Assassin's Creed Reviews

• Not quite the next-gen title we hoped for...

  
  By A1L38RMGER8529 on 2007-11-17
  Ok I've been reading up on all the five star reviews on this game and I'm sorry, It's just not as innovative and mesmerizing as most people are saying and certainly not as good as us gamers had hoped for. (there's alot to cover so sorry for the length of the review)
  
  Let me start out by saying this is a good game. When I started playing as Alteir the assasin, I thought it was the most amazing thing ever just because the scale of the amazingly designed cities and towns. Just walking around and looking at the scenery and people is fun but unfortunately, after eight hours of gameplay, (which is where I am at) it truly fails to stay fresh, you start noticing alot of the games problems and glitches and at this point, I'm almost forcing myself to continue on.
  
  After the game starts, you see the scale and technological advances this game carries, you walk around and anxiously wait to run the streets freely and start killing people. When I first rode into Damascus on a white horse by means of a beautiful mountain pass that I had to go through, i thought this had to be the greatest game ever. It looks so great and going to locations such as Jerusalem and Damascus is just awesome.
  
  But unfortunately, the scenery just isn't enough. To start, one thing that really makes this game get old fast is that everytime you go to a city, you do the same routine over and over and over again: You sneak into a city, you find some really high towers or "view points" which fill up your map and shows you the places to go. You go to the assasin's headquarters (there's one in every city) and they give you tedious little quests you must do before you can assasinate a target.
  
  Your regular routine of tedious objectives consists of pitpocketing guys for information, interrogation, which consists of finding your target, following him until he reaches a secluded spot, then punching him until he gives you what you want. You can also meet informants who give you little chores (such as killing guys and doing the same crap you already have to do for the assasin's headquarters) and in exchange for your hard work, they give you information so as you can see, everything you do is for information on your next target. These little quests get EXTREMELY old after hours and hours of gameplay. They really arent challenging, they don't change or get harder and are only really fun the first five times you do them. You do the same crap over and over and over again in every city. (and not to knock on the the awesome looking cities or aything but truth is, apart from some bigger buildings and smaller buildings, the cities don't look THAT much different.)
  
  When walking the cities and doing your quests, of course you are challeneged by the city guards who are constantly on the lookout for you. You have some pretty cool weapons to take care of them, such as thowing knives, a sword ( the swordfighting looks really cool), and a cool sharp spike which you can pull out or retract from just under Alteir's left hand. This weapon is used for stealth kills. Of course you also have moves and counterattacks you get as you progress.
  
  In the upper left hand corner of the screen, you have your health bar and little meter that changes color depending on the guards: White for the guards are "unaware", Yellow for "Suspicious" and Red for "alerted".... The meter is almost always yellow which means you are supposed to hold the X button and walk EXTREMELY slow until the meeter changes to white. When you actually do that, (which takes forever) all it takes is ten seconds and the meter goes back to yellow... So naturally you're always on yellow but the enemy AI is not the best. You can silently kill a guy with your spike right in front of a guard and although it is a "silent kill", the guy will scream and fall to the ground and the guards will walk right past... but if you're just walking on the street, they might get alerted for no evident reason.
  
  Another low point, which is kind of funny to watch is the guards amazing ability to keep up with you which is really ridiculous. To get away, you can climb up walls, get to the top of tall buildings and very unrealistically jump across rooftops... and the guards will keep up with you... You are a trained assasin but regular guys in heavy armor will climb up walls and pursue you across the largest of rooftop jumps... Just as ridiculous, you can run from one side of the city to the other, the meter will stay red and you can try to blend in but the guards on the other side of the city somehow just know you are the guy being chased 1-2miles away on the other side of the city and they will attack you... Did they have radios during the crusades so people on the other side of the city could warn others of you presence? As for hiding from the guards, this I felt was another low point. The cities are huge but you really have only three spots to hide: hay stacks, little square garden houses on rooftops and if you are being chased, you can just sit down on a bench and the guards will run right past you and you will be safe... There are trees everywhere but you cant climb or hide in them. There are barrels, crates, doors and shops you think you would be able to jump into but no... you have to sit on the bench... There are no disguises or such froms of deception that you can use. The idea of vast and creative options is just absent.
  
  Now for the actual assasinations. (sorry. i know this review is long) The assasinations, while still fail to remain something mouth-dropping and new do have a bit of newness to them. You have to assasinate nine specific guys in the game and each pose a different challenge. Now don't misunderstand, you are still doing the same crap to kill the nine guys as you would be doing to kill anyone else but without spoiling anything, you will find each main assasination a bit different from the last, followed by a cinemeatic while the target dies. After each assasination, you return to the boss and he gives you the next target.
  
  Believe it or not, although this is a very mission based game, (you just get one mission after the next) it does have a bit of story in the mix. The main character can think for himself (but unfortunately has some of the worst voice acting i have ever heard) and there are other characters but there aren't really any other "real" characters. Sure there are guys that you speak to for a mission but there aren't any real new characters that pop up and the game just doesn't really have alot of character such as a game like Metal Gear beacuse the game just remains the same. But, without spoiling anything, there is a major story twist... which you actually discover at the beginning of the game... which is kinda weird but you can determine for yourself whether it's a good twist or a bad twist.
  
  Finally, i have to include some of the horrible glitches i have come across. Are these glitches a cause of the ps3 or the game? I can't really say for sure but I'm pretty sure its the game for my ps3 has worked great with every other game. Whenever you pass a crowd of people on the streets, every once in a while, if you turn the camera around quickly to look back, the people will have ALL dissapeared randomely, then if you look back again, they will be back in place... This has happened to me the other way around as well. Ontop of that, while i'm ruinning around, my character has just frozen in midair. Now the game itself didn't freeze, just my character. It looked like something in the matrix. My character was in midair while everything else was moving and i had to restart my ps3. Weird.
  
  In conclusion (finally, i know this is a long one) Assasin's creed is a good game and I am still enjoying it but this was supposed to be one of the greatest games of this generation and it could have been but the only thing that really makes this a cool game now, i beleive will be a common thing in all next gen gaming titles and in a year, this game won't be remembered as anything. Now the question is: should i trade in Assasin's Creed for Uncharted which comes out next week??
  
  

• Amazing Game-Amazing Fun

  
  By A22AD8M2SSOFHJ on 2007-11-15
  I was a little skeptical this game would live up to the hype. Then some diminished reviews came around and I was already feeling a let down. Where could they go wrong? Was my thoughts. Well that didn't stop me from purchasing this game. After 30 minutes I was blown away. All skepticism was gone and I was in Gamer Heaven.
  
  Let me start off from the beginning. Yes there is a plot twist and it's pretty bizarre. Just think that your watching a Michael Crichton movie and it will make sense. Playing in the Middle East several hundred years ago is a different idea. It's hard to say what you could expect with this concept.
  
