Regardless of whether your take on Assassin's Creed is glowing or somewhat derisory, I think we can probably agree that the game has a few shortcomings. Though critics generally consent that the mechanics are fresh, it's hard to ignore arguments claiming that Assassin's suffers from repetitive objectives. Call it a smart business decision: give players a little too much of one thing and hopefully your competition won't attempt to reiterate before you get the chance. Whatever the case, those never-ending investigations aren't what irked me about Assassin's Creed. No, in my opinion, the truly onerous design decisions had to do with cut scene camera positioning.

Naturally, these issues are far from game-breaking. But they're still worth thinking about for a variety of reasons. First, expository elements almost always have a serious atmospheric impact. Of more particular interest, however, is the fact that cinematics have taken a lot of flack in the wake of Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots. While I largely concur with the folks who have argued that player interaction is what games are all about, abandoning cut scenes in favor of scripted sequences isn't necessarily going to deliver a superior immersive experience, and, to my thinking, Assassin's is living proof.

I found myself almost completely unable to pay even a whit of attention during most of the major plot points despite being genuinely interested in what was happening.

Spoilers to follow.

SPOILER ALERT!!!

Take the scene in which Desmond Miles, Altaïr ibn La-Ahad's present-day descendant, is asking Abstergo employee Lucy Stillman about how she came to work with her supervisor, Warren Vidic. Stillman has just defended Vidic in spite of his short temper and brusque tone, claiming that he once saved her life. "What do you mean he saved your life?" Miles asks.

Now, despite earnestly wanting to know Stillman's answer, I zoned out and later consulted Sarranduin's transcription at GameFAQs. This happened more than once, and, unfortunately, Sarranduin isn't quite finished with the script. At any rate, so far as I can tell, the reason for my (rather consistent) lapses in concentration had to do with Ubisoft Montreal's decision to deliver their storytelling tidbits via scripting rather than itsy-bitsy film. As a consequence, these segments didn't seem separate or special -- yet they were clearly intended to be. Instead of briefly taking control in order to elucidate important details, the development team left its end users an unusual amount of interpretive freedom for such a directed experience.

This seems especially bizarre when one considers that Assassin's Creed is unusually camera conscious. When ibn La-Ahad selects his pickpocket targets, for instance, the perspective shifts in something not unlike rack focus, drawing players' attention to their quarry by leaving white-robed Altaïr looking soft and blurry. Later, when it comes time to assassinate Al Mualim, the developers choose to introduce Masyaf's mind-controlled citizens with a rather brilliant canted angle. This is the work of a team that clearly knows a thing or two about how movies use various techniques to convey meaning. So why not take full advantage of these methods?

Moreover, the scripted portions are severely limiting in terms of control. You can steer Miles and ibn La-Ahad about, but save for some point of view switches through occasional button mashing, there's not a whole lot to do. You can add some artificial oomph to everything by changing perspectives every time someone utters a complete sentence, though if all you can affect are the camera angles, why bother?

Perhaps I'm drawing too hard a line. The scripted sequences in Assassin's are so restrictive they might as well be cut scenes. Nevertheless, editing your own exposition on the fly is not only distracting, it's wholly ineffective as a narrative device. After all, given a linear game such as this, it's the developer who should choose which actions to underscore and which lines of dialogue to emphasize.

One way or another, it'll be fascinating to see how Ubisoft Montreal decides to frame their sequel.

Jak trudne jest życie skrytobójcy

Dziewięć celów, dziewięć osób, których śmierć ma dać kres wyprawom krzyżowym i wygnać Templariuszy z Ziemi Świętej. Najpierw jednak Altair będzie musiał odzyskać pozycję w zakonie Asasynów, utraconą po nieudanej misji. Pod pieczą mistrza, Al-Mualima, bohater będzie odzyskiwał kolejne stopnie (a gracz umiejętności) i wykonywał następne zlecenia. W tym czasie Desmond będzie starał się dowiedzieć... Desmond?

To człowiek z naszych czasów, którego Altair jest odległym przodkiem. Desmond został porwany przez pewną korporację (Abstergo) i podłączony do maszyny zwanej Animus, która pozwala mu wnikać do wspomnień Altaira zapisanych w jego genach.

Strasznie to wszystko wydaje się pokręcone i takie jest w istocie. Z jednej strony jesteśmy Asasynem i podróżując, likwidujemy kolejne cele i trafiamy na nowe tajemnice, z drugiej jako Desmond... cóż, chodzimy pomiędzy dwoma pokojami i rozmawiamy o sekretach Abstergo, swoich i Altaira (w świecie dzisiejszym rozgrywka ogranicza się w większości do takich mało skomplikowanych czynności).

Ciężko cokolwiek pisać o tej historii, żeby nie zacząć spoilerować, więc taki ogólnikowy zarys musi wystarczyć. Na moje oko fabuła przedstawiona w grze jest porządna, choć nie wytycza jakichś nowych standardów w dziedzinie elektronicznych produkcji.

A gra się w to to

Każdy rozdział, segment (jak zwał tak zwał) gry rozpoczynamy u Al-Mualima, od którego dostajemy następne zlecenie zabójstwa. Wybieramy się konno do jednego z trzech miast gry: Akki, Damaszku, bądź Jerozolimy i prowadząc kolejne śledztwa dochodzimy w końcu do momentu likwidacji naszego celu. Śledztwa w grze dzielą się na kilka typów. A to trzeba kogoś podsłuchać, a to okraść czy wymusić zeznania, plus parę innych dość nieskomplikowanych zadań. Każde śledztwo jest czymś w rodzaju minigierki i w każdej misji musimy zrobić ich kilka, aby móc dobrać się do naszego głównego celu. Zabicie celu to najpeirw wysłuchanie długiej gadki, a potem kombinowanie, jak dostać sie do niego poprzez liczne straże. Ważnym elementem są także punkty widokowe, na które wspięcie się uaktualnia naszą mapę i wskazuje punkty odniesienia do dalszego popchnięcia gry do przodu. W międzyczasie możemy ratować cywili bądź pozbierać flagi (flagi nie dają żadnych bonusów, służą tylko zdobyciu osiągnięć na 360 , na PS3 nie dają kompletnie nic). Po zabiciu naszego celu, w mieście podnosi się alarm i uciekamy przed strażnikami do biura Asasynów, co kończy misję.

