Rating: M
Developer: Ubisoft Montreal
Publisher: Ubisoft
Platform: 360 (Also: PC, PS3)
Release Date: 2009
When Assassin's Creed was going to come out I was pretty hyped. I picked it up day one and at that point realized it was actually a really annoying game. It was dull and repetitive and even the story was awkwardly woven. That's why when Assassin's Creed II came out that I didn't rush out to buy it. I played it a little and found it a big improvement, but nothing special overall. Because of that, I have avoided Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood like the plague.
This weekend I played it again because my partner was over and I know she really loves it. I felt it would be a nice way to spend a bit of downtime after a bit of a Banjo-Kazooie run. Somehow, playing it for the second time felt brand new. That, along with the knowledge base of my co-pilot made the game a lot more understandable.
Where I struggled the first time I was able to pass in a few tries. Where once I had a huge problem scaling buildings I was now vaulting from roof to roof like a pro. I have no idea what really changed in two years, but it was really invigorating this time around.
As for the gameplay, it's still not very deep overall (you can win most fights by mashing the same attack button). Beyond that, the game still manages to be a very entertaining package. There is more to do this time around. There's even the basics of a strategic game where you improve a city to increase funds generated. Finally, you have the fact that Ezio - or at least his outfit - is crazy attractive. You gotta love a guy with style.
There is one thing about the game I strongly dislike, and that is the story. Not overall, because the Ezio story is pretty neat. It's the story that comes from the "modern" characters like Desmond who are trying to decode Ezio's world. Why couldn't the game have purely been a historical kind of piece? The modern storyline seemed extremely tacked on and could have been ignored completely in favor of the purely renaissance-era world. How they attempt to tie the stories together at the end is just plain stupid and in fact feels like they put it there just so Brotherhood could come and finish off the story later. I've heard that the first Assassin's Creed had a similar cliffhanger ending but I could never get myself to really enjoy that game.
Would I play again? Nah. (I beat it and had about all the fun I could with it)
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