  So what makes this game amazing. Lets start off with the landscape. It's brilliant and beautiful...Really majestic. You don't understand the scope of this game until you start playing. The world is surrounded by several small villages and three large cities. The only way to travese this open terrain with a horse. Fortunately they are about as easy to find as a car in todays society.
  
  What also sets this game apart is the ability to do what you want when you want. There is no clock on you and your not stuck going into a mission. Everything is open based. The character is amazingly fun to control you can scale tall buildings and make amazing leaps of faith. Climbing up a building that is several stories and then leaping to certain doom is breathtaking excitement. This is what games should be about.
  
  Beyond that is a mission based game. Similiar to Grand Theft Auto in style. You can accept simple missions like pickpocketing and protecting citizens to the more main based assasin missions. You can battle soldiers if you want as you have many enemies but it's not really advised. Following the assasin missions can be complex and involve several steps that make the story very intresting. Obviously a lot of time was put into making this top notch.
  
  For anyone who likes open based games with large environments then Assassins Creed is for you. From the majestic peaks to the clustered cities. This is trully a next gen experience. The storyline and incentive program will keep you playing for many hours. Definately a worthwhile gameplay experience. If you want something to keep you busy that doesn't involve guns go out and get Assasins Creed.
  
  

• OVERRATED! How did the makers get away with this ???

  
  By A24OBZJNZE6V1C on 2008-03-09
  This game is a very good example of what HYPE, word of mouth and "cool looks" can do. Everything you do in this game (and a lot of the things you see and interact with) is the SAME, over and over again. You start a chapter talking with your master, then you practice a new move (optional) , then you take a horse and ride to a city. In the cities you do 3 required task to be able to advance to your main assassination objetive, always 3 out of the following :
  
  You may climb on top of a high tower/building which would reveal the tasks that can be done in the area around that high spot. It's optional, but it saves time, of course, and doesn't really hurt. Besides, after you climb all your way to the top, THERE IS ALWAYS a cart full of hay awaiting for you right down below so you can just DIVE from whatever height you are into it (of course the character takes damage and dies when he falls from like a 2-story building, but diving from over 300ft into hay, that's just fine, sure.)
  
  1-Interrogate some dude. (ALWAYS preaching in public. You harass him even if guards are right there seeing you and they won't do anything unless you push the guy over them) He talks, you kill him (again, no response from guards)
  
  2- Eavesdrop 2 dudes having a conversation. Always 2 dudes, you ALWAYS sit on a bench to listen, and can't do it any other way. You may even start a fight in the area and the dudes won't move and leave. I even started a fight against like 10 guards (who were ON THE BENCH and the game wouldn't let me start the mission, so I killed them) and after the fight was over people were still running in panic screaming, and I just sit right there on my bench and calmly listened to the 2 dudes still talking over there.
  
  3- Help some guy with a task (Picking up flags or Silently killing some guards in the area. Both time limited) Self-explanatory. You talk to some guy who asks for your help. You do the task in a time limit (very easy, of course, even the killing ones thanks to the atrocious AI <--more on that later).
  
  4- Pickpocket. There always two dudes talking about something related to the plot. One of the leave, then the other. You must get close to him from behind, push a button and voila! you just completed the task. The guy will ALWAYS react the same way after you successfuly pickpocket him, like he realized he was robbed, but will NEVER get suspicious of you even if you run away from him just after you rob him.
  
  
  Besides the taks you can save some citizens being harassed by guards. There are always some of those spread around the city. You kill the guards and then you should hurry the hell out of there, but of course the ones you saved must thank you. They always say one of 3 dialogs and you can't leave the area after they finish saying their stupid thanks (you attack the guards even if you have no idea who's right or wrong. Hey, you're an assassin! what's more stealthy than killing some guards to help a stranger and draw some attention to yourself. Way to go!)
  
  After you complete your 3 tasks (which always reveal something about boss of the city you must kill, his whereabouts and schedule) you ALWAYS return to the assassin's creed headquarters located in every city. These hideouts are always designed the SAME way, you access them from the roof, and they are exact copies of each other in every city. There's always some dude behind a counter talking crap (you can visit them anytime and they will give you hints on where to look for your tasks) and almost all these dudes talk down to you (something to do with the beginning of the story) but it gets old and annoying too soon (like everything in this game, duh). Well you tell guy what you learned from your tasks, and then procceed to the primary objective.
  
  Primary objetive: They are always in a well-guarded place and with the exception of maybe the LAST one, they are in an area that can only be accessed by you getting mixed with a group of Scholars (4 dudes dressed in white always walking around in circles and praying <----this is the very same way you can only get inside every city in the game, ALWAYS)
  
  After you get inside, there's always (can you count how many times I've written "always" and "same"?, trust me the game it's even more repetitive than that!) always a gathering of people, and the Boss talking to them or/and doing some public act. Then after a cutscene, it's your time to strike. How? does it really matter? there's really no way to kill the bastards without causing an uproar. You just start the riot, and break through the guards , push the Boss to the floor and stick him with your knife. Some of them run, but again, just a couple of them (remeber, they are 9) and it's very unlikely you'll lose them and be forced to restart the scene. Most of them take you on! They actually ask for it, and you simple fight admist the chaos and kill them on the floor. Before they die you are always taken to a screen kinda like inside an isolated memory, only the two of you talking. Oh, these guys are always very chatty before dying. How nice of them!
  
  After they die. You run. It won't be long or difficult before you lose the guards and can't safely return to the Assassin's headquarters (you always do that of course). There you talk to your pal behind the counter, and later you return to your Master.
  
  Wash. Rinse. Repeat. 8 more times. There's your game.
  
  Other embarrasing examples of mediocrity in this game:
  
  -AI sucks. The guards are the most prehistorically intelligent things you've seen since Metal Gear 1 from NINTENDO (1988)
  -When the alert mode turns yellow (meaning caution and you must hide to avoid further alarm) you can only hide inside Hay, sitting on a bench or inside a tent. There are plenty around.
  -Combat is done with one button. It's just a matter of timing. You can just counter attack all your opponents and be done with it pretty easily. There are no real fights, you just get into sporadic trouble here and there, not a single fight except the one you kill the bosses have any meaning. Fighting is like performing a dance, it looks nice, and to some degree fun.
  -The game is short. It only takes longer 'cause of the annoying endless repetition. Climbing the buildings, walking slowly to avoid detection (you can 'cause an alarm very easily by running a lot while being on "under watch mode" and faster than killing the guys you interrogate or killing a guard close to another on rooftops)
  -The story sucks. I won't waste my time going into details. Let's just say even if you think it's decent at best, it won't make up for the rest of this garbage. Anyone can figure where the thing is going after a couple of missions.
  -The game has no ending. "WTF" you say? You can look it up everywhere, the game has no real resolution and it just plain sucks. I had to tell you this even if it was sort of a spoiler, so you will stay away from this. It's not even worth finishing the game, 'cause there's no rewarding story or conclusion of it.
  -The last boss sucks. It's even easier to beat this guy than any corner fight you run into the city.
  -No character development. No drama. No exciting plot twists.
  -No change of environment. All 3 cities look the same, you don't go underground, you NEVER GO INDOORS. You NEVER PLAY AT NIGHT (some assassin huh!) weather and time of day is the same always.
  