Tu objawia się pierwsza wada gry, jaką jest koszmarna schematyczność. Proszę mi wierzyć, po dwóch godzinach znamy już wszystkie elementy systemu gry. Powtarzanie tych samych czynności sprawi, że wiele osób może sobie darować zabawę tym tytułem.

Asasyn musi też czasami się z kimś otwarcie zmierzyć. System walki jest dość prosty, jednak sprawia dużo frajdy. Mamy kontry, uniki, zbicia, przełamanie bloku - jednak wystarczy praktycznie opanować kontrę i skuteczne combo, aby móc sobie spokojnie poradzić w większości walk. Kontry wystosowywane przez Altaira są bardzo widowiskowe, sama walka dynamiczna. Oprócz miecza, bohater posiada krótki miecz, noże do rzucania i sztylet chowany w rękawie (aby sprawnie i szybko móc go ukrywać, asasyni nie mieli jednego palca u ręki).

Elementem, któremu należy się osobny akapit, jest miasto - a raczej miasta - w grze. Te są ogromne, pełne wąskich uliczek i tłumów ludzi. Jednak tak naprawdę pomimo swojego ogromu są strasznie puste. To nie RPG, z ludźmi na ulicach nie pogadamy, a skomplikowanie architektoniczne służy tylko i wyłącznie temu, że możemy zaplanować sobie ścieżkę ucieczki przed strażnikami. A ta, dzięki umiejętnościom Altaira, może być za każdym razem inna.

Elementy zręcznościowe są świetnie wyważone. Bohater może wspiąć się na praktycznie każdy element otoczenia. Chodzenie po dachach, balansowanie na wąskich belkach i wspinanie się na ściany jest intuicyjne. Sterowanie bohaterem nie nastręcza żadnych trudności. Zawsze doskoczyłem tam, gdzie chciałem, nie można narzekać na niemożność wymierzenia skoku, kamera dzielnie trzyma się za bohaterem, oprócz starć, gdzie oddala się na z góry upatrzoną pozycję.

Nic nie widzę nic nie słyszę

Grafika robi wrażenie. Wystarczy wejść na jakikolwiek dach w mieście i możemy podziwiać widok aż po horyzont. Świetna jest gra światła i szczegółowość modeli postaci oraz wykonania samych miast. Animacja nie zwalnia, a ruchy bohatera są wręcz fotorealistycznie oddane. Praca jaką wykonano nad animacją głównej postaci zasługuje na nagrodę. Naprawdę można poczuć, że to my wspinamy się po tych wszystkich kondygnacjach, a ruchy podczas walki są jak transmisja z turnieju szermierki.

Gra jest krytykowana za liczne błędy. Nie wiem czy to przez nową polską wersję, czy dodanie patcha, (bo szczerze nie pamiętam czy go instalowałem przy pierwszym uruchomieniu gry), ale podczas rozgrywki nie zauważyłem tragicznych bugów jakie pojawiają się na filmikach wrzuconych w sieć. Z kronikarskiego obowiązku muszę wspomnieć o tym, że gra mimo wszystko raz mi się zawiesiła i po dłuższych sesjach zdarzało się jej przycinać na sekundę po czym ruszała dalej.

Muzyki jako takiej nie zauważyłem. W trakcie ucieczek przed strażą i podczas eksploracji coś tam przygrywa, jedna nie zwróciłem na to większej uwagi, choć to co wpadło mi w ucho było naprawdę niezłe.

Słów kilka o polskim dubbingu. Aktorzy spisali się naprawdę dobrze. Nie czuć sztuczności wypowiadanych kwestii, czasami tylko mówią ze zbyt wielkim dramatyzmem. Na szczególną pochwałę zasługuje Daniel Olbrychski jako Al-Mualim, który naprawdę przyłożył się do swojej roli. Polski jest zarówno dubbing jak i napisy w grze. Niestety, nie ma możliwości zmienienia języka na angielski, więc jeśli ktoś nie trawi polskich wersji musi poszukać starszej wersji.

“Nic nie jest prawdziwe, wszystko jest dozwolone”

Ponarzekałem, trochę powychwalałem, ale nie da się ukryć że pierwsza część z planowanej trylogii ma w sobie magię. Misję i przemierzanie miast mimo że monotonne i mało urozmaicone, budują niesamowity klimat, który mi strasznie przypadł do gustu. Gra ta nie jest tym, na co ją kreowano, a świetne wyniki sprzedaży są po części spowodowane ogromną kampanią reklamową. W żadnej mierze nie jest to też skradanka. Najszybciej to gra przygodowa (wszystko teraz można włożyć do tego wora) z elementami stealth. Jednak pomimo monotonii, chciało mi się zrobić calak i poznać dokładnie sekrety fabuły. To gra z gatunku takich, które się kocha albo nienawidzi od pierwszego wejrzenia. Ja dałem Altairowi szansę i wciągnął mnie na około 20 godzin. Inni też powinni spróbować, choć rozczarowanie może być bolesne.

Końcowa Ocena: 8 na 11 Jamniczków Zombie

ogólny klimat gry, animacja bohatera (!!!), oprawa, elementy zręcznościowe, fabuła

koszmarny schemat, wielkie i "puste" miasta, koniec gry pozostawia zbyt wiele pytań

Info

Testowana wersja: Assassin's Creed (wersja polska)

Urządzenie: XBOX 360

Wydawca: Ubisoft

Developer: Ubisoft Montreal

Platforma: PS3, XBox 360, PC

P.S. Obrazki z serwisu Gamespot

• Huge, gorgeous world that feels wholly alive
• Fluid controls make it fun to run across city rooftops
• Joyous mix of stealth, action, and platforming
• Stunning sound design features fantastic voice acting and a beautiful musical score
• Tons of small details will constantly amaze you.

