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Thread: Assassin's Creed II

  1. #1
    Basileos Leandros I's Avatar Writing is an art
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    Default Assassin's Creed II

    Assassin's Creed II

    The new installment from Ubisoft was one of the most awaited games from my part but I only managed to play both AC1 and AC2 this year. After finishing AC1 in May, I gave it a shot and I almost finished it (only last part to go). I purchased through Steam, the deluxe edition, which includes the extra map packs for the Templar Lairs and also has the DLC included, Battle of Forli and Bonfire of the Vanities.

    Play time - 65+ hours



    Review

    Technical side

    First of all, I played it on a Dell XPS M1710 with a slightly overclocked Intel Core 2 Duo T7200 at 2.0GHZ, 3.2GB RAM, 256MB nVidia GeForce 7900GS and on Windows Vista Ultimate 64-bit. I did have some lag but it didn't affect the overall gameplay, apart from the cutscenes which lagged badly because they had no optimisation at all.

    Furthermore - the DRM issue.
    No problem.

    Seriously, I had no problem with it. I have a high speed wireless connection at home and I never had any fall downs or interruptions. Never.

    Only issue - save games. Two times I had to redo approx 2-3 hours of gameplay because it did not save.

    Rating: - 7/10

    Why? DRM issue is a problem to many. I didn't have any problem whatsoever but so many people had it, I had to dodge off a point. The other 2 are for the bad optimisation. I played it on another, more powerful computer and I still experienced some sort of lag. Albeit almost unnoticeable, it was still there and it showed that the optimisation issue is not only on my computer.






    Graphics

    Stunning. Visually stunning. I took lots of in game photographs which I saved to my Xfire profile and which I will post later, but there's nothing much on this part that can be criticised. The water looks superb as well, and climbing the viewpoints reveals some great graphical work.

    And very exact, I must add. The amount of research done - staggering.

    Only issue - textures on some of the buildings may look a bit blurry.

    It is not much of an improvement over AC1 but it still is very good.

    Rating: 10/10

    Here's a quick picture, over Venezia:







    Gameplay

    Ezio. Well Ezio is an assassin. But he is not.

    Altair was an assassin. Ezio is more of a renaissance statesman interested in the finer aspects of life. Altair was a brutal, no nonsense assassin who got the job done. Ezio is not.

    But otherwise, the plot and the whole game is incredible. Ubisoft made a massive overhaul of the whole system and this is clearly shown in the complexity of the whole story, the believable characters and the enjoyable experience that this game offers you. Some parts may look a bit outlandish to some of the more critical games but it does not prevent you from enjoying the game to the maximum. This is probably one of the biggest improvements in terms of gameplay I have ever seen in a sequel, if not the best.

    Some points regarding the new game:

    - the traditional blending from Altair exists no longer, which annoyed me sometimes - stealth missions are harder to do since you can only blend inside a group of people
    - courtesans, mercenaries and thieves - groups you can hire to do your bidding - a great plus but I have only used them sparingly since you can do without
    - your base - Monteriggioni is a great example of having your own base to start from, and I loved the idea to improve it - I only wished this was a bigger feature of the game!
    - lots and lots of new weapons - except the hidden blade is my favourite
    - SIDE MISSIONS - many players will say AC2 will only offer you around 30 hours of gameplay - but that is without the superb side missions that are a must for an AC2 fan - assassination missions, courier, beat up and some other small items
    - historical discovery - whole cities, Assassin seals, Codex pages... great addition

    Overall, lots of fun for the gameplay, greatly improved over AC1.

    Rating - 9/10

    Why? It gets tiring by the end. The wow factor completely disappears and you just want to finish it once and for all.





    Audio

    Great work in this department as well. The voice acting is superb, I honestly felt like I was watching a movie. Characters were very realistic in Italy, not so in the "current world" department. Felt as if I was watching 2012 or other conspiracy theory movie.

    Rating: 10/10


    Overall feel

    I have very mixed feelings about it. It is a great game, heavily improved over the first except that in their desire to improve on every chapter, they lost some of the substance AC1 had. Sure, AC1 was very linear and repetitive but it had substance.

    Altair was a true assassin, a character who knew what to do, who to assassin. Ezio, well he's more of a ladies man than a real assassin. He's much more relaxed, more laid back. Altair was serious, you really felt he was a force to be reckoned with. The Renaissance setting creates a positive world for Ezio to act in so in essence he is helped a lot by the unsure reality of the era, where scheming, plotting, assassination and ruthless individuals are lurking at every corner.

    The missions for Ezio reflect this character as well, Ezio spends more time talking and trying to avoid rather than following the orders. While I appreciate this now (he's not a puppet), it takes more soul out of the "assassin" ideal because assassins were ordered to kill, they did not go after on their own.