  I could go on, and on. But I'm tired now. Can't you tell I hated this game?
  
  Why did I play/finish it? My brother bought here on Amazon. I was suspicious of the game after reading some reviews. I had read it was repetitive, but no idea to what extent. After I had played for 3 or 4 hours it was cleared to me that I was playing garbage and decided to finish the game just to be rightfully able to criticize the game and advise others to stay away from it.
  
  How did this game sell so much? Why are some many reknown videogame sites giving good scores to this gate (above 8 and even 10)? Where they paid off? It seems very likely. Maybe they are irresponsable and don't finish the games before scoring? Not even the latter is a good excuse, you will definitely see how bad this game is just by playing 2 or 3 of the missions.
  
  This game deserves a 5 out of 10 at best. It feels like a BETA game, not fully developed, rushed to the stores before it was not even 70% complete. But in a 5 star system I wouldn't give 2.5 if I could. 2 stars is a "rent/borrow it" rating. It's all it deserves. They shouldn't have charged full price for this game, it's a total scam. I hope the team of developers behind it laugh at their success in sales, I enjoy it very much, beacuse I SERIOUSLY DOUBT they are regarded as talented people and good game designers among the videogame developer community. May this game stain their resumes forever! Shame on you! and shame on Ubisoft! or should I say "Copysoft" I'm sure they refered to this game with the codename "copy/paste" when it was on pre-production. It seems it never got that far from that stage.
  
  STAY AWAY.
  
  

• Great game...

  
  By A34DV9QEPA3RZK on 2007-11-14
  I have been waiting for this game for over a year now, and let me tell you it was well worth it. The gameplay is amazing, it is smooth, the actions are realistic, and the graphics are amazing. Not to mention the battles really become great once you up your level. There is just so much to do in this game and the fact that the developers did not skimp one bit one graphics, story, or depth, is great. The cities are huge and look accurate down to every last crack in the concrete. I could go on and on about how much I love this game, great original story and a must have for a true gamer.
  
  

• Really Disappointed

  
  By A2DBQZJ9E5N9PQ on 2008-01-24
  There was alot of hype surrounding this game when it came out and I bought into it. I watched the trailer and read reviews and was just blown away because the graphics, the gameplay, and the whole concept just looked so awesome. People were saying this was going to be a freeform game like Grand Theft Auto, a "medieval Grand Theft Auto". Well, nothing could be further from the truth. Basically the game consists of going from town to town, finding the target you need to assassinate, killing him, and then repeat. Even though the towns appear to be bustling with life and activity, there is actually nothing to do in the towns, except side missions of finding flags and saving citizens from the guards. Yep, that's it. No money to collect, nothing to buy, no extra abilities to attain. You can "pickpocket" but you can only pickpocket certain guards and the only items you can steal are....throwing knives.
  
  Watching the trailer I was under the impression there would be beautiful cutscene videos explaining the story. Well, there are none. The story is explained by the characters in ingame graphics talking through long, boring monologues. Also, you find out that you're not actually playing the assassin, but his modern day "ancestor" who is living his past memories. I'm still wondering why they did this, since it contributes nothing to the story or the game, and I found myself sighing in boredom every time they cut back to the assassin's modern counterpart since I knew I was in for another 5-10 minutes of talking that has nothing to do with the game.
  
  I have to say that the graphics are amazing, but the "wow" factor wears off after about 10 minutes and all that's left is the gameplay, and I have to say that the gameplay sucks. You're supposed to sneak around and assassinate your target, but you find out that the easiest way to kill them is to just rush in and start hacking and slashing and then run away from the guards, and that's what you're going to be doing most of the time.
  
  I just feel really disapointed after buying and playing this game because I feel like it has so much potential. If only there was more stuff to do in the game. Before I got this game I envisioned being able to steal horses in towns and run off with them, stealing money from people, buying new and different weapons in towns, having a bunch of side missions to do in every town. Well, within the first 10 minutes of playing I realized this wasn't going to be the case. I'm still scratching my head as to why this game got such good reviews.
  
  
• Quite less than sum of its parts
  By A8RGWWCC1PVMQ on 2007-11-15
  Being the second most eagerly-anticipated game of the year for me (the first was 'Shivering Isles', the third was 'Uncharted: Drake's Fortune'), I assumed it was a sure-fire winner, and the game is clearly one in many areas.
  
  This is such a beautiful game. Everything looks so detailed, life-like, and fluid. Motion-animation is so realistic and smooth. If you squint your eyes little bit, I swear it looks as if you can really touch it.
  
  In terms of gameplay mechanism, this game sets out a new direction and opens up a lot of potentials and possibilities for the future of video game industry. Everything is simply yet quite complex in execution. Instead of having single button assigned for each task such as attack, run, and jump, single button is assigned to each hand and one for the legs. In different situation, the reaction will be different. In fact, all the game mechanics in this game are pretty much reaction-based. It takes a little adjustment period for we are so tuned with the traditional one-button-for-one-task method, but once you get the hang of it, it is very intuitive and exciting way to execute the gameplay.
  
  So with innovative game mechanics and gorgeous graphics, this is a great game? Unfortunately, that is not the case here.
  
  Huge gameworld where you can freely roam around anywhere anytime (although each area is divided by loading screen) and some interactivity with the environment might have you to believe this is open-ended game like 'Oblivion'. That couldn't be further from the truth. The game is very restrictive and linear in constrast of what you might have been led to believe. Non-linearity itself doesn't necessarily create the problem, but the scope of the stage the game is set truly is. The world is bustling with tons and tons of people. But they might as well be animals or objects in this hollow world. They are just there, period. Yes, they react when you push them. You can kill anyone. But that's it. No quest given by NPC as in 'Oblivion', no side quest to perform like 'GTA', no dialogue options like 'The Witcher' (you cannot talk to them, period), they are truly monotonous, and this makes the world so distant and hollow. And all of the assassination mission are exactly identical. I mean exactly the same. The only difference is the character you are to eliminate and the cutscene involving the mission. The only thing non-linear about this whole game is who you are going to kill first and which entry point you are going to take. That's all, folks!!! To make the matter worse, it just takes forever to get between one mission and the next without much activities. You have this huge world, and you have nothing better to do than to walk, run, ride horse, or engage with people in combat. There is no incentive to traverse and explore or to kill people. What little storyline and plot twist (if you can call it one) is all marred by this insanely boring and alienating tasks. There is no sense of urgency or danger. Especially if you die, the game automatically load fresh start from the automatically saved game. Sometimes linearity works a lot better and this game is one of them. It will bring out some sense of structure and intensity sorely missing in the game.
  