The Bad

• Confusing ending
• A few small visual glitches.

Assassin's Creed will stay with you long after you finish it. Here is one of the most unique gameworlds ever created: beautiful, memorable, and alive. Every crack and crevasse is filled with gorgeous, subtle details, from astounding visual flourishes to overheard cries for help. But it's more than just a world--it's a fun and exciting action game with a ton of stuff to do and places to explore, rounded out with silky-smooth controls and a complex story that will slowly grab you the more you play. Make no mistake: Assassin's Creed is one of the best efforts of the year and a must-own game for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 owners.

Not enough can be said about the living, breathing world that you'll inhabit in Assassin's Creed. As assassin extraordinaire Altaïr, you'll explore three major cities of the Holy Land in the 12th century: Jerusalem, Damascus, and Acre. Each city is beautifully rendered from top to bottom and features meticulously crafted towers that reach for the sky, bustling market squares, and quiet corners where citizens converse and drunks lie in wait to accost you. As you wander the streets (and rooftops), you'll push your way through crowds of women carrying jars on their heads, hear orators shout political and religious wisdom, and watch town guards harass innocent victims. Altaïr has a profound effect on this world, but the cities are entities all their own, with their own flows and personalities.

The visual design has a lot to do with how believably organic everything feels. The cities are absolutely huge, and though you don't get full exploration privileges in the first few chapters, they eventually open up to let you travel seamlessly from one side to another. Everything is beautifully lit with just the right amount of bloom effect, and almost everything casts a shadow, from tall pillars to Altaïr's cloak. In fact, sometimes the shadows get to be a bit much and may make you think for a moment that there is artifacting on your screen, when in fact it's a character's head casting a shadow on his or her own neck. Every object, from scaffolds to pottery, is textured so finely you feel as if you could reach out and touch it. Animations are almost as equally well done. Altaïr scales walls, leaps majestically from towers, and engages in swashbuckling swordfights that would make Errol Flynn proud. And he does it all with fluid ease, generally moving from one pose to another without a hitch. Minor characters move gracefully as well, though one of the game's few visual drawbacks is the occasional jerky animation on the part of a citizen. However, it's easy to forgive, considering that the cities are populated with thousands and thousands of individuals. In fact, these tiny blemishes are noticeable only because everything else looks so incredible.

What you hear is even more impressive than what you see. At the top of a temple, you hear little but the rush of wind, the twittering of birds, and the barking of a far-off dog. In the most populated areas, your ears will fill with the din of street vendors, the pleas of beggars, and the occasional humming. It's never too much, though, and the game does a good job of making sure you hear what you need to hear (for example, the cries of citizens who need your help), without filling your ears with pointless noise. All these effects, along with the clangs of swords and groans of assassinated foes, are outstanding. The voice acting of the supporting cast is similarly remarkable. Conversations are completely believable and delivered with the perfect amount of solemn dignity. Oddly, the weakest link is Altaïr himself. Actor Philip Shahbaz does an all right job, but he isn't up to par with the first-rate acting of his fellow troupe. Rounding it all out is a beautiful orchestral score that is most notable for its subtlety. Many of the game's most impressive moments are accompanied by lovely musical themes that add even more threads to the game's rich living tapestry.

Fortunately, the story that binds it all together rises to the occasion. Actually, there are two related stories in play. The unfolding drama of Crusades-era Palestine is a mere memory, forcibly pulled from a modern-day bartender named Desmond by a resolute researcher using a machine called an animus. The memories aren't Desmond's own--they are Altaïr's, stored safely in the hapless subject's genetic code. We follow Altaïr as he assassinates nine public figures at the command of his master, and as the common thread that ties these men comes into focus, so does the true identity of Desmond's captors. There are no cutscenes in the traditional sense; every bit of story exposition and dialogue flows smoothly from the gameplay and takes place entirely within the game engine. The ending is confusing, and it blatantly leaves open the possibility of a sequel, but it's a small blemish on an otherwise stirring tale. Altaïr's world is not one of absolutes. His assassination targets aren't always evil, and Altaïr isn't always likable. As he is fond of reminding us, "Nothing is true. Everything is permitted."

Of course, such an authentic world would be meaningless without a lot of fun things to do in it. Thankfully, Assassin's Creed is endlessly entertaining in that it features a fine mix of stealthy exploration, tight platforming, and exciting combat. To discover the whereabouts of your assassination targets, you must first follow up on possible leads. There are several different mission types in this regard. In some cases, you sit on a bench and listen in on secret conversations. At other times, you will closely follow someone carrying an important letter that you'll pickpocket. Alternately, you can beat the information out of your target. Most missions are relatively easy to pull off in the early stages of the game. But once the guards and townspeople start recognizing you (or you alert them to your presence too close to the scene of one of your crimes), they get a little tougher.

There are also some optional tasks, such as rescuing innocent townspeople from the clutches of guards. The reward for doing so is a group of vigilantes who will hang out in the area afterward and hinder any foes chasing you. It's also a good way to try out Assassin's Creed's combat, which is surprisingly satisfying, considering the game's focus on sneaking around. You can pounce on enemies using your hidden blade (an incredibly rewarding one-stab kill), or use throwing daggers to take enemies down from a distance. However, your sword is your melee mainstay, and though the hack-and-slash combat may seem simple at first, it gets more challenging once you unlock the various countermoves. Often, you'll have a dozen or more attackers to fend off at once, but though these fights can be a little tricky, you'll never feel as if you're in over your head. In fact, the few circumstances in which you are forced into combat--such as a late-game boss fight against a seemingly endless crowd of attackers and their leering leader--are challenging and require some pitch-perfect timing to counter every strike and lunge.

