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Assassin's Creed
The setting is 1191 A.D. The Third Crusade is tearing the Holy Land apart. You, Altair, intend to stop the hostilities by suppressing both sides of the conflict.
You are an Assassin, a warrior shrouded in secrecy and feared for your ruthlessness. Your actions can throw your immediate environment into chaos, and your existence will shape events during this pivotal moment in history.
And from that short description you would be forgiven for expecting an outstanding game, filled to the brim with exciting new features, breathtaking gameplay and impressive graphics. But I reckon you might be as sorely disappointed as I was with Assassin's Creed.
Okay, the graphics are rather spectacular most of the time, but take away that gloss and you are left with a sometimes confusing and rather samey game.
The basic premis sees you sneaking up on people and stealthily killing them or partaking in an all-out battle frenzy death dance.
Mostly you don't have too much choice how you achieve your objectives.
Sometimes you might stalk your prey through the richly detailed, and historically accurate. You can also scale buildings, mount horses and blend in with crowds. But quite often the all-out attack is all you can do.
Some of the other aspects of the game are pretty cool. Like the realistic and responsive environments where you experience a living, breathing world in which all your actions have consequences. Crowds react to your moves and will either help or hinder you on your quests.
The strange element of time/memory travel can be quite annoying during the game. If Assassin's Creed could have stuck to either historical or futuristic setting then it might have been much more enjoyable.
If action/hack 'n' slash/stealth games are your raison d'etre then you will love Assassin's Creed no matter what. If you aren't really a fan boy, then stay well clear!
Overall 4/10
Developer: Ubisoft Montreal
Publisher: Ubisoft
Genre: Action
Ages: 16+
Available on: Xbox 360; PlayStation 3; PC