  In a nutshell, you are a medieval Spidey jumping from rooftop to rooftop and kill baddies and rescue some helpless citizens from the same baddies.
  For a game of this much production value, art direction, innovative game mechanics, and beeeaaaaauuuuutiful graphics, it is really a letdown to see the gameplay makes you really boring.
  
  There are many elements people would love in this game, and the opinion is subjective. This is by no mean a bad game. Actually a quite well-made product. But in the end, what could have been a truly mind-bending, innovative game that combines the stealth action of 'Splinter Cell' and platform action of 'Prince of Persia' (both immensely popular games from 'Ubisoft'), 'Assassin's Creed' feels like a big tease of what is to come in the near future.
  
  (((((PS3 OWNERS)))))
  
  There is no issue with this version of the game. In fact, better framerate and better graphic overall than 360 except some constrast ratio.
  
  
• Assassination
  By AO5B7TLBAHMK6 on 2007-11-15
  This game is quite something, it brings unique gameplay and flexibility. I really enjoy doing the side missions and trying to figure out how to plan the assassinations. You really can play however you'd like, depending upon your own style.
  Personally, I think the best part is just having fun and running along the rooftops.
  Graphics are great, everything looks visually stunning. Gameplay and cinematics are seemless and interactive.
  
  
• Visually stunning
  By A1TDGGNU8V4ENB on 2007-11-20
  This much anticipated game has fallen short. Whatever Next-Gen gaming is supposed to be, I don't think this is it.
  
  Freezing and glitches make it a disappointment. I hope Ubisoft releases a patch for this. The game has similarities to Spiderman 3. Both have freezing and glitches. AC has Eagle Vision... similar to Spider Sense. Both games feature climbing buildings. In AC you collect flags, SM3 you collect coins. Both games have you save citizens on the street from being attacked. Both games are visually outstanding, but I find Assassin's Creed landscapes and setting more interesting. The cities (Jerusalem, Damascus, Acre, and Masyaf) look fantastic. The AI in Assassin's Creed reminds me of Far Cry (characters react to your movements). The map in Assassin's Creed is massive and very open. It is not linear as many games. You are free to roam, within reason. The rotating aerial shots when Altair acquires a viewpoint look great. The ending is anti-climatic.
  
  I did log in to Ubisoft and complained about the Freezing / Hanging.
  
  Update: Ubisoft has answered my complaint on their site:
  
  "This issue is currently being worked on by the development team for Ubi.com.
  Unfortunately, we do not have an ETA on when it will be resolved, but it should
  not be long."
  
  
  "The Assassin's Creed PS3 update v1.10 is now available. This update fixes freezing problems that some users have been experiencing. If you have your PS3 console connected to the Internet, it should automatically detect the update and allow you to download it. If you have your Internet connection disabled on the PS3, you will need to manually download the update through the Playstation Network (PSN)."
  
  
• Repetition does not equal fun
  By A2CMM8FS30RSD8 on 2007-12-13
  When you first start Assassin's Creed you will like what you see. It's a story in a story with great controls and some beautiful city landscapes.
  
  That's the first hour of the game. After that, you realize what the game is really like - a blond bombshell that should never have been passed out of the fifth grade. There is no central game and it becomes empty very quickly.
  
  Pros
  1. Looks great
  2. Controls are second nature, anyone can be a master swordsman and almost put spider man to shame when climbing buildings
  3. Interesting layered storyline
  
  Cons
  1. No interaction. You can't enter a building and you sure won't remember the names of any of the characters after you finish a chapter.
  2. Controls are too simple. Want to climb a building? Grab onto a ledge, and just hold up. That's all there is to it. You will almost NEVER fall from a building unless you hit the wrong button, how boring.
  3. There is no real "assassin" play techniques. Need to kill a target? Simply walk up to them and use your hidden knife, no one will be the wiser as long as you don't stand at the murder scene.
  
  Even better is once you master the counter technique for sword fighting, you can take on huge groups of guards with very little chance of death. Farther into the game you are required to dispatch entire groups of guards, once again dispersing the entire assassination theme. Also, don't even try to assassinate the main bosses, it's a waste of time since the game always forces these huge group battles.
  
  The icing on the cake is the fact that the story does very little to wrap up at the end and leaves you wondering what in the world is going on.
  
  The game looks and plays for everyone, but there is no real assassination themes, interactivity, or closure. It gets repetitive after a few play sessions and I'd be surprised if even 1/10th of the people who buy this game actually try to finish all of it.
  
  
• Never Look a Gift Artifact in the Mouth
  By A1M4NJYP0WNL8Q on 2008-02-09
  Here's an interesting combination. Take your basic action/adventure platform game, throw in a stealth kill element, set it in a reasonable accurate semblance of the Middle East during the Crusades and you have a game that surprised me enough to merit two playthrus. Keep in mind that this is not a favorite ganre of mine. I thinks the tidbits of fairly accurate eleventh Century history and the lavish illustration and animation are what drew me in, and the glorious fun of slaughtering Knights Templar and punching out irritating beggars kept me going.
  
  You are actually two players. One is Desmond Miles, and escapee from the modern Assassin Cult, who falls into the hands of the Abstergo Corporation. Tis huge drug company wants one thing - Desmond's DNA memories of one of his ancestors. And this is your second character - Altair, a true assassin who fumbles a treasure hunt for an ancient artifact hidden under Solomon's Temple so badly that he is stripped of all rank by his master and given a string of assassination assignments so that he might prove himself again. There is a common thread running through the men he is sent to kill, and thereby hangs a tale.
  
  The Desmond episodes are really pretty lifeless. Considering that he is being subjected to a machine that forces him to relive his genetic memories, and will certainly be killed once the secret is pried out of his cells, Desmond is almost passive in his acceptance of his fate. Fortunately, you will spend little time in the present. Altair may be a cold and calculating protagonist, but he makes up for it in his potential proficiency as a killer and a thief. You will leap about cities, ride wildly through the desert, and, incidentally, experience some breathtaking scenery. The assassinations require as much skill in planning and approach as they do bladework and brute force.
  
  Be warned though, the complaints about the missions being repetitive are not unmerited. Each quest means a run through the desert, and a set of mapping and information gathering activities that vary only because the three main settings (Damascus, Acre, and Jerusalem) are different. The only real variations are the assassinations. But all the activity, in which you can set the pace instead of the evil game designer is fun, assuming you like slaughter. And if you don't, this isn't really the game for you. The assassinations are all different though and there are moments of great satisfaction when a villain impales himself on your hidden dagger.
  
  Another plus for the game is it's historical context. Most of us Westerners have a vision of the Crusades as a collection of heroic deeds by white Anglo-Saxon Catholics in hard shells. The truth is much more complex than that, and Assassin's Creed makes it clear that there was a good deal more corruption and cruelty (by all the participants) than there was heroism. I found this eye opening, and this may be the first game to awaken my normally dormant interest in history.
  