Nevertheless, brute force is rarely the best way to handle a situation. You want to slink unnoticed through the crowds, but you can draw attention to yourself in a number of ways--whether it be galloping past a guard station on a horse, knocking pottery off of someone's head, or getting so frustrated by the various beggars that you fling them away from you. (And trust us--these are the most aggressive panhandlers you'll ever meet.) If you antagonize the guards, they'll give chase. Yes, you can stick around and fight, and though it's never the easiest option, breaking stealth does not damn you to death like it does in other sneaking games. But why not lure them to a rooftop? Once up there, you can grab them and fling them to the street below. Or if there are too many of them, you can jump across the rooftops gracefully until you find a hiding place, such as a nice bale of hay or a curtained garden. Once you're hidden, they'll break chase and you'll be free to roam about.

You can also seek refuge in small groups of scholars who serve as mobile hiding places. It's a bit contrived to walk into a stationary cluster of scholars and have them suddenly start moving simply because you're there, but it gets the job done. Actually, if there's any drawback to the usually excellent gameplay, it's how synthetic certain elements feel. Vigilantes are always in the same spot, missions reset if you don't get them right the first time, and those same guards will be harrassing that citizen, an hour after you pass by. It's easy to forgive these quirks though, given the easygoing flow of the world surrounding these pockets of gameplay.

Climbing up buildings and jumping around the rooftops is fun and breezy, thanks to effortless controls that strike a great balance between ease of use and player input. You can leap across alleys and scale walls with the pull of a trigger and the press of a button, and though it's possible to launch yourself from a wall or hurtle through a vendor's booth by accident, these moments aren't very common. You'd think that a city specifically designed to let you climb structures and caper about the roofs would look overly artificial, yet there's never a moment when you will think to yourself, "Wow, that looks like a place where I'm supposed to jump." The architecture looks completely natural, which makes Altaïr's abilities all the more exciting to pull off. The environments don't look as if they were created for him to climb around on; he just uses the hand he's been dealt, as any good assassin should.

In Assassin's Creed, the greatest joy comes from the smallest details, and for every nerve-racking battle, there's a quiet moment that cuts to the game's heart and soul. Climbing towers to uncover portions of the map is a simple mechanic but forever satisfying, thanks to the beautiful vistas and soft musical themes that accompany the view. Even the drunks that pester you are amusing and fun, though their constant shoving is more than annoying, especially if you are trying to pickpocket a pedestrian or eliminate a target without a fuss. It all makes your missions that much more compelling, and you'll be inclined to explore every nook and cranny and take on every optional task, just for the fun of it. There's a ton of stuff to do, and even when you've exhausted your official tasks, you can search for the collectible flags and crosses strewn around the cities and countryside. You could probably plow through the main quest in 20 hours if you're lucky, but completists might spend close to 50 hours finishing every quest and gathering every collectible.

There are few differences between the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions. PS3 owners are blessed with a slightly more solid frame rate, although the 360 version features a little more contrast in the lighting, so it's pretty much a wash. But regardless of which platform you go with, you'll have an amazing and unforgettable game. Assassin's Creed is the kind of game you tell your friends about, and one that should be in your collection.

I rate this game:

• Attitude problems don't constitute interesting characters.  I don't care much for the main character's attitude.  I'd much rather have played a true novice, than an asshole who got demoted.
   
• Simple controls are not necessarily a bad thing.  Climbing is incredibly fun.  It consists of pressing up, for the most part, but that doesn't matter.  The simple control scheme allows me to focus on how high I've climbed, and how fluid the animation is.  Very well done.
   
• NPCs should be just as real as the player's character.  I wish that I didn't feel like "Main Protagonist" all the time.  There are beggar women and mental patients in the street.  They see me and the beggars run in front of me begging and the deranged push me around.  In theory, I shouldn't kill them, and I don't, but they're annoying.  The thing is, they only bother me.  I don't see the beggars block anyone else's paths, and I don't see the (I'm guessing) schizophrenics push anyone else around.  I'm supposed to be anonymous while moving through the streets, but I very much don't feel that way.
   
• The outside-the-Animus scenes: please don't ever do that again!  It seems to me that this was Ubisoft's idea of keeping the player engaged during a cutscene, while also giving the option of skipping said cutscene.  I'm usually just annoyed, though.  There's nothing to do, no gameplay to be had, and the story is largely throwaway.  It's an irritating break thrown arbitrarily into the game and I have yet to feel like it adds anything significant.  Maybe when the game's over I'll have a different opinion, but, over halfway through, I'm just annoyed.
      Okay, I've finished the game, and the non-Altair scenes just got more and more annoying.  They completely broke my sense of immersion, and I really just couldn't care less about what was going on.  I can forgive a HUD and a timeline that skips around.  It's really, really, not necessary to pull out the contortionist routine to explain save games and pause menus.
   
• All cutscenes should be skippable.  Lemme say that again.  All cutscenes should be skippable.  EVERY SINGLE ONE.  I'm sure that developers everywhere think that they're story is incredibly compelling and needs to be seen, but gaming is about making your own story.  I just cut a swath of destruction across Acre, as I rode down the guards at the city entrance and picked every fight I could on my way to each of the city's viewpoints.  That's what I'll remember later on, not the verbal sparring between the asshole main character I don't identify with and the asshole assassin's guild bureaucrat I don't care about.  Allowing me to walk around in circles while talking to the guy only really breaks my suspension of disbelief even more.
   
• Audio should be centered on the character, not the camera, by default.  I don't know if this is an option that can be changed, as it's only happened during the annoying modern day scenes, but the dialogue fades out if I move the camera around the room.  So, in order to hear what anyone is saying I have to have the camera pointed right at the person, regardless of where my character is standing.  This is boring, and in a scene I already find pointless, this is especially excruciating.  Audio (dialogue, at the very least) from the character's point of view should be the default mode, regardless of whether it's an option or not.
   
• Genre fusing is dangerous territory.  I'm still torn over the (I assume) alien object at the end of the game.  Even if it's just wildly technologically advanced, it still kind of came out of nowhere.  I can accept the Animus.  We've established that this company has developed a new technology that can read genetic memory, fine.  One assumes that this technology is based off of previous technological advances also from the modern day.  The technologically advanced object in the Middle Ages, though....  Well, I'll say that I'm not surprised that they went there, but I do wish that there had been a little bit of foreshadowing.  I'm all for mixing genres and playing with audience expectations, which is why I can't condemn this outright, but I'm not so sure it was handled very well.
   
