Assassin’s Creed. It’s a
captivating series that has been drawn out over numerous games. Sadly the fifth
instalment is quite a letdown. With a tiresome and dull main protagonist,
frustrating tree climbing mechanics and another slow attempt to continue Desmond’s
main storyline, Assassins Creed 3 struck well below expectations for this
great series.
Beginning in a short and succinct cut
scene to fill in the back story, excellent graphics and integration pieces
together the story so far. The gist of the Assassin’s Creed storyline is about
saving the world from a largely unexplained threat, whilst ensuring freedom for
all. The age old enemy the Templar’s vaguely seek the same goal, but
believe to ensure peace the world must be ruled with an iron fist. Soldiering
through the initial opening sequence and levels brings forth what this does
best: the action and combat. These certainly did not disappoint me, many
a sword swipes was blocked, enemy disarmed and musket fire
dodged.
The more of the game that is played
the more you grow to like the characters and storyline. Haytham Kenway for
example is certainly an entertaining character and as you explore further into
the game there are some interesting plot twists that prove the competence of Ubisoft’s
writers. But when the majority of the game is reached with gameplay as Conner,
he proved to be an unemotional, detached and unlikable character; his
irritating decisions infuriates at every turn. Although you can manage to
endure Conner enough to thoroughly enjoy the finer aspects of the game, his
personality is certainly a downer.
The combat and control mechanics were
slightly changed from previous titles, with adjustments to the sprint and
counter system. This took a while to get used to, but added the requirement of
more timing and finesse to successfully take out an opponent. The addition of
pistols and muskets added further difficulty creating enjoyable fight
progression as you take down bad guy after bad guy; in style. There were huge
improvements to so many aspects of the free running world, with a huge expanse
of land called the Frontier, which is 1.5x bigger than Rome in brotherhood and
another 2 cities to explore, there is huge potential for fun. Being a largely
unpopulated area, there is little opportunity for the awesome free-running
experience offered by buildings. Although Ubisoft have tried to cover it up
with a tree-climbing mechanic, the system still needs a lot of work and is
frustrating at times. It still holds the possibility for awesomeness though
with the introduction of the rope dart, which can be used to hang, stab and
trip others.
As you pass further through the game
you are introduced to the homestead, essentially a hub for you and all your
allies. Here you can engage in fun and exciting homestead missions, or launch
off in your very own ship, the Aquila. At the ships store you can spend some of
your otherwise useless money on upgrades, than embark on missions that
seriously improve this game. Whether you are chasing down Templar ships or
clearing out a pirate vanguard, naval warfare is downright amazing. Managing
the speed of your ship, navigating through fields of jagged rocks and firing
broadsides at your enemies makes an amazing experience. Although lacking in a
full campaign of missions, there is a good variety of escort, fort assault and
sea battle tasks.
The environment and lore of this game
is expansive, a history book in itself. You might spend hours engulfed in
the database, intrigued by its secrets. The rich historical record is
accompanied by an extremely detailed replica of Northern America’s cities and
frontier; the expanse and detail of the world can captivate anyone. It is also
possible to exploit its rich wildlife with the hunting system, setting traps
and using your bow you are able to hunt down deer, rabbits and other animals.
This detailed world of full of wonder and fun is what makes assassin’s creed
games great, unlike the many other games full of mindless killing, you have
meaning and purpose.
The multiplayer, although having
existed in previous titles is still a relatively new and exciting part of the
game, offering seven individual game modes, several playable characters
and multiple abilities to use. After some quick games I slowly picked up how to
play and it established itself as an important part of AC 3. The wanted game
mode for example shows the amount of skill required to fully utilize the combat
system. One player skulks around, hiding in groups of people, whilst the hunter
follows silently preparing to strike. This can prove to be exciting and intense
if played correctly, but can be frustrating and wearisome at times as well.
Assassins Creed 3 is a great game,
glitch and bug ridden, but still a great game. Whether sneaking up
behind unsuspecting soldiers, running across precarious rooftops or taking in
the beautiful landscape, it’s loaded with fun. It may be a step down
from the pioneering precursors, with repetitive tasks and little variety in
assassination, but Assassins creed 3 still shines through as an superb game,
which gives it an overall score of 7/10.
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