  The game plays well on the Sony PS3. I experienced only a few hang-ups and action is quite fluid, although load times can be atrocious. I did discover one feature that exists in the XBOX 360 version that isn't in the PS3 game -- one the XBOX the game keeps track of your achievements, major and minor, and assigns you a score. It's a minor lack, but one I would have enjoyed having.
  
  
• Amazing!!!
  By A373B0XQ5HEU4Z on 2007-11-14
  This game is amazing. the amount of detail that they added into everything is astounding. The plot is also very good and the total freedom really adds to the feel of the game. Too many games now are just copying what older games did and thats kind of getting old. This should definitely be a front runner for game of the year.
  
  
• Beautiful world; Boring gameplay- which is more important?
  By A6GURUEJMAO2Q on 2007-11-17
  Let's just say it, Assassin's Creed is visually impressive. That aside, the gameplay is far too repetitive to actually merit a purchase. Think about playing for 6 hours straight and using the same button presses over and over again while only actually being in peril twice.
  
  Things are far too easy in this button masher. The game never feels challenging and the tasks are so repetitive that you simply want to go on a random slashing rampage to vent your frustration. Alas, not even this is comforting because after about two hours, all of the bystanders seem to be the exact same people placed in different alleys. The AI is absolutely flawed (it feels like you are pursuing a clone of the exact same guy around everywhere) and in no way would even a casual gamer feel challenged by the bumbling soldiers with swords. Fun factor is rated at 2 out of 5 and my overall rating is a 2 out of 5 (which is a tough call because of the beautiful visuals).
  
  Nonetheless, don't buy into the hype-- just because the setting is beautiful, doesn't mean you should spend $60 on mediocre gameplay. After you accomplish the first assassination, this game will have you asking why you bought it in the first place...even worse, you'll catch yourself thinking, "8 more to go?...groan."
  
  Bottom-line: Great eye candy but a very boring game after the first few hours. Climbing is easy, fighting is mechanical, and killing random guards in the exact same ways will not hold your interest. I don't see myself working up the will power or wasting my time to finish the game. Do what I should have done...spend your money elsewhere.
  
  
• Over hyped / stunning visuals/ Short game
  By A1DLIJ331321TM on 2007-11-17
  Like Heavenly sword the hype of the game ruined its actual reputation when you play it and finish it in literally less than a day. The stunning visuals are breathtaking but for a serious gamer, the AI isn't as crazy as reports had said and the game its self is an easy version of Prince of persia. This game isn't anything new, but a Prince of Persia with Large amounts of Crowds and more area to cover. Yes the graphics are phenomanul, yes the game looks great. Overall a huge let down. They promised us smart AI that react to what ever you do? you get crowds reacting 2 ways in different missions. Don't drop 60 bucks for this game, Get it used for 20-30.
  
  
• Freezes on the PS3 format
  By A3443SUQ5KMPL0 on 2008-01-06
  This is a great game, however it comes from a terrible company. I say terrible because they apparently did not even test game through on the PS3 format before releasing it. This game freezes, glitches, locks up your system untill you have to manually cut off the power before getting it up again, and it is not just my experience, go to the ubisoft boards and see the 79 - yes i said 79 page thread on the forums about freezing problems under the assassins creed section. Refund? Nope. Will the store give you a refund? Nope. Since when have you been able to return opened media?
  
  DONT BUY THIS GAME FOR THE PS3. I promise you will be as angry as I am. It is an awesome game, but it is unplayable on this system.
  
  
• This game will be awesome!!!
  By AKCV42YO4WICN on 2007-03-06
  The first time I saw the trailer to this game, I was like HOLY CRAP, this game was gonna be awesome. Now I've watched every trailer, every dev. diary, everything to possibly read or watch over this game becuz I'm hooked. I cannot wait till it comes out, which is in August, I think. The next-gen graohics are freakin' unbelievable. The website is amazing. Everybody is crazy for this game. When they showed the actual gameplay for the first time running on the Xbox 360, and they showed her riding towards the city (you play as a man named Altair, who has been inducted into the Assassin's League, and get your finger cut off, to have a hidden knife placed there) on a horse, and climbed up a building, showing different ways to get to your target (everything that sticks out 2 inches or more is interactice) and scouts out the man she has to kill. She then climbs down the building and hides in with a group of monks waling by to get close to his target, then she kills him. She then does like a wallflip type dill, and runs like mad, pushing, yes I said pushing (when you walk by people you just push them aside, but if your running by them you throw them down, and they might run after you, and try to run you down too. That's what they've been working so hard on this game, the A.I. It's so impressive. Like if you kill a man's wife, when she's sleeping, and the man finds out that it was you, he will hunt you down till your dead, or until he's dead, also. Stopping at nothing. She then cuts down a wodden platform which blocks the way of the gards, then starts running off towards the entrance, where a gate comes down anad blocks his way, then he dies. In the game, there is no health bar, every amount of damage that you take is real, so if you get stabbed with a sword even once, you're pretty much dead!!! The game is so detailed, and is historically acurate. It has the cities Jeruselum, Acre, and like one or 2 more. So if you see a building in the game, it was actually there in real life, during the Third Crusade, which is when the game takes place. They worked with a historian to get everything historically acurate. Everything's cool, and I can't wait till' it comes out!!! I will write more reviews later on!!!
  
  
• Worth the $60
  By A1U0LRBFD06ZAS on 2007-11-13
  Awesome game, end of story. It has great graphics, great voice acting, a great story(so far at least), and it's darn fun to play. It's one of the most highly anticipated games of the season, and it's definitely one of the best.
  
  
• A Great Game with Faults
  By A23HCR977WY1YN on 2007-11-25
  I have completed the games story line having done most of the additional missions (flag finding), having spent almost 18 hours playing so far.
  
  The Good:
  The graphics are amazing and the story is decent if not a bit convoluted. Learning to control your character is quite easy. The ability to climb on and jump from any building is absolute fun. The act of assassination can be pursued at many angles. Taking on several soldiers at a time is extremely entertaining.
  
  The Bad:
  City crowds sometimes appear out of thin air. Missions are very repetitive, taking away from the replay value. Attack combos are a practice in button mashing. The extra missions (flag collecting) can become extremely boring and can leave you unfulfilled. More control of the combinations and more to the weapon arsenal would have been nice. Enemy AI isn't very smart. They all do the same thing and rarely provide much of a challenge.
  
  Technical Issues:
  I have kept a tally of how many technical problems I have faced. The game froze six times during my 18 hours of game play, requiring a system restart each time. I experienced one hang up (game froze for several seconds and then resumed). Lastly, I experienced one instance of extremely poor frame rates making the game nearly impossible to play, also requiring a restart of the system. I have taken notice to the fact that many other people have ran into the same problems. The problems listed above were very bothersome but really only hindered my game play time for a short time. Hopefully an update will come out.
  