• It's not necessary to throw a sandbox and hundreds of collectibles into every game.  Every area in this game has a ton of little collectible flags for you to find.  The game also includes the "Go anywhere, dick around as you please" philosophy of sandbox games.  This is only a real issue because the game also tries to instill a sense of urgency into you.  Outside the Animus, you're constantly being told that your life is dependent upon your cooperation, and that you need to hurry up and get on with it.  Inside the Animus, there's a sense of "I've got a job to do."  Neither of these is exactly conducive to just popping around and picking stuff up.  And, realistically, the sandbox game works best when you've got lots of options, lots of things to do.  Altair can basically only kill people and climb stuff, and, really, what point is there in just randomly running around and killing people and climbing stuff?  He's supposed to stay anonymous and protect the people.  These are not ideas that play well together.  I understand that Ubisoft's trying to add value to the game, but all it really does is break immersion.  The doc will scream at you if you take more than two seconds to pick a level, but he has no problem if you pick a level you've played three times already.  That makes sense.
   
• Finally, GIVE YOUR STORIES A PROPER ENDING.  I don't care if you've got a trilogy planned, paid for and written.  I don't care if I don't care about the story you're telling.  I don't care if the ending is happy or not.  I just care that you actually END the damn thing.  I'm not even talking about the surprise hint at the end of a story, where someone you thought was dead opens their eyes, or something like that.
      No, I'm talking about "To be continued" endings.  I despise "To be continued."  I especially despise it when I'm looking at a year or more before the story actually is continued.  And the worst part is, in Assassin's Creed, it was the modern day story line that failed to wrap up.  Altair's story ended satisfyingly.  He figured out what was going on, reconciled past differences and took out the bad guy.  There was the obligatory "The real story is even bigger than that" ending, but Altair's plot line was complete, and that revelation was more prologue to a new plot than anything to do with the old plot.
       The final scene outside the Animus, though, was not a resolution.  I don't want to give it away, since so many people despise spoilers, but basically, you started out stuck in a room with nothing to do, and you end up stuck in a room with even less to do.  There are hints of future revelations, but NOTHING HAPPENS.  Nothing happens through that entire story line.  Nothing gets developed, nothing changes, the characters are all flat and what little plot there is is left completely unresolved.  I didn't like that part of the game to begin with.  When I got to the end, I despised that part of the game.

Assassin's Creed was a phenomenal game, I was absolutely glued to my Xbox for the hours it took me to beat it. I have played games like it before (Hitman most notably) where the AI seems very...well A, if you catch my drift.

In this game, the townspeople notice when you are there, and also know if you are doing something out of the ordinary (i.e., climbing walls, running). This game's AI was one of the most interactive I have seen, in most games, NPC"s repeat the same phrases to where it gets annoying very quick. For this game you get very close to the end of the game before you start to notice the pattern in what they are set to say.

The storyline was very in-depth seeming almost possible, (or maybe it is) and the ending has quite a good twist, but not one I exactly agree with. They leave it open for a sequel but I do feel the need for closure.

I may be a little biased, seeing as I am very in to the medieval times and others like it, but I can't see why anyone would dislike this game. The combat mode is in 3rd person and lets you individually select enemies out of a crowd of foes to focus your fury and optimize your deadly force.

You start out as Desmond Miles, who is kidnapped and forced into a machine called the "Animus" which, using a new technology called gene mapping, lets them replay the memory of your ancestor Altair Ibn La-Ahad (Son of None) who was an assassin during the era of King Richard and the Knights Templar.

Within your first use of the Animus it is apparent they are looking for something, what that is you will have to play to find out...

More in depth of the Pro's:

The levels are very expansive and every peak is at your whim. From the highest tower to the poor district of Jerusalem you can climb, jump, and run anywhere and everywhere. If you have drawn the attention of guards, you can blend in with priests or with the crowd. One thing I find that makes the game seem more feasible is the way the health is metered. In many games you either have a health bar, regenerating bar, or none at all. In this game, when you move off of the original memory of Altair, such as killing a guard or becoming injured, you begin to become lose synchronization with the memory and in order to get your "health" back you must regain synchronization. If you die as Altair, you are moved back to the Animus screen with a message similar to "Would you like to go back to the last memory mapped?"

More in depth with the Con's:

This game really had no faults in my eyes, that is, until I beat the game. Meaning, I have not wanted to go back and play because I have no reason, I have finished the storyline and killed more than my fair share of Templar Knights. Most games have many side missions that can keep you interested after the main campaign has been completed, but only saving poor women and collecting the thousands of town flags remain.

This has been one of my favorite single player games in a while, so I give it an 8.5/10.

by Jonathan Setzer

If only I can get this Eavesdropping thing down....

I'll give more details later if something truly cool pops up, but so far I'm loving th graphics & sound on the 360 version. I'm finding myself wishing it was on PSP, too. Weird that it has a DS version, but no PSP love :(

I recently picked up Assassin's Creed now that it finally price dropped to a reasonable amount for a video game. I've gotten to the point where I am literally refusing to buy new games. The first reason being that $60 is an asinine amount for the "crap-in-a-box" they call video games today. And secondly, I like to wait until all the reviews, guides, and word-of-mouth has gotten around about the game before I decide if I should blow $40+ on 20 hours of mild entertainment. You can't trust the "previews" and the demos and the trailers because they are all designed to make you want to buy the game. You don't get to see all the bugs (well, sometimes with demos you do), the flaws, the shitty "side-quest" mechanics systems that they ever-so-eloquently leave out of all the marketing. You never know how good a game is going to be until after it is released. Which is why I implore everyone to stop wasting money pre-ordering.

Back on topic, Assassin's Creed. Well, according to my wife I am "the worst assassin ever" because of the sheer amount of times I've had to fight 30+ guards because I accidentally ran into a street beggar too fast or something. There are a lot of good points to the game, but many times it becomes rather frustrating.

