Assassin's Creed

My best friends were always pestering me to try the "Assassin's Creed" games, but I would tell them every single time that I wasn't interested, mostly because I had no idea what they were about. So, on one of my last trips to my favorite game store (before it shut down), I saw the first game in the series on the shelf for $13.99, and I had the money, so I picked it up.

I'm glad I did.

First up, story. In this game, it has been discovered that the memories of past people are passed down as genes through their descendants, and an unnamed scientific organization has built a machine called the Animus, that it allows them to access these memories. The organization has kidnapped a man named Desmond Miles, a bartender who is a descendant of a Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad, a member of the Assassins (a real-life eponymous group who existed at the time). On a mission, he violated all three tenets of the Assassin's Creed, and he is sent out on a mission to kill nine specific members of the Knights Templar to regain his honor. The organization won't let Desmond leave until they get the information they want from him, through the Animus. The story is well done. Altaïr's character develops, and many of the conversations that other characters have with him are deep and thought provoking. It manages to keep you playing.

Next, sound. The music (what little there is) is good and fits the situation when it's there, but is fairly forgettable and not outstanding. The sound effects are done better, but the sounds of the blades clashing together is loud and obnoxious. The voice acting is done very well. Everyone delivers a strong performance, and the voices fit for everyone.

Next, graphics. The landscapes tend to glow one color, and there is very little detail put into most characters (especially the Templars). Altaïr and Majd Addin are the best looking models in the game, but Altaïr simply carries a lot of gear, and Majd Addin has a simple pattern on his robe. However, the buildings and clothing that the characters wear are very accurate to the time, no matter where you are.

Finally, game play. Your goal for every target is simple: learn what you can about them by conducting three specific investigation types (interrogation, eavesdropping, or pickpocketing), get approval from the head Assassin in the city, then go and kill the target. There are a few things you can do along the way, which usually consist of the following: saving citizens from guards that are harassing them, climbing tall buildings known as viewpoints and surveying the environment to reveal parts of the map, and helping fellow Assassins in each city with a specific task. There is some variety in the side missions, and that is appreciated, but unfortunately, the game is so focused on the main objective and taking steps to accomplish. You feel like you're doing something wrong if you don't work towards the main goal the whole time. That being said, the assassination jobs are fairly straightforward, and are fun to play through. The control, however, is a bit stiff. The letter buttons are presented as being linked to a part of Altaïr's body; A for the legs, X for the right arm, B for the left arm, and Y for the head (these are Xbox controls, translate them for yourself if you have a PS3). However, it's a fancy way of saying that these buttons run, fight, and use Eagle Vision. Altaïr moves very stiffly on the ground, and every movement feels like it needs to be forced. Additionally, Eagle Vision can only be used you are standing still and at full sync. Because of this, you may get very, very frustrated within the first few hours of playing it (I got so mad, I was considering returning the game). However, stick with it. You will eventually become better and better at controlling Altaïr's movements, and by the end, he will move naturally. The free running element is done well and flows when done just right. Lastly, the stealth. This game employs a social stealth system that can make or break a mission. There are 5 stealth settings: Anonymous, Vanished, Vanishing, