Assassin's Creed II - first impressions

[spaceboy]

Hey everyone, been busy with Thanksgiving yesterday.  I thought I'd start a new thread instead of adding on to the original (now that we've got this nice board here).

I got ACII last week and have been playing it as much as time allows - and I am very impressed with the game and loving it.

I'll first address the issues most are concerned about which are the issues with the first game.  The big issue most people had was with repetitiveness, now while I'm only a short way into the game I think I can say this is fixed.  There has already been a better variety of mission types and unlike the first game they fit in well with the storyline.  The story, then being the other issue and right from the start this story drags you in.  The beginning with Desmond was less than great (short though so that's good) and the highlight is probably watching Lucy in her newly donned jeans help you escape from Abstergo.  ;)  Once you meet the grown up Ezio, you'll see he is a likeable character that winds up getting thrust into this new role as an Assassin.  It does start off a bit slow as far as stabbing action, but if you let yourself into the story you'll appreciate each new bit of weaponry as you get them.  As opposed to "earning" them back like in the first, it fits in with the story well and I found it quite enjoyable.  Especially because until you reach notoriety level you have a lot more freedom to move around the city without guards chasing you.

The Side missions and quests are as follows:
1) finding feathers (not sure what you get for them),
2) finding glyphs (these are hidden messages left by the previous user of the animus) So far I've found two and it starts to unravel a video of which I can't tell at all what it's about.  Whether or not it'll be "worth it" is unclear, but at least there is something I'm working towards as opposed to the flags in the first game which got you nothing
3) finding treasure - these are easily marked on your maps once you climb your viewpoints and are pretty easy to obtain, but sometimes require a bit of stealth or connivery to get to them.  Why bother? Money, Money, Money.  More on that below.
4) Assassin's Tombs - from the manual "explore them all to find the Seals of the legendary assassins"
5) Assassination Contracts - a way to earn money
6) Races - test your free running skills
7) Beat-up events - knock out cheating husbands
8- courier assignments - earn some money

What about the money?  You can visit shops to buy maps, and eventually art for your villa. There are doctors to visit and buy medicine to heal yourself, or poison for someone else.  There are blacksmiths to fix your weapons and buy new stuff like smoke bombs and ammunition. Tailors are available to dye your clothes and sell pouch upgrades. You can also quickly pickpocket citizens for a few extra bucks - this animation is more fluid and works much better than in the first game.

You can use your money also to hire courtesans or hooligans (not sure what they're called in game) to distract guards to allow yourself entry to an area.

The graphics are great - I've seen no problems.  Florence looks incredible and is such a joy to spend some time in such a wonderful world.  Certain things like the  streets being wider than the cities in the first game make getting around much easier.  That's not to say they're not full of life - the NPCs are all milling about in a very organic way.

Gameplay has also been upgraded with better climbing and new combat skills.  I haven't even unlocked all of them yet but even just the simple counters and grabs are more satisfying. 

All in all I've got to say this game blows away the first game and will keep me happy gaming for many many hours.

[mmosu]

Nice review Space,
It will be awhile before I am done with Borderlands, but once I am I plan to use ACII to fill the time between then and GOWIII.  Sounds like everything is as promised, I look forward to hearing more about your exploits in renaissance Italy  ;D

[spaceboy]

Thanks mmosu, I understand Borderlands is quite deep and even saw there is some DLC available already. 

Another thing to note is that when you are "notorious" the guards are more quick to see you, but you can do something about it...you can rip down posters of yourself, bribe Heralds, or assassination crooked officials.  They're on your map and each one knocks down your notoriety 25%.  It's a quick way to give yourself some breathing room.

Also, let me touch on blending.  As opposed to the benches and scholars of the first game, you now can blend in a more organic way with any small crowd of people.  Basically you walk up and with a crowd and you'll automatically be blended, walk along with them and you're fine.  You can also of course (and need to often) switch to different groups as they are not always going the way you wish to.  This is not a problem and makes it much  more realistic then just auto-walking with the scholars.  Of course you do have benches and hay and flower bails to jump into as well.