    Rating - 8/10.



    Overall?
    44/50 - 88%

    Really recommend this. Buy it from Steam with the additional three map packs that show the Templar Lairs for added AC2 fun. This includes the DLC packs as well.

    Happy assassinating!
    Last edited by Basileos Leandros I; November 15, 2010 at 10:00 AM.
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  2. #2
    Razvus's Avatar Campidoctor
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    Default Re: Assassin's Creed II

    I felt the story was just dumb. Dan Brown would be proud of it, and that's meant as a negative trait. What started as a simple "assassinate the templar in a big medieval city" turned into a cheap and ludicrous Call of Duty plot line.

    other than that, it looks amazing and the gameplay is a lot more rewarding.
    No.

  3. #3
    Angel Without Wings's Avatar Centenarius
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    Default Re: Assassin's Creed II

    I like your review but:

    Why? It gets tiring by the end. The wow factor completely disappears and you just want to finish it once and for all.
    I disagree. Never wanted it to end. Wish I was living at that time period. Now I'm waiting for AC Brotherhood.

  4. #4

    Default Re: Assassin's Creed II

    So can you skip the cutscenes yet? I rather wanted to skip a few annoying ones in the first one.
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  5. #5
    Basileos Leandros I's Avatar Writing is an art
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    Default Re: Assassin's Creed II

    Not that I know of. I couldn't skip my cutscenes.

    Even if you can't, it's worth getting.
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  6. #6
    Finlander's Avatar ★Absolutely Fin-bulous★
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    Default Re: Assassin's Creed II

    Quote Originally Posted by COGlory View Post
    So can you skip the cutscenes yet? I rather wanted to skip a few annoying ones in the first one.
    No you can't but now you don't have to watch them 10 times again and again.


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  7. #7
    Basileos Leandros I's Avatar Writing is an art
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    Default Re: Assassin's Creed II

    The ending left me with mixed feelings. I mean Borgia was too easy to deal with but the whole out of world thingy was nice.

    Still, Ezio was too soft to be an "assassin".
    Ja mata, TosaInu. Forever remembered.

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  8. #8

    Default Re: Assassin's Creed II

    just wanted to say. im playing it in italian. you can choose in the options and - wow. so much better.

  9. #9

    Default Re: Assassin's Creed II

    im not so impressed with the game after i finished it. i wont lie.despite all the hype around it. its only the storyline that kept me playing it. the gameplay was reptetetive easy and boring.

    they really should learn from hitman on how to make a good stealth game. how much times you can do the same type of killing over and over and over.

    the end was well creative but not what i expected. when i started to play it looked like a good historical movie kind of storyline but then it turned out to fantasy crap.

    i give it 6/10

  10. #10

    Default Re: Assassin's Creed II

    I thought it was better than the first, but still lacked in the combat mechanics department. It didnt matter how many I was fighting at once, it was near impossible to lose a fight. The game should be called uberassasinfortheown II.
    but what buggs me the most about this game series, is the stupid memory . Why couldnt the entire game take place in the past, why this need for the modern world memory implant crap? Everytime you had to play in the modern world I was bored out of my mind.
    lol

  11. #11

    Default Re: Assassin's Creed II

    Quote Originally Posted by Haakon View Post
    I thought it was better than the first, but still lacked in the combat mechanics department. It didnt matter how many I was fighting at once, it was near impossible to lose a fight. The game should be called uberassasinfortheown II.
    but what buggs me the most about this game series, is the stupid memory . Why couldnt the entire game take place in the past, why this need for the modern world memory implant crap? Everytime you had to play in the modern world I was bored out of my mind.
    i dident understand how ac3 multyplayer will be like. with this kind of fighting. all you have to do is just hold the block and press attack whenever someone attacking you and you killed him.

    this game will have no skill at all and all of it will be about luck

  12. #12
    Basileos Leandros I's Avatar Writing is an art
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    Default Re: Assassin's Creed II

    It's interesting how many people argue the same thing - "been there done that" effect "bleeding over".
    So many people complained of the much too similar gameplay and nothing really new.
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  13. #13
    eXistenZ's Avatar Praeses
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    Default Re: Assassin's Creed II

    I'm surprised that you only recently got it i bought it for pc as soon as it came out, and if i'm bored i sometimes play for a moment. I agree with what yu say: the graphics and sound is amazing (i m listening to the music on my ipod right now). The story is good i love it how they incorporate historic figures like savonarola) , but a bit strange at the end. Mission variety is much bigger than AC 1, but still sometimes feels a bit the same. A big letdown is that you can't replay story missions (we all want to fly again over the palazzo ducale), and the economic system. It's fun in the beginning, but after a while you swim in cash, making restoring the villa a bit obsolete

  14. #14

    Default Re: Assassin's Creed II

    My first Assassin's Creed game, played on PS3 which is almost same as PC version. Although the graphics were stunning, the gameplay was seriously lacking and I got bored after 10 hours. Now I am unable to play more than an hour in one sitting. I never really felt like an assassin in this game, because it is not really a stealth game, it is more like a platform slash and hack. My assassin wasn't even able to crouch or go prone, since there was no need for it. Soldiers were really stupid and I have seen bugs surviving better than those. For a real stealth assassins game, check out metal gear solid.

