Assassin’s Creed 2

I have really waited all year for this game. The first Assassin’s Creed was really a love-it-or-hate-it title, and I loved it! Sure the narrative had a few problems and the ending was retarded, but that doesn’t stop me from being a fan. It’s the core of the game what really matters anyway.

So speaking less favorable aspects, the game begins with a prime-time TV-like recap of Assassin’s Creed 1 narrated in the first person by Desmond, the man in the Animus machine experiencing the lives of his ancestors through genetic memory. It works alright as a way to catch up people who didn’t play the first game but it starts to get a little embarrassing as it goes on.

Then you begin in the present-day setting in control of said Desmond. The sci-fi plot going on in the background of Assassin’s Creed is still weak. It still just serves as a glorified device to explain your health, invisible walls, the HUD, time skips, and other abstract gameplay and cinematic elements, and it shows. I was however pleased to see that events take place here that I had assumed would be the subject of the third game because at this point I don’t think I’d like to see the series go into the future as Ubisoft initially seemed to have planned. These events also serve as your primary tutorial, which is mercifully short and nothing like the first game which forced you to ass about in a nebulous purgatory listening to a voice drone on about every single little gameplay control before it would let you into the game. 

Luckily your time playing as Desmond is also brief. Desmond has never been a compelling character, he’s a whiny bitch who just does what he’s told and seems very easily swayed. In fact, without giving away too much, in AC2 he’s reliving Ezio’s life from the point he is in order to make him less useless. Yeah. You kinda suck, Desmond. But like Altair, the real star of the game here is Ezio.

And unlike Altair, we get to learn alot more about Ezio. His personality, his life before he dons the classic assassin robes, we get to see him actually grow and develop as a character, and he even has an accent. We also see Ezio’s face quite a bit and he has robust body language and facial expressions, he feels much more alive and three-dimensional than his predecessor. Though it seems dicking around on rooftops may be a hereditary trait that Altair passed on, because I’m certain the people of Florence are accustomed to seeing Ezio and his brother crawling around on buildings and leaping from roof to roof like assholes.

Ezio gaining new weapons and learning new skills as he goes along also makes alot more sense in this game. He’s new to this assassin thing, it’s sort of thrust on him in a crisis and he has no idea what the hell he’s doing. He’s clumsy, desperate and naive at first. Altair was just a douche who botched an important mission to sate his swaggering ego and got all of his cool toys taken away as a result.

But all of that isn’t the only improvement in the game. For one, AC2 has a sense of humor, I can’t really remember AC1 having much. The characters often spout quick-witted and genuinely funny dialog  which makes the game all the more enjoyable in my view. That coupled with some sections focused on platforming and switch pulling it almost has a Sands-of-Time-era Prince of Persia feel. There is also, get this, an inventory system. You can upgrade your armor, change the color of Ezio’s clothes (though it seems like its just for kicks, not for disguising him), buy new weapons, buy throwing knives etc. There’s a quick travel system, there are collectibles too but unlike the flags in the previous game they seem to reap more reward than just achievement-whoring busy work, and you can also actually DO something with the home base you acquire early in the game, even turning it into a source of income.

I’m also happy to say that unlike AC1 this game is subtitled, in case you’re having trouble understanding the accents (or even the actual Italian that is spoken.) I’m however unhappy to say that the text is micro-sized unless you have an HD television. This game is one of many pushing me to finally track down a cheap HD TV after the holidays.

All in all I highly recommend Assassin’s Creed 2, and not just out of fangirl obligation. It completely blows the first game out of the water so if you even liked that one the littlest bit you need to check out the sequel. If you enjoy movie-like games with a compelling story, if you enjoy historical fiction, or if you just enjoy stabbing and platforming this game is definitely worth checking out. And really, you don’t even need to play the first one, because this is Ezio’s story, not Desmond’s. Go to hell, Desmond.

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