  Conclusion: The game starts out amazingly. As it progressed, I became more and more weary of continuing. Game play is very fun, but as I said before, it starts to draw out. Is it 'Game of the Year' material... No. Is it a great, entertaining game... Yes.
  
  
• good game but falls short of hype
  By A26ZBSSG9WWGKE on 2007-12-13
  Visually stunning; Good but not great gameplay. Mediocre -but doesn't live up to the hype due to one button combat and frustrating camera angles
  
  Assassin's Creed is clearly a visually dynamic creation. The programmers and graphic artists are to be commended. The cities are brilliantly rendered and are populated with numerous different types of non-player characters with whom you interact. Jumping across rooftops in acrobatic fashion is oddly reminiscent of the Prince of Persia series, but in my opinion, done much better. Its good, but does not live up to the hype
  
  Combat is entertaining, but simplistic. It can be enjoyable as there are probably 50-70 different contextual combat moves depending on which weapon you are using (one of 5 available -sword, short sword, throwing knives, fist and what is bound to be everyone's favorite- the concealed blade). However, it can be frustrating when bad camera angles frequently make it extremely difficult to fight in confined spaces.
  
  The AI is above average, although not quite realistic. The guards get smarter, more alert, more numerous and better at combat as you get deeper into the game. However, after around the fourth or fifth assassination target, I began to find the missions somewhat repetitive.
  
  Difficult combat situations are easier when you manage to knock an opponent to the ground (either by grappling or combat) and you use the hidden blade. The countermoves are not easily predictable as they are primarily rooted in the reaction to the NPCs attack rather than just what you are doing in relation to the attack.
  
  The best parts of the game involve acrobatic movements across city rooftops, and various beams and structures, and leaping through various kiosks in order to escape from pursuing guards. Attack (high profile) assassinations are rewarding -- jumping in the air and stabbing the NPC through the neck with your hidden blade.
  
  I initially had a glitch where the game would randomly lock up- necessitating a hard reboot of the PS3. However, I believe the patch has fixed this problem.
  
  To give you a frame of reference: I would rate God of War as a 10, Grand Theft Auto as a 9, Metal Gear Solid-sons of liberty - 8.5.; Resident Evil 4 - 8; Splinter Cell double agent 8.5
  
  I would give Assassin's Creed an overall score/ Fun Factor of 7.5 out of 10. This is primarily due to the graphic design and appeal. Visual appeal is 10/10 - although there are a few minor ticks and issues that I would like to see improve if the game makes it to a sequel. Combat gets a 7 of 10 -primarily due to the many varied ways to kill (although you have only limited control and one button combat (moderately doubled by squeezing R1) However, one button combat and bad camera angles (when fighting in confined spaces) is extremely frustrating; several times bad angles in combat caused me to want to quit and play again later. Story line - 8 of 10. Replay factor 6 of 10. Although I enjoyed the game, now that I have beaten the game, I would not characterize it as one I would feel immediately compelled to replay - except to try to get a few more stealth kills.
  
  
  
• Highly recommended PS3 game
  By A27KQGLTKNAAWG on 2007-12-21
  I am not your average gamer. I am 60 years old and have been playing video games of all vintages (starting with Pong)for over 30 years. This game is simply fantastic. The story line is interesting, the game objectives are challenging but not impossible to attain and the graphics are simply amazing. I have always found this period of history (the Crusades) to be fascinating. Assasin's Creed allows you to immerse yourself in this virtual world of the Middle East where at times you feel you are really there. I don't recommend this game at all for younger children or even immature teens. There is a significant amount of blood and violence, as there would have been during the historic period virtualized in the game. I had just purchased my PS3 to replace a broken PS2 and have not been able to bring myself to play other games I purchased. If you are a gamer who likes role playing games, I highly recommend Assasin's Creed.
  
  
• Decent rental, terrible purchase
  By A3JADS9AZXTBAG on 2008-01-09
  Assassin's Creed has gotten a lot of attention this year, with people left and right saying it would be one of 2007's coveted "AAA Titles." Well, after renting and completing the game, I can certainly say that PARTS of it FEEL like a "AAA" game, but there's just too much wrong with it to rate it higher than 3 stars.
  
  To be positive, I'll start with what the game does well. The graphics are amazing. The detail levels in the environments are great, and there are lots of unique people wandering around the streets, with no "clones" in sight. When you first scale a city tower and take a look at the world around you, a smile will come to your face at how pretty it all looks. Most "free roaming" games like this have pretty bland, unimpressive graphics (look at GTA4 for example), but some how Assassin's Creed managed to get the graphics right.
  
  Also, the main gameplay mechanic-- the ability to scale walls and perform rooftop acrobatics-- is truly something that every gamer ought to be able to experience. It's amazing how good the fluidity and accuracy of the animations are, even though there are so many variables in the things you'll be climbing and jumping from.
  
  Also worthy of note is the plot. (MINOR SPOILERS) The game has a dual-natured story where the character you play is actually not the one you see on screen. You play as an average Joe who finds out he's the descendant of an assassin during the third crusade. A sinister group forces him to relive his anscestor's life through a device called an "animus," which unlocks genetic memory, in hopes to find some secret information that our protagonist's ancestor was privy to. Personally, I found the modern day parts of the story to be a lot more interesting than the narrative in the third crusade, however both halves of the story do tie together nicely. I would go so far as to say Assassin's Creed would make a good novel, because it feels like a high-concept sci fi story.
  
  Alright, now onto the bad, and there's a lot, so I'll get to the big one instead of piddling around with nitpicks. THIS GAME IS REPETETIVE! This is seriously one of the most formulaic games I've played in years. Every mission is exactly the same, with hardly any variety at all. First, you search one of the three cities. Then, you beat up a guy for information, and kill him. Then, you pick pocket someone carrying an important document. Then, you go and kill your real target, which is the only part that ever has any variety, and unfortunately, it's the part that you'll spend the least amount of time with.
  
  Imagine if you bought a game, and had to do the training mission 9 times, and when you finally finished it the 9th time, the game was over. That's essentially what Assassin's Creed is like. Ubi-Soft Montreal basically spent their entire developement cycle making sure that the graphics and main gameplay mechanic felt "AAA," and since they didn't have time to actually make the rest of the game, they just threw something together and had you repeat it 9 times to stretch it from being a 3 hour game to being a 12 hour game.
  
  That's why the game is a good rental, but a terrible purchase. You'll love it for the first few hours, but after doing the same mission for the 4th time in a row, you'll start to get tired, and it feels more like a chore than a game. And by the time you'll beat it, you'll either be happy you only rented it, or wondering how much you can get for it at Gamestop. The entire game is built around repetition, so why anyone would play through this game more than once, I cannot possibly fathom.
  