The Pros

Well, graphically the game is beautiful. I'm not really a graphics nut (I still play Diablo 2 and think it looks 'o.k.") but it does look on-par or better than every other 360 game I've played lately.

The combat is fun and intuitive. It's easy to pick up literally every part of the system from dodging, grabbing, blocking, countering, and so on. The cinematic, yet still very engaging, combat was, without a doubt, the best part of the game. It lead to some very amusing and bloody battles that I continued to enjoy through the entire game.

Climbing buildings, jumping across rooftops and running through markets was also very well done. The smooth flow from the "automatic grab/jump to the next thing" mechanic is something to brag about. It was definitely leagues ahead of similar systems, and is now being quickly copied by a little number called Mirror's Edge (which basically looks like Assassin's Creed . . . but without swords).

The Cons

Having to pickpocket thugs in the streets to replenish your throwing daggers was nice, except when you go in for the pick, and you happen to walk past one of those annoying beggar women who just continuously get in your way and annoy the fuck out of you. Or worse, one of the poor guys who pushes you when you get too close to them, knocking you into the thug and alerting half the damn city that you're an "Assassin! Get the Assassin!", as if somehow that bump in the street informed everyone that I'm out to kill them all.

The story is tolerable. It's not more than I've come to expect from "video game stories" but it wasn't horrible. The parts of it that are supposed to be a surprise come as no surprise at all. I think we've all heard the "Hero's Mentor Turns Evil At The Last Minute" story arc about 50 million times now, so it is expected, especially when the game literally tells you there is one more "mission" after you kill all the bad guys. Who could it be, I wonder? Actually I don't wonder, I figured it out the very first time I stepped into the Animus and saw that "oh look, there is one level after the final *bad* guy, I bet it's a good guy gone bad", and I was not disappointed.

The "Hold Right Trigger For Everything In The Game" mechanic kind of wore me down though, and I play FPS games non-stop, so that's saying something. There really wasn't a time during the entire game where I wasn't in "High Profile" mode, except during cutscenes or when the missions literally demanded that I stop mindlessly charging into groups of guards and actually use some stealth or be at least subtle about killing everyone.

The "automatically grab/jump to the next thing" mechanic created a smooth flow to moving through the world but other times became very, very frustrating. Sometimes I wanted Altair to go to one spot while the AI system decided "No, I'm going to jump you off this building so you fall to your death - Haha!". The worst case of this was during one of the final acts when you have to traverse a port and harbor. Altair, although a world class assassin possessing super-human agility, grace, speed, and strength and living within miles of the ocean his entire life, never learned to swim. So much as touching the water leads to an instant death, yet you have to jump across these poles to get to different locations (while be shot at by arrows I might add). The problem is; unless you are 100% accurate with your jump, Altair leaps into the water. I had this problem . . . over and over and over again. And the more you die, the more impatient you become and the more you miss jumps and die again. It's a vicious cycle.

Finally

So, while the game has some very frustrating moments it is still overall a decent game. I'm definitely happy with my purchase and I don't get to say that often with video games these days. I would definitely suggest this game to anyone who thinks they might be interested in it, but haven't tried it yet. It may not be everyone's "cup of tea" but it was a pretty fun game and that's all I really ask for.

Woke up early again this morning, 6ish. I'd say it's becoming a habit but nuisance is such a better word for it. I opt to "sleep in" for 5 minutes. Normally when you lay in bed longer, you roll out of bed just the same as you would've otherwise. But in this case, I "woke up" from the 5 minute snooze a little less jarred and mummy-like. My trek to the bathroom was the same as any other day, wet my hair substantially, faux-hawk it for shits and giggles, shave, and wash my face. I decided to peek on my grandmother though, Shining style. Startled, she yelled at me, dissing the 'hawk. My stomach growled in response, but with no lactose-free breakfast in the house, I was shit out of luck(as usual). Coffee came out alright today, doesn't compare in the least to Starbucks/Borders/etc, but the hell if it didn't crack my eyes open past "Zombie level" into an area more suitable for human beings.

Decided to catch the late bus today while I chilled, breaking into the 360 bright and early. I spent my time testing out some demos I'd left downloading the night prior. Soul Caliber was great, no story mode though. Puzzle Fighter was great, no friends though. Street Fighter 2 was decent, but too old school for me. I got my ass handed to me in SF2 in a mirror match. First round. Sad, I thought the first level of any game was supposed to be a 'gimme'.

The mundanity kicked in at work. As soon as a I stepped into my office I realized today was website stocking day. Inserting all the new products into the website via the Admin panel. And not only did I have a list of ~30 to work with, only 2 of them had the images made. Leafing through catalogs, I spent 3-4 hours bored out of my mind. I don't mind doing work, I know it's supposed to be somewhat boring. But this work wasn't what I signed up for. This was grunt work, busy work, the work that(dare I be elitist), lesser minds should be doing. My time should be spent working on the website that's due next week(as opposed to writing this...).

Though yesterday wasn't bad. I came home to a large package, I thought it was my black plush Yoshi, but it turned it out to be Gamestop's doing. The 4 used games and the "play and charge" kit for the 360. I understand the games are used, I understand that it was a big sale, but the motherfuckers packaged this thing so weak that one of the cases broke. They put in this new-age package stuffer, a bunch of plastic air bubbles chained together, and put all the 'goods on top of it. You know, instead of between it. I wouldn't mind if it was bubble wrap, bubble wrap is the shit. You can pull it out and play with it, disregarding the fact that the drone that threw your merch into a paper box was an idiot. But this chain of air cushions had no use.

Until my dad got a hold of it.

They sounded like fireworks going off. Loud popping far beyond the threshold of pain. Of course I was standing right next to him during his popping frenzy. Thanks dad, thanks.

I didn't get the opportunity to actually test the games though, I just swapped their shitty Blockbuster-esque, industrial glue stickered cases for some nice, more importantly sticker-free casing.

