Assassins Creed
A review by stinkypitz

Story: The story in Assassins Creed is not fabulous, but it at least is a bit unique. Some will love it for its sci-fi twist on the action adventure and others will despise it for interrupting the real fun. Personally, it got the job done to hold my interest for a while. I wont give anything away for fear of spoiling, but basically your the heir of an assassin during the crusades and some creepy scientists can look at your ancestors memories through you. Neat huh?

Gameplay/Graphics: Okay, so the graphics in AC are beautiful. The first half hour of the game you will stare in awe at the so meticulously textured world around you. That is, until you start traveling to cities. They all pretty much look and feel the same. Sure, some of them look like they have a new color tinted on to your screen. Jerusalem is total brown, and Acre would be total brown but it looks like the screen is tinted teal to make it look different (to me anyways). Other than that, the level design is good, lots of hiding places and such and plenty of climbing to do, PoP style.
The gameplay is a pretty good blend of all sorts. The platforming we all know and love, and a spankin new combat system. But, it really boils down to pressing a button when you see someone attack to counter them. On the subject of fighting guards, they are far too vigilant. If you bump into one of them, they instantly deduct your about to murder someone important, thus screaming "ASSASSIN!!!!!! KILL THE ASSASSIN!!!!" A bit perplexing, but whatever right? Its exhilerating at first to sprint from the law and hide away, but eventually its a pain in the ass.

Value: AC bored me to death. After the first 5 assassinations, I realized there was no point in going on. It was the same shit for every one, and you have to listen to so much dialog before and after everything you do. Now i had to gruel on through all these assassinations and finish this game so I can move on with my life. So i did, begrudgingly, and only to be treated to kind of a half assed ending, which leaves the feeling of "wtf....."

Overall: So AC is a really fun game in short jaunts, but if you want a game with some replay value and tons to do that remains interesting, this isnt for you. However, if you want a unique story with some intense action, AC is worth a rent.

Verdict: Rent it.

The problems I have with the gameplay is the fact that leading up to all the assassinations you're doing the same things over and over again: pickpocketing, eavesdropping, etc. whilst using exactly the same buttons for each one. If you want a game with pretty graphics but some good gameplay as well, there are plenty of titles that do those two things far better than this game.

The guards in this game amused me. On certain occasions they would come after me for just walking near them, while on others I could assassinate random people, which I did a lot, and they wouldn't seem to notice.

Also, I think that if you play this game in a straightforward linear style, you will miss out on a lot of the things that make it fun. Sure, you have to do pretty much the same things for each mission, but if that gets boring you can always make up your own challenges. One time, for example, I tried to see how many townspeople I could kill without being caught. The fun in this game comes from the freedom in the game environment, not the accomplishment of the specific missions and objectives.

I've found AC to be a game that you'll either like (not love, really, but like) or be bored to tears with.

I hear people complain about the repetitive investigations, but I didn't really mind doing them because I thought the missions were mostly fun, except the interrogations. I hear complaints about having to listen to words before and after an assasination, but since I can go ten minutes without killing stuff, I didn't mind some exposition here and there.

I liked free-running all over the city, and climbing stuff was a blast, but I was unsure why they bothered to include stuff like the Kingdom area. It seemed useless to me, other than as a device to artificially extend the game. The most fun, for me, was trying to ambush every target unaware (although there are two that you can't, as far as I can tell).

I also wish there was more to the game. There aren't a lot of missions on the side, and once they're done they stay done. Other than flag collection and sheer replay value (which is present, but limited), there's nothing to encourage a player to put the game back in after you've beaten it. No multiplayer, no different scenes based on the assasination order, not even a difficulty setting to up and try again.

But then, I'm in the camp of folks who liked the game. If the second half was torture for you, the prospect of having to play more of it probably sounds threatening.

- J

I think that the story will keep people going, because if you like a good story, then Assassin's Creed might be right for you.

I was waiting for someone to review this game so I can rant.

From what I played the game was a blast. The Parcour-like freedom with which you can traverse the city is enjoyable and the setting feels authentic, at least from the first three levels I played.

Despite the apparent fun of the game I couldn't tolerate playing anymore, thanks to the UI. The interface in the PC version is an abomination and goes against all usability principles and while slick in looks, in use it is appalling.

Every time I play the game I am forced to wade through the same cut scene with the same inane dialogue, and the same UI animation before I can actually load where I left off. This process takes five minutes. Five! I simply want to jump into the game and play it, but I'll be damned if I'm going to suffer the same sequence every time I want to play.

I've tried pressing all the buttons and mouse buttons to see if I can cut this sequence but no.

Am I missing something? If not, I cannot fathom how this passed QA.

The animation was cute the first time, but even the Mona Lisa loses her charm if you see her a thousand times.