  So I say, rent this game for the acrobatics and possibly the story, but don't waste your money on buying it. It's not a particularly long game, but you WILL get bored of it before you finish it, and there's no incentive at all to go back and play it again. And worst of all, the game ends right before it feels like it should be starting, all for the glory of sequel money. Hopefully the sequel will be good, and I believe it can be, but I suggest you only try this half-baked first chapter, and save your money for the real deal when the sequel comes out.
  
  
• Unforgettable Game
  By A3DVUZODRUAS7J on 2008-04-30
  Was a little skeptical at first after hearing some reviews about the games repetitiveness, but I'm sure glad I didn't pass this one up. It was so addicting I couldn't put it down. After I finished I had to play it again from beginning to end immediately. Altair's counter attacks are so awesomely brutal that I loved getting into fights to see them.
  
  My one complaint is that I wished they put more cities in, maybe Constantinople (the most beautiful city at the time of the Crusades). Other then that this is a great game that will stay with me for years to come as a beautiful work of art. I look forward to the sequel and hope to have more of Altair's story explained. Great job Ubisoft.
  
  
  
• OMG this game is so good.
  By A1RAZJR8HEYDIY on 2007-11-15
  I just got my copy last night. I sat and played for about 7 hours straight and was completely amazed at how much detail there was. Overall it is a really good game and would highly recommend it to any one that like playing video games
  
  
• Amazing game
  By A1KPMKORZL14E2 on 2007-11-15
  nothing but positive feedback for this game, buy it, cause it's great. and if you have any problems with it freezing, just make sure you have the latest version installed, as im sure the system, before you start the game, will tell you to do so.
  
  
• A must have this year!!!!
  By A3BAP5X00R6BIJ on 2007-11-16
  Brilliant game, lots of fun. It's like a little of mixture of gta, prince of persia and hitman.
  ...what are you waiting for? Just buy the game already!!!!
  
  
• Realistic in everyway
  By A3TZU05ICJTZGC on 2007-11-18
  Assasin's Creed is one of the most anticipated games during the next-gen era and i can see why. You play as this Assasin named Altair who works for this assasination organization, based on the original Shia-Muslimi Hashasin orginization during the crusades. As historical accuracy goes, this game is accurate. All the leaders you will kill are in fact leaders from that era that "mysteriously" disapeared. This is my evaluation of the Game:
  
  Graphics: Coming from a PC Extreme gamer, one of the best I'v seen. Of course they are not CRYSIS graphics, but nobody really cares. There are some flaws with the textures, but it won't really matter.
  
  Sound: Great. Its fun in surround sound since you can hear people in the croud talking to you from every direction, but I don't reallly care about sound.
  
  Gameplay: Its pretty unique. If you're thinking this Prince of Persia 4, you are mistaken. You do climb stuff, but you can't take 10 stabs to the chest. The gameplay is pretty realist, and its not for the gamer who enjoys defying reality. You basically go around, and listen to conversations to discover where to kill your targets. You can also go around the city and steal horses. You also do some mini missions, which aren't really significant to the plot. What makes it less realistic, however, is that you can getaway with the murder of a hundred people by hiding from the guards for a few minutes. But its better than spending the rest of your gameplay hiding from the guards. Basically, its GTA meets PoP meets Hitman.
  
  So thats my review. This is must buy for the gamer than enjoys the game titles I mentioned. Don't listen to the IGN review, their review is based on 1 flaw of the game.
  
  
  
  
• Hours of enjoyment
  By A2QAHM0H8KPB4G on 2007-11-18
  To be up front, I am not a gamer; in fact, I have never bought a video game for myself since being an adult. After I bought a PS3 for my son I saw previews for this game and was hooked months before it was available. I bought the game the day it was released and have not been disappointed.
  
  My son usually only plays Madden 08 or NCAA 08 and even he has put those games down to play this one. There are a few rooms for improvement though. One, it would be nice if there was a 2 person version, even if it means going head to head with each other. Two some of the dialogue is repetitive.
  
  Even with these flaws I had to give the game 5 stars because the photo realism of the terrain and buildings is mind boggling and the game play is down right addictive. There is just something exhilarating about running roof top to roof top and climbing up buildings like Spiderman that is way too much fun. My son and I can both play this game in our own ways. He can rush into fights at the drop of a hat and I can sneak up on people and take them out quietly.
  
  If you have a Play Station 3, GET THIS GAME!!!!
  
  
• Not perfect, but still amazing.
  By A199XFAJHRUD5W on 2007-11-20
  Alright, where to begin... I've been awaiting this game for quite some time. The first trailer I saw that showcased Altair rappelling down a church steeple into a crowd and then leaping onto a scaffold to lodge a hidden blade into a guard's throat left me drooling. I was not quite sure what to think other than, "This game will be great."
  
  Here we are months later, game in-hand. What's so great about this Creed? Well, there are a few reasons: It is as visually impressive as I'd hoped. The game play is smoothe, really smoothe. Actions flow seamlessly together, allowing one fluid motion from alleyway-window awnings-rooftops. The story was decent, which surprised me. After playing through the first half an hour or so, I was frightened at what it could have turned into. It finished much better than expected. The voice acting and dialogue is passable, but a bit cliche at times. Essentially, the game moved very well for quite some time.
  
  Enter the "Ninth Hour". I am approaching the end of the game with a slew of new weapons and skills. I have honed my abilities to the fullest extent possible with the game. Here's what I've found: 1.) Many complained of slowdown and frame-rate issues, however I never found these to be a problem. Near the end of the game, there is a large crowd at one point. My PS3 slowed for about a minute and continued on fine. Not normal slow, REALLY, REALLY slow. 2.) The actions do get kind of repetitive. What began as a love-lust of the Creed, soured after only a nine hour affair. I felt as though we were just going through the motions. 3.) Graphic pop-in was only noticed once or twice. The game ran great straight through aside from the aforementioned slowdown. 4.) Dialogue from the citizens eventually wanes in its believability due to a combination of about five different things they could say. "My husband'll hear about you!" (Inside joke you'll get very soon...)
  
  So is it worth the $60? I'd say so. The game is definitely worth a play through. The problems were so minute on my system and were overshadowed by the positives included in the package. A truly innovative gaming experience coupled with a decent storyline and minor design issues. If you're looking for something new, I would give this one a try.
  
  
• Older Gamers will be disappointed
  By A389S2DABLY5JX on 2007-11-25
  Ugh. I was really excited about this game. I kept hearing about how "open" it is and how good the graphics and story are. Well, to start...this is not an "open" game. Elder Scrolls Oblivion is an open game. I was hoping this would be like that but set in the crusades with more of a thief type of character. Instead it is more like a next gen graphic take on the original Prince of Persia games. The objectives are very set. Besides the fact you can run around the cities as much as you want (and climbing and jumping is a lot of fun at first), you are not really able to mix around the missions or as in Fable develop different types of characters or make any important choices at all.
  