And I'm on the second to last level of Assassin's Creed!!! Excuse my failed attempt at fake enthusiasm. Part of me is glad the game is wrapping up, but the other half just figured out what the hell the Templars were(yes, this late in the game - fuck you) and is interested in what's happening in the story. Hopefully the hunger for a conclusion will end with the last level. And a suitable "boss fight". So far it's been the same deal, same difficulty for every "boss". Other than adding some archers and more guards. Woooah.

Fucking a I'm hungry. I never use my lunch break here at work(I guess this is technically it), but the hell if I don't regret it. Wishing I had a stepford wife type mother who packed my lunch, or a girlfriend who'd swing by and give me some lasagna(I hate lasagna, but for the sake of a Clerks reference...).

Games wie Assassins Creed, Unreal Tournament 3 oder Crysis verlangen dem System einiges an Power ab.
Wäre es nicht wunderbar wenn man schon im Vorfeld abchecken könnte ob sein System die Vorraussetzungen erfüllt und das Game flüssig und im vollen Detailreichtum zum laufen bringt ohne vorher eine Demo runterzuladen und installieren zu müssen?

Diese Möglichkeit gibt es nun seit ein paar Monaten. YouGamers.com heißt die Plattform welche es euch erlaubt eben dies herauszufinden. Dazu ist die einmalige Installation des Tools VirtualMark, aus dem Hause Futuremark dem wohl bekanntesten Benchmarkanbieters, nötig.
Ähnlich wie es aus Futuremark, dem gleichnamigen Benchmarks der Firma, bekannt ist wird euer PC auf Herz und Nieren überprüft, also welche Konfiguration euer System aufweist. Überprüft werden der verwendete Prozessor, eure Grafikkarte, der RAM, der freie Festplattenspeicher und eurer Betriebsystem.

Wenn ihr nun auf YouGamers ein Game anklickt bekomm ihr, nach kurzer Ladezeit, detailierte informationenwelches System vom Publisher empfohlen wurd, welches die Minimalanforderungen sind, eine von YouGamers vorgeschlage Konfiguration und zu guter letzt eure derzeitiges im Vergleich sowie eine Grafische Zusammenfassung und weitere Detailierte Informationen darüber mit welchen Komponenten ihr euer System aufwerten könnt, sollte es einmal nicht reichen.

Clevere Sache und vor allem gut zu wissen wenn man im Begriff ist sich ein neues Game anzuschaffen.

Aside from those two complaints, I'm excited for the next game, although I suspect it might descend into even further silliness and camp. I'm willing to give them a chance though. Oh, and could we get rid of the people who assault you in the street randomly next time? Aside from painting an offensive portrait of poor and differently abled people (it basically presents all such people as dangerous, violent, and annoying), that was annoying. If you want to include annoying moving roadbloacks next game, make it a cult full of people who hate those who dress in white! It would be about as believable.

Now I should go do some Flash stuff for class. You have no idea how little I want to do that. What's next on the game slate? Probably BG2 (loser, loser, loser!), with a bit of Oblivion (need to write a bit about that later) thrown in. Wait, one more thing. Dragon Age teaser... Good, bad, alright? Yes, it looks a bit like the Lord of the Rings, but I've seen Bioware take a familiar franchise and make it look and sound different (and fun, as opposed to Meow Skywalker's latest outings). I don't doubt their ability to take a familiar look and feel (and remember cats and kittens, that wasn't gameplay, or all of the races, that was the pasty faux-Englsh dudes) and make a fantastic fucking game out of it.

Ubisoft presenta uno de los títulos más esperados de la temporada como una película épica con rigor histórico y un punto de ciencia ficción. Tierra Santa y la tercera cruzada son testigos de cómo un determinado asesino imparte su sangrienta justicia por igual entre cruzados y sarracenos.

Assasin’s Creed ha sido desde el primer momento de su misma concepción, un juego llamado a aportar ese 'algo más' en el mundo de los videojuegos. El halo de éxito creativo ha acompañado a este proyecto desde que se anunciara en el E3 2006  y el interés entorno a él no ha parado de aumentar a cada nuevo avance informativo o a golpe de entrevista a cargo de su productora. Había dudas, por supuesto. Y a nadie se puede culpar de no haber tenido fe desde el primer momento con un proyecto de semejante ambición y que siempre ha apuntado muy alto en diferentes categorías: gráficos increíbles, un mundo enorme, libertad total, control innovador, una historia madura y con gravedad, rigor histórico... muchos frentes en los que combatir por la excelencia, lo que haría fácil que alguno de ellos cayera bajo el enorme peso que el equipo de Jade Raymond ha soportado cual Atlas.

Това което се знае за историята, е че играта ще се развива в Чикаго, след като градът е претърпял тежко земетресение. Ще играем от първо лице, но няма да има "тежки" оръжия (ще има леки ала Mirror's Edge елементи). Заглавието се очаква, към пролетта на 2009-та за Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 и PC.

Ubisoft обещават, че на таз годишното E3 ще ни покажат 14-20 минутно видео от I Am Alive и Джейд Реймънд с радост ще ни разкаже повече за играта ;) но за съжаление няма да ни покажат "игрова" версия, а ще гледаме само филмчета. :( За сметка на това, най-вероятно на Games Convention в Германия, малко по-късно тази година журналистите ще могат да се докопат до нещо което да може да се играе.

Чакам с интерес!

Des sa sortie je suis partie immédiatement au score games le plus proche de cher moi pour me procurer l’édition colléctor d’Assasin’s Creed. En ouvrant la boite j’ai eu l’agréable surprise de découvrir le figurine en résine du Héros du jeu ^^Altair^^. La figurine mesure pas loin de 30cm et est fourni dans une très belle boite. J'attend de voir si le jeu sera compatible avec le systeme de trophées pour le recommencer de A à Z.

For more on this absolutely quality tool, check out Team Nirvana and download it from here.

