’ve seen; rivaling OBLIVION, FALLOUT 3, and GTA IV in both scale and design. Just from what I know, everything is as close to historically accurate as it can get. Buildings such as Il Duomo look and feel as big as they should be. There are five different cities (including the one you come to own) and each feels so grand in scale that it’s hard to believe that there are others just as big in one game. Renaissance Italy has never looked so good.

  The GAMEPLAY is better than it ever was. You are given an array of weapons to use against your targets, including: a sword, dagger, throwing knives, smoke bombs, poisons, and even money. And since the world is so organic, you aren’t limited to just chopping your way through each mission. Whether it be stealth, brute force, or distraction, you will have many ways to accomplish each mission and side-mission. And with the much-praised freerunning system, even more ways are opened up.

  On top of this, you are given control of your own city. Yeah! All of the weapons, paintings (keep in mind, these are Renaissance paintings) and armor pieces that you buy are put on display here in brilliant fashion. You can also restore shops and certain locations within this city, which will bring in more foot-traffic that will add to the wealth of your town. It won’t be long before the gloomy and boarded-up mansion that you take over becomes something more akin to a palace.

  The COMBAT is fairly simple, if that can be called a detriment. There’s one button to attack and one to counter. It seems like it could get boring really fast, but I’ve been playing the game for nearly 30 hours now and I’ve yet to sigh out of frustration over an encounter with the guards. It feels fresh every time, and the kill sequences are brutal and bloody to behold. It will definitely not get old, unlike other games like Star Wars: The Force Unleashed.

  If I had to say anything CRITICAL, it would be that the game is slightly too easy. Once you’re done with the game, you should breeze through any achievements that you have left over, which leaves you with very little to do after the game is finished. Of course, there are a multitude of different side-missions (such as assassination missions, races, events where your goal is to beat the crap out of someone) but once you finish the game and upgrade your villa, there is little reason to actually go through and finish any of them. They all just equate to more money, which you will have more than enough of by the end of the game.

  And while the cities are near-perfect in their construction, the countrysides, while still gorgeous, are absolutely dull to walk through. There’s nothing to really interact with and it all feels more like a background than anything else. I would’ve liked to see an environment more like in OBLIVION, where I didn’t care that I had to walk clear across the map.

  In the third game, I would definitely like more of a challenge that would equate to some really good rewards and some very difficult achievements to complete. Collecting feathers is not difficult, just time-consuming. I hope that this is changed in the third game.

  In the end, ASSASSIN’S CREED 2 managed to fulfill every promise that it’s predecessor put forth, and improved on those promises tenfold. This is a fun and beautiful game that should not be passed up. I’ve never played a sequel (besides maybe Fallout 3: Game of The Year Edition) that changed up its own formula so much for the better. When studios like Ubisoft make so much money from one game, there is usually very little reason to go in a new direction with their IP (I’m looking at you, HALO 3), but so much has changed in this world inside the head of Desmond Miles, and it’s changed for the better.

  I’m already eagerly awaiting ASSASSIN’S CREED 3 to see what age we’ll be visiting next, but hopefully this isn’t the last we’ll hear from Ezio Auditore da Firenze.

  “It’sa me! Mario!” Bless them for that little homage. xD