Color me your usual shade of skeptic if you must, but a year-old bump? Was that really necessary, Stringytank?

crimsondynamics:
I was waiting for someone to review this game so I can rant.

From what I played the game was a blast. The Parcour-like freedom with which you can traverse the city is enjoyable and the setting feels authentic, at least from the first three levels I played.

Despite the apparent fun of the game I couldn't tolerate playing anymore, thanks to the UI. The interface in the PC version is an abomination and goes against all usability principles and while slick in looks, in use it is appalling.

Every time I play the game I am forced to wade through the same cut scene with the same inane dialogue, and the same UI animation before I can actually load where I left off. This process takes five minutes. Five! I simply want to jump into the game and play it, but I'll be damned if I'm going to suffer the same sequence every time I want to play.

I've tried pressing all the buttons and mouse buttons to see if I can cut this sequence but no.

Am I missing something? If not, I cannot fathom how this passed QA.

The animation was cute the first time, but even the Mona Lisa loses her charm if you see her a thousand times.

The Mona Lisa really isn't that interesting in the first place... that and you need to wait in line for like 1/2 an hour to see it.

PedroSteckecilo:
The Mona Lisa really isn't that interesting in the first place... that and you need to wait in line for like 1/2 an hour to see it.

And that's a masterpiece we're talking about. The Assassins Creed user interface is far from being one.

Maybe I should have picked a supermodel for my example...

NewClassic:

Color me your usual shade of skeptic if you must, but a year-old bump? Was that really necessary, Stringytank?

Yes, I noticed that.
'tis the ghost of threads past...

Oh man, I just noticed that.

So an Assassin's Creed review that's almost a year old gets more traffic now than when it was originally posted?

PedroSteckecilo:

The Mona Lisa really isn't that interesting in the first place... that and you need to wait in line for like 1/2 an hour to see it.

Not really. It's more of a clusterfuck.

Also http://www.tigtail.org/L_View/TIG/TVM/X1/c.Mannerism/veronese/veronese_marriage_at_cana-xl.1563.JPG is on the opposite wall and people still insist on looking at that woman. Its as big as the damned wall!

CIA:

PedroSteckecilo:

The Mona Lisa really isn't that interesting in the first place... that and you need to wait in line for like 1/2 an hour to see it.

Not really. It's more of a clusterfuck.

All I know is dat that chick got a BIG F***ING FOREHEAD.

I think that it should have had a Manhunt type feel to it.
Not gore-wise, but I mean like when someone would walk near where you're stealthed in Manhunt, you would have to A) keep the Wii-Mote still B) stay quiet if playing with a mic or C) have a reaction-command type thing and then the game would continue (either with the would-be assailant dead, or you staying in the shadows).
For the Interrogations, it should be like the executions from Manhunt, where you can decide how quickly you want the information by beating the subject harder or more painfully (pain does not equate to hitting harder), you would still kill the guy in the end, but the mission could go faster, and there's more risk, since you might accidentally kill the little bugger before he gives you the information; but since the interrogation missions are all beat-em-up style, maybe there could be holds or kidney-shots, or something that will stun the guy so you can get some free hits instead of Rock-Em-Sock-Em Robots form combat.
And what happened to the sweet crossbow we saw in the beginning (?) cinematic?

ShmenonPie:
The problems I have with the gameplay is the fact that leading up to all the assassinations you're doing the same things over and over again: pickpocketing, eavesdropping, etc. whilst using exactly the same buttons for each one. If you want a game with pretty graphics but some good gameplay as well, there are plenty of titles that do those two things far better than this game.

Agreed, 100%!!!

AC may have been repetitive, but assassins creed is a trilogy so no duh its going to leave a "wtf.." ending.

It's called a cliffhanger, they do it to make you want to buy the next game.

(I meant none of this in an offensive way, but really..who didn't see this coming?)

I do love the storyline though..it amuses me so much ^^.

CIA:

PedroSteckecilo:

The Mona Lisa really isn't that interesting in the first place... that and you need to wait in line for like 1/2 an hour to see it.

Not really. It's more of a clusterfuck.

Also this is on the opposite wall and people still insist on looking at that woman. Its as big as the damned wall!

You mean there's a gigantic 404: Page Missing opposite La Gioconda?

crimsondynamics:

CIA:

PedroSteckecilo:

The Mona Lisa really isn't that interesting in the first place... that and you need to wait in line for like 1/2 an hour to see it.

Not really. It's more of a clusterfuck.

Also this is on the opposite wall and people still insist on looking at that woman. Its as big as the damned wall!

You mean there's a gigantic 404: Page Missing opposite La Gioconda?

You didn't...

Ghetto fixed. Thanks for pointing that out.