  The action is very, very predictable. You do the same things over and over. The attacks feel scripted (you don't feel in control). You go in to these towns. You rescue citizens in the exact same manner (over and over). You kill the soldiers in the exact same manner (and they stupidly wait their turn to attack you). Besides the breath-taking graphics, the game play almost feels like a game from the early nineties. It is almost like Sid Meier's Pirates at points where you feel like you are doing the same swordfight of the same guy endlessly with the exact same outcome over and over. Cool back in 1987.
  
  The acting is horrible and you are not able to bypass these really long, boring scenes that give you information that is meaningless (since you still end up doing the same thing after each scene). After a while I muted the game and in no way did it deter my progress. I would go get snacks whenever somebody started talking.
  
  Maybe being an older gamer is a problem. I might have higher standards...maybe I have seen it all before...maybe I will always be dissapointed when expecting something new and different. who knows. All I know is that this game has a great concept...great animations...great graphics...but the story and gameplay are terrible. If it didn't look so good, I would say it feels very expected and dated.
  
  I am not so upset by the Michael Crichton aspect...if they would have used it as a cool gameplay device that is. For instance, the Darkness does a similarly weird switch and yet it is still cool gameplay. In this game, the twist is boring and also used as an excuse to cover up why the game isn't "open." At least a game like the Darkness has a good story, so even if it is fairly easy to win it, I was still interested. It is a shame because the Crusades are rich with really good stories. It wouldn't have been hard. Instead it is a bunch of cartoony characters and stupid quests you don't care about (jumping around the city after flags??? Is this Mario Bros.?)
  
  Sadly, it feels like they spent all their time getting the world together and forgot that you also want to have fun playing within that world. The first hour is a lot of fun just running around, but then it is a bore.
  
  
• An unbelievable feat for video games!
  By A2WOJOAL4OAOR3 on 2007-11-28
  Console used: PS3 60 GB
  TV output: 480p
  Buggy: Annoyingly so. It freezes up the entire console, forcing you to restart the system. This is why I took off one star, as i find this matter unacceptable. As games become more complex, so should the developers' efforts to curb bugs. UPDATE: After more playing, more freezing. The character would just freeze, with music still playing. Very very annoying, especially if your work is not saved. I asked a friend who has it on the Xbox if this happens, he said it happened once to him.
  UPDATE: Ubisoft has released a patch to solve this problem. Unfortunately for me, i was about to finish the game. But after the patch, the game did not freeze once.
  
  After a very slow year for the PS3, faithful owners and would-be owners of the console are finally beginning to see the light with the release of titles that harnesses the capacity of the PS3 and the power it can employ.
  
  This game is an unbelievable feat for video games, and shows us, along with other titles such as uncharted, and previously the two God of War games, the direction in which the industry is going. The games are adopting new depths to the plot, unparalleled attention to the most peculiar detail, a lifting of the previously incessant game limitations and boundaries (what you can/can't do), and an enhanced gaming experience to the end user.
  
  I will not get into the game's plot or details, because this should not be a spoiler to anyone considering purchasing this game, but all i will say is this: the plot is not what we originally thought it was. There. This should get a few people enthusiastic.
  
  The intricacy of the game is unreal. May it be the graphically intensive beautiful surroundings (desert, towns, cities); the people's realistic movement; the main character's motions, interaction with the environment and abilities; and the detailed, well, everything, down to the stones and water. Yes, just like every single game ever made, repetition is inevitable, but the added realism gives the gamer a feeling of total immersion in the storyline, and promises hours of enjoyment. Undoubtedly, there are downturs to this kind of opening up; the limitations that exist will become more obvious than in a more contrained, normal game. Let me explain, In games where you cannot do anything (for instance, go into buildings, climb walls, bump into people, any or minimal interaction with the environment around you), that is it, that is what you come to expect from the game, and that is how it is built. But with a game such as assassin's creed, because the character can employ so many moves, interact with so many objects around him, that will only be leaving you for more. So, if Aldair, the protagonist, cannot go into most buildings, climb trees, escape more convincingly, you will see this as a negative. However, we need to look at this from a balanced perspective, by looking at what the game adds. There are definitely limitations in any game. But one day in the near future, there won't be any. And it is games such as this that are breaking that taboo.
  
  I am very hopeful about the future of gaming, as highly anticipated games have become like movies, where actors (I believe high profile celebrities are bound to begin experimenting with video games) have already begun taking part of that industry (whether voice, or actual involvement) in games such as Stranglehold and voices in God of War; soundtrack are being released for select titles; the research made for titles (historically factual or altered for the gaming experience); and the whole video game development process takes a long time, down to every little detail, such as Assassin's creed.
  
  Just like I began this review with the 'direction' note, I will end in the same way. The direction of the video gaming industry, aided by unprecedented tools for realistic gaming, research and development, higher budgets, and invested time and effort is very hopeful indeed, for the outcome produces visual effects the likes of which we have never seen or experienced before...on a console.
  
  Whether you're into stealth, action, historical, plot intensive games. No, let me rephrase, It does not matter which genre you're into. This title is a must buy. It is as simple as that.
  UPDATE: I have finished the game, and had a couple of comments I would like to add now that it is finished.
  (1) There will be a sequel. The ending of the game is not an ending, but a "to be a continued..." The sequel should be released in 2008. It will be called AC2: Assassinate Harder.
  (2) The game, as i have said in the original review, is repetitive in every single respect. Everything you do, you keep doing in every city you are in. What i found most annoying though is:(I) The speeches, which never change, (II) The beggars who annoy the hell out of you especially if you are in the middle of a mission, (III) The retarded guys who keep pushing you around. At first they were all fun, because they added an aspect of realism and immersion, but they are all over the place.
  (3) The game is a bit choppy, especially when running. It is not smooth. I dont know if it a problem with my console or the game (but my console never failed with any of the other games i have played). Hopefully this will be addressed in the sequel.
  (4) The fighting could have been a lot smoother, with more moves to employ.
  (5) No chance of replaying the game, as there is no manual saving. A game as long as this needs this feature for both wanting to play specific parts of the game again.
  (6) The graphics are so brilliant, that my stomach would turn when i am falling from a high building (just like on a rollercoaster). Never before has a game given me this sensation. Awesome.
  
  
• I would have rated it but...
  By A31SYENU9Z6V9X on 2007-11-30
  I couldn't even play it! Here I am waiting for what seems like an eternity for this game to be released, and I can't even get past the first loading screen after picking "new game" Ubisoft won't admit it but they rushed to release this game, not giving it enough time in QA to work out all the bugs and glitches (at least for the PS3 version) I've seen many many people complaining of the game crashing, glitching, not loading properly, and many other bugs which make the game near or totally unplayable. I would reccomend waiting to purchase this game untill they decide to work this out. Though not every copy was affected better safe then sorry. In short, could I have actually played the game, I probably would have rated it higher, but sitting on a loading screen for eternity isn't exactly my idea of fun. Thank you ubisoft, thank you for making us your personal testers.
  
  

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