[Art Blade]

I can't tell you how bloody much I am awaiting the game to be released on PC. Nice review and telling tidbits. Keep it up <wipes drool from chin> ;D

[mmosu]

Yeah, I noticed that the blending seems much more fluid in some of the videos that have been posted.  The notoriety systems sounds good too, reminds me of buying a new identity to drop your notoriety in Hitman: Blood Money.  Just plopping down on a bench in the first game always seemed a little shallow and stupid to me, I'm glad to see these changes have been made, and it looks like the options you have in making your escape will make for a more varied, believable, and overall satisfying experience.   

[PZ]

Excellent teasers spaceboy!  ;D

Can't wait to experience the game myself.  Hopefully purchase tomorrow so that I can enjoy it Sunday morning before the wife rises  ;D

If I can't then I'll keep myself busy in FO3 for a while  :)

[Fiach]

Glad you are enjoying it spaceboy, seems very immersive :)

[JRD]

Great review space... I knew it'll be spinning into your PS3 no release...!!
For what I've seen so far its a great sequel, with the same characteristics of the original and loads of improvement!
Can't wait to climb walls in Italy this time...
Finding viewpoints was one of my fav things in ACI, so I could roam around the city!

One question: are there areas of the cities that are not accessible, like "memory blocked" in the AC1, or are you free to go around town?

Cheers mate, enjoy!!  :-X

[spaceboy]

@JRD
There was a bit of that at a couple times - once I tried crossing the canal with guards in hot pursuit and there's been a couple other areas blocked off, but it hasn't been as noticeable.  Either they're getting unlocked quickly due to the story or else just due to viewpoints.  Honestly I can't tell, but they're annoyance factor is way down from the first.

@Fiach
Thanks, there are quite a bit of different elements to the game that all lend itself to an immersive (and varied) experience.  Action, platforming, and even some RPG elements.

After you've got your base of operations at your Uncle's villa you can start upgrading it.  This includes purchasing works of art (not Art) in town to decorate the mansion and more importantly upgrade the town surrounding your villa by paying for restoration projects at the church, bank, brothel, tailors, blacksmiths, the city well, etc. etc.  As you do this, you'll be rewarded by getting a cut of the profits from the store fronts and start collecting tourist money.  Being an Assassin takes some money to outfit yourself properly so having some passive income (instead of only what you can loot) is quite a nice benefit!

Needless to say being a good Italian boy I upgraded the well and church first...

[Fiach]

I heard there was a villa in the game, those mechanics sound really cool, hopefully I'll get to the game sooner rather than later.

Thanks for the heads up :)

[Art Blade]

works of art (not Art)

;D

[PZ]

I must have the best wife in the world - she went out shopping yesterday and came back with AC2 for the PS3!  I've already had a chance to play this morning while she was still sleeping, but now she's stirring so I'm off to make a couple of espressos for our morning ritual.  First impressions later, mates.

[Art Blade]

 :) :-X enjoy  :)

[spaceboy]

great PZ!  can't wait to see how you fare in Renaissance Italy.  I can't remember if you've played the first one so let me know if you want a brief synopsis of the story.

[JRD]

I'm sure PZ gonna like it... it's a great game!
If you haven't, check this article for an explanation about how AC1 ends.
Whoever played the original knows that it is impossible to find out what the heck happened in the end, so apparently someone took the time to answer all questions and posted it there! It is also good for someone starting AC2 to catch up with the story!

[PZ]

Thanks JRD - I'll catch up with that read as soon as I get a chance, however, I'd also appreciate your comments about the ending of AC1, spaceboy because an OWG member's perspective is one that you can depend on.  :-X

As to first impressions of mine - it plays something like inFamous where you climb buildings, do acrobatics, etc - kind of fun.  The graphics are excellent, and I've experienced sunrise as well as cloudy weather that rolls in.  I like weather in games these days.

I've not managed to get too far into the game - a couple of messenger boy errands, but my sister has a cheating husband who she wanted me to beat - gladly obliged.  Afterward, another gal in town evidently heard of my assault and wanted me to do the same with her cheating husband.  ;D

You need to unlock areas of town by synchronizing view points - if you enter an area that is not unlocked, you quickly lose health much like when you stray off the map in FC2.