I hate hearing the words "Games don't need story." It bothers me. It worries me. I worry that people have lost sight of seeking a more exploratory world of games, a more experimental experience. But I can respect their opinion--they've chosen Form over Purpose, if you've read Scott McCloud's Understanding Comics. They want to find a refined way to create a game that will appeal to the viewer.
However, I've long since leapt that fence and raced to the heart of what I consider games: experiences. People developed games through evolution, Will Wright has said. It's important for our growth and development. It's a form of *experience*, in which our actions and the "management of our resources" affect our trajectory towards our goal. But our goal could be something far greater, far more profound than simply "Achieving victory". "Owning all the property." "Defeating the final boss." By seeing games in this light, I almost feel like we're trying to make games more shallow than they are or could be. More dry. More boring. See, if it's just about capturing the flag, what's the point? If all you need to do is get to the finish line before everyone else, why do it? There has to be more to designing a game, and I think by exploring the ways we tell stories through gameplay is the key. After all, people create their own stories when playing any game--they don't just observe the rules of play, they observe the EVENTS of play--the rules simply become the reality, the medium for that story to take place.

Think of a game like the Indigo Prophecy (Farenheit in the UK). It had an amazing story which steadily became a Wachowski Brothers fest as the game continued, thanks to an unfortunate lack of funding for the tale that was supposed to be a sequel. In any case, the way the story was told was entirely through gameplay--through a set of rules that players began to learn and obeyed throughout the experience. The final goal of the game? To uncover the secret behind the murder your main protagonist appears to have committed. It's a survival game, in a sense--the point is to survive to the end. But even if it's such a simplistic formula, without that story the game would collapse onto itself. The gameplay is strong and interesting and experimental, but it's simply not enough to convey the experience--it's the story that drives that.

On the other hand, let's take a look at a very story-absent game. Let's take Pong. Any version--you can go from Pong to Top Spin 2 to Rockstar's Table Tennis. The game has very little story to it. You rise to the top and all, but, really, the plot can be thrown aside and what would be left is the barebones game mechanic of bouncing a ball back and forth. But what is it that drives the player to invest in that? Is it the cheering fans, the hot asphalt? The original Pong didn't have that level of realism. Is it the simplistic power of moving a rack and knocking a ball back across the net at the other player? Table Tennis was a great deal more complicated than that, and requires a good bit of hard work to master.
In essence? It's the spirit of that competition that embodies the challenge and elicits the player's emotion. We search for so-called "meaningful play" in design, but what many fail to realize is that every time a player is invested, they are alluding to yet another human story.

We shouldn't be trying to create "meaningful play". We should be trying to make play players can attach meaning to themselves.

The point I'm trying to make is, games create stories. People create stories--we're a story-driven race; it's why we spend such a great deal of time researching and conserving our hi-story. Our memory is comprised of stories and events, and those experiences dictate how and what we have learned over the course of our lives. Humans and stories are inseparable--and games are simply the setup of hypothetical, experimental universes for more stories to be created. Costikian said it himself, and I don't know why he doesn't recognize it: "Games provide a set of rules; but the players use them to create their own consequences." Those consequences are being remembered and learned as stories.

I see ludology as a tool, not an ideal. Creating fun gameplay is essential to a game's success, yes. But it's finding a way to capture the spirit of play in the player that I find the true art. It's why many MMOs fail where World of Warcraft reigns king. It's why people keep buying Final Fantasy again and again and again. It's why you keep asking your friends to play Monopoly with you--the universe created by the game is that breeding ground for all players to create their own stories. It doesn't matter what the mechanics are, as long as they work for that specific event you want to recreate.

It's why many people disliked Assassin's Creed. Playing it, you'd want to recreate the story of an assassin. But the gameplay simply doesn't lend for the creation of that experience. The game isn't UN-FUN, per se. It just doesn't lend for someone to believe they're an assassin in most cases.

Give that some thought before you begin writing numbers down, ludologists.

Ubisoft ha confermato tramite un'intervista concessa a Forbes dal boss della divisione statunitense della compagnia, Laurent Detoc, che nessun seguito per Assassin's Creed è previsto per il 2008.

Nonostante il successo del primo episodio, che ha venduto circa 6 milioni di copie da suddividere tra le varie piattaforme interessate (PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, PC e Nintendo DS), Ubisoft ha deciso di protrarre l'attesa per il secondo capitolo di quella che si preannuncia come una saga di successo. Il gioco sarà preceduto da una massiccia campagna informativa, come accaduto in passato con il primo episodio, e al momento non c'è traccia alcuna di anticipazioni.

Intanto, questo inverno dovrebbe fare il suo ingresso nella generazione attuale di console un nuovo capitolo della decennale saga di Prince of Persia, annunciato per PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 e Wii; è probabile che Ubisoft non voglia pubblicare in un arco di tempo limitato due titoli di azione che potrebbero rivelare alcune analogie nel gameplay, nonostante alcune immagini di Prince of Persia Prodigy mostrino il protagonista del gioco sottoposto a un notevole restyling.

FONTE: gamestar.it

You may remember Russ' first My Gripes about Assassin's Creed. Well, I'm back with another. I've been playing it again for the last few days, and while I still love it, there are a few things I really need to gripe about, relating specifically to what I'm doing in the game.

There are a total of 420 flags that need collectin', and 60 Templars that need killin', but without a very tedious and anti-fun system of checking and re-checking, there is no way that you (or more importantly, me) are going to find all those hidden little nuggets on your own. I've been using some really good online guides to help hunt the Templars, but without keeping track externally, I don't know which ones I have or have not done yet.

Assassin's Creed really needs to have some kind of in-game map support to find these things. Maybe as an unlockable after you beat the game, or hell, I would even pay upwards of 200 MS points just for some downloadable support. Did you hear that, Micro/Ubisoft? Free money! Just for putting some little red dots on a map! Sounds like a killer deal to me.

No se quien dijo que la secuela de Assassin´s Creed saldria en el 2008, pero por si habia dudas Ubisoft dijo que no habra dicha secuela este año y que Altair llegara en el 2009.

A palabras de Ubisoft, esto para que el producto final sea de mejor calidad y para no "saturar" el mercado.

Via Videogamer