At the moment it would seem that the gaming industry is caught in the eye of the storm in terms of the amount of titles being released. By now, most of us are probably checking to see if there’s even enough cash in our wallets, or space on our shelves for more games. Well get ready for another, because Assassin’s Creed has finally arrived. The game that could be called the spiritual successor to the Prince of Persia series has been raiding the E3 awards for the past few years, and gotten a considerable amount of attention. While it may not be the game of the year contender we all hoped it would be, it remains a quality experience.  

To begin with the story let me say that the futuristic aspect is by no means some sort of crazy twist that arrives partway through the game, it’s made apparent right from the opening cut scene. So since I’m not really spoiling anything the game takes place in the near future, where you are tasked with carrying out a quest in a virtual reality world within the genetic memory of your ancestor, the assassin Altair. This is all being done for the sake of some sinister organization that wants to recover something very important that occurred in the past during the crusades. In a way the setting almost demeans the historical immersion of the game, since when you are in ancient Jerusalem for instance you are made very much aware that it’s not real. 

These odds aren’t fair, they need more guys...

The game play of Assassin’s Creed is set up like a free roaming game, where you can visit three different cities, and will be carrying out assassinations in each one. But before you can make your move against a target you must learn more about them by collecting information, which you do through pick pocketing, interrogation, or other mini assassination missions. Unfortunately the three types of investigations I mentioned are all that exist and don’t change much, so it becomes pretty repetitive after performing them throughout the entire game. On the positive side the main assassination missions offer much more variety, and require a good deal of strategy to pull off. 

The controls may initially sound confusing, but they really aren’t that bad. Basically you move with the left stick and will walk around slowly and unnoticed, but when you want to get acrobatic you simply hold down the right trigger and the A button. This will send Altair climbing, jumping and swinging wherever you direct him.  

It’s quite easy to do, which is good, because you will need to be quick to escape the many guards constantly on your tail. As the game progresses they become even larger in number and more vigilant so you must make sure to always keep a low profile. It can become quite frustrating because the slightest thing can trigger an alarm, making it a bit of a chore to simply move around the city to your objectives, which shouldn’t be this challenging in a free roaming game.  

You can lose guards by hiding in roof gardens or piles of hay, but when there’s nowhere to run you’re going to have to rely on your combat skills. The combat in AC is all about timing, you lock on with the left trigger, block with the right, and attack with the X button. Later when you acquire counter moves it gets a bit easier to gain the upper hand. Altair possesses weapons such as: throwing knives, a sword, and a hidden blade in his left sleeve, prefect for stealth kills. When it comes time to carry out assassinations it pays to be sneaky, so you should only use force when it’s a last resort.