When you find pigeon droppings (or the birds themselves) on rooftops, you can do a "leap of faith" which means that you take a flying leap off a high rooftop and land in a pile of straw - it took me a while to gather up enough courage to do that one, and when I did, I felt like I was actually falling (man, I get to deeply into the games  ;D )

The views of the city from the rooftops is excellent, and I can't wait to unlock more of the city as well as find weapons.

A couple of questions:

• Where do you find weapons?
• How much do they cost?
• Anyone have any quick hints on how to rapidly advance in the game?  (I feel like I'm stumbling around with not much direction)  ;D

[Art Blade]

JRD, that link was a cool find  :-X :)

[PZ]

Just finished reading the article at JRD's link - the author did a great job of setting the stage so to speak.  Knowing the story line makes all the difference, and as I believe I've mentioned before, I like spoilers  ;)

Thanks again for the link, JRD, as I mentioned, OWG members supply the best information!  :) :-X

[JRD]

You are all welcome  ;)

After finishing my playthrough of AC1 I had to find something to explain the ending... the plot is so perfectly placed in history that an ending like that was really frustrating!

Try to google for the names of the cities and characters... you'll see what an amazing job they did in that game. The Assassins guild, Massyaf and many characters are real and were right there!

Acre, for instance, was the stage of a massive combat during the end of the second crusade (if I'm not mistaken) and as you approach town you see dead bodies and war machines all over and the church has one of its towers ruined... which really happened!! Near the end, when you are after the leader of the Templars, you fight in a field south of Acre as the Saracens army marches in... that was a real battle too and happened in a place like that one!

To finish, I checked Acre, Jerusalem, Damascus and Massyaf in Google earth and the resemblance is amazing!!!!

As far as I know, they also did a great job in Renaissance Italy this time!

[PZ]

From what I've seen so far, they did a great job - there is a menu item called "Database" in which people, places, and buildings are described - almost like a short history snippet.

[JRD]

That's great... as I said, the game is very well set in history and not to demonstrate this would be a pity!
Also, kids these days could do a bit more of History in their lives as well  ;)

[spaceboy]

As for the ACI ending, if you've read the article you probably understand it all (I haven't read it) but to be concise, Desmond is a descendant of the Assassins and the Templars of the modern world captured him and put him in a machine called the Animus that can read his ancestors memories from his DNA.  You originally play as his ancestor (with the inexplicable American accent) Altair in the Holy Land during the time of the Crusades.  The game ends with Desmond still captured, and Altair learning of something called the Pieces of Eden.

Now here's some answers and random thoughts ACII.

Leap of faith - I know what you mean about really feeling like your falling - that is something inFamous did well also so it's funny you mention the parkour movements of inFamous.  I found out you can do a backwards leap of faith (more of a drop of faith) - a couple times I was hanging from a ledge and dropped and instead of falling more or less feet first I fell with my back facing the ground.  I was immediately aware something was different but I thought I was going to die.  Little did I know a handy haystack was beneath me!

You will need to buy weapons from blacksmiths with money.  This ability too gets unlocked I believe once you get your villa.  You can buy new weapons at your villa's blacksmiths (the city is called Monteriognni (sp?), or at blacksmith's in Florence.  Although I think you can only change your "loadout" at the villa or buy purchasing a new weapon in Florence.  A quick favorite of mine is the "warhammer" instead of a sword.  The animations with that one are brutal.

For quick advancement, just stick to the story missions (the exclamation marks) at least until you get your villa.  Now I did do a few viewpoints, a race, found treasure myself, but that can all wait until you unlock the villa if you want.  The trick is to enjoy the slower pace a bit.  A nice thing that opens up after a bit are assassination contracts - a quick way to earn money and get some kills in.  As for direction, you just kind of have to make your own - there is so much to do you have to find your own way...

[Art Blade]

Gngngngngn! February 2010!  :D

[PZ]

Thanks for the info space - I thought that I should be able to purchase weapons at the blacksmith, but was not offered the opportunity, so your explanation helped.

I'll stick with the main missions so I can get to the villa and see how it looks - can't wait.

@Art - sorry that the PC version is coming out so late - I'm looking forward to screen captures as well as stories.

[spaceboy]

yeah don't worry Art, I'll still be wanting to talk about this one in February.