    Battle realism was lacking .Example; I battle against 2-3 hordes of guards packed in 6-8 and kill them all singlehandedly (that's not really possible, I mean I just killed about 20 dudes in duel without ambushing them) in broad daylight then walk to the shop next to the crime scene and buy stuff. Bystanders are looking at me for a few seconds and go on with their lives, as well as the new guards who arrive.

    Third criticism is about missions. there are so many missions and according to the law of demand and supply, what is abundant in supply is less precious. too many missions= you don't care about any one of them after a point. Report to someone, kill the dude, or find something report back. It wouldn't be actually bad if they were not so numerous and short. Inability to do real stealth action, you just climb a few roofs and kill the guy head on you don;t feel like even breaking a sweat and celebrating.


    I give 10/10 for visuals and 10/10 for the idea. the execution and gameplay is weak so it starts as 10/10 and drops to 5/10 for me. overall score 6/10
    Last edited by Scalylizard; November 29, 2010 at 03:13 PM.

  15. #15
    Basileos Leandros I's Avatar Writing is an art
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    Default Re: Assassin's Creed II

    That's basically my whole point - it's not much of an assassin game. Ezio at least is not one, that's for sure. He's too "fun", he's too charismatic to be an assassin.
    Altair was the cold blooded bastard who didn't give a damn about someone's life
    Ja mata, TosaInu. Forever remembered.

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    Swords Made of Letters - 1938. The war is looming over France - and Alexandre Reythier does not have much time left to protect his country. A finished novel, published on TWC.

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  16. #16
    Bull3pr00f de Bodemloze's Avatar Occasio mihi fertur
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    Default Re: Assassin's Creed II

    heh, I might write a review of Brotherhood someday, then. The story's shorter, but at least Ezio is a cool master assassin who doesn't care, like Altair in the first game

  17. #17
    mattgoby's Avatar Campidoctor
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    Default Re: Assassin's Creed II

    well op you really need to play brotherhood to get back your no nonsense assassin, this is simply beacuse brotherhood is brutal.

    Also its not so linear there are other things to do you can play it for ages even after its finised.
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  18. #18
    Voodo chile's Avatar Campidoctor
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    Default Re: Assassin's Creed II

    God i hate the Eden pieces in this game. Although some of it is good, eg unlocking the 'truth'. Is does seem strange to have a game where the cities are built as realisticly as possible with a guy wit a super staff which makes him glow and become powerful. I also still reckon the first half of the game is the best. You only have a few hitpoints everything was just more real. You attacked a city at night at the weakest point in the walls with a big group of mercenaries. Later on in the game this task can be achieved in broad daylight by yourself especially with the armour and health potions.

    The game play was great, graphics are great. I'm less of a fan of hack and slash and mindless fps. And the different ways of doing things, eg poison, hidden blades, hireable factions were good and rescued it a bit. To be honest i dont think the series will end too soon and may result in about 5 or 6 sequels.

    What i'd love to see is a more sandbox type of game play. Joining the city guard , stating as a recruit and slowly advancing in rank. Basically you go to the hq and are assigned a part of the city to go to and a squad. And there would be random events such as thiefs, riots or even military invasions in your city.

    And to make money more scarce you could include a food system similar to gta sa/runescape. You eat food periodically and to heal yourself. So you constantly have to spend money and it doesnt stockpile.

    Random events though is something which i would have loved to see. Thiefs going about doing their own thing. Street fights.

  19. #19
    Muizer's Avatar member 3519
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    Default Re: Assassin's Creed II

    I think they're trying different ways to get more out of the work put into the environment (which is indeed stunning). So far though, while interesting concepts in theory, things like medicine pouches, improved weapons, hit point volume are not very well balanced yet.
    "Lay these words to heart, Lucilius, that you may scorn the pleasure which comes from the applause of the majority. Many men praise you; but have you any reason for being pleased with yourself, if you are a person whom the many can understand?" - Lucius Annaeus Seneca -

  20. #20

    Default Re: Assassin's Creed II

    I felt that the story was rather weak and that there was nothing to do after completing the story. Action was alright, better than the first but still rather rigid in my opinion.

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