Assassin’s Creed 2 – Killing is a’ coming…

As it’s been a few weeks since I last mentioned Ubisoft’s eagerly awaited sequel to Assassin’s Creed: Assassin’s Creed 2, I thought it was time I got up to speed on all the latest developments. With the games release imminent, I spent a few hours trawling through various gaming sites, looking at previews, hoping to find out as much information about the sequel as I could. What I found did not disappoint me; even the latest Assassin’s Creed 2 dev walkthroughs do not do the game full justice.

In previous posts I’ve already mentioned several aspects of the game including various changes to the game engine, a wider variety of mission types, an arsenal of new weapons, a brand new commerce system and the inclusion of various secret areas which help unfold the history of the Assassins guild. In some of the latest previews even more details about the game have been disclosed.

The Story

The game kicks off directly after the ending of Assassin’s Creed. During the start of the game Lucy, who turns out to be working for the Assassins Guild, helps Desmond to escape from the evil clutches of the Abstergo lab, a front for the modern-day Templar society. After a brief chase scene, Desmond is smuggled out of the laboratory and introduced to remaining members of the Guild of Assassins. The Guild also has their own version of the Animus machine and Desmond agrees to join forces with them in an attempt to unveil the secret behind the ‘pieces of Eden’. Using the Animus machine Desmond once again steps into the life of an ancestor, but this time it is Ezio, a Venetian from the 15th century.

Instead of the rather sterile and slow conversational interludes in the first game, Ubisoft have ramped up the action in the sequel, making the story much more engrossing and at a much faster pace. Within a short space of time you will complete the training introduction, whilst watching Ezio grow up at the same time; this has the added bonus of engaging the gamer and developing the plot simultaneously. After a bit of character development and training, Ezio soon experiences a great family tragedy which leads him ultimately onto the assassin’s path and a personal quest for revenge.

Game Changes

Hundreds of changes have been implemented throughout the game, including tweaks to the combat system, a new guard AI system and a various changes to the stealth aspect.

Firstly health is now finite. When Ezio is wounded he must seek the aid of a doctor or use various medicines to boost his HP. Armour can be upgraded and this will add additional points and increase Ezio’s health. Armour, just like health, also decreases and will need to be repaired to return it to full strength. Ezio can also make modification to his garb, so if you’re put off by the sight of blood on your white robes then feel free to dye them and change your appearance.

Many of the criticisms of the original revolved around the pointlessness of certain aspects of the game such as pick-pocketing and the monotony of flag collecting. These aspects have now been fixed and in-game bonuses can now be obtained from finishing side-missions, and the implementation of a commerce system makes pick-pocketing a necessary task. Everything in the game costs money, whether it’s buying weapons, upgrading armour or hiring NPC’s to assist you on missions, so collecting cash is an essential part of the game.

The combat system has been seriously tweaked. Enemies now come in three different types; there are brutes, agile NPC’s and intelligent NPC’s and as such defeating opponents requires different skills and techniques. Bashing X will no longer be enough to defeat enemies, Ezio will have to use a variety of tactics, including disarm and steal weapon, to defeat the various types of NPC’s.

Players no longer have to complete all the various side-missions in order to progress to the next area of the game. Instead players can choose to complete additional missions in order to gain rewards which will aid Ezio in later missions.

The stealth and notoriety aspects of the game have been significantly upgraded, the system now acts much like that used in the GTA games. The more blatant you are, the more notorious you become and the more the guards are likely to spot you. Ezio can lower his ‘star’ level in various ways, including ripping down wanted posters strewn throughout the city.

Perhaps the greatest addition to the game is the inclusion of Ezio’s own personal villa. Towards the end of the game you will be able to purchase various upgrades to the town including doctors, brothels, blacksmiths, merchants and churches. All of these improvements will provide Ezio with a constant stream of revenue which can be collected and used to further improve both Ezio’s equipment and the villa.

All of these changes, and many, many more are set to make Assassin’s Creed 2 one of the biggest smash hits of the year. Roll on Nov 20th I can’t wait to start the killing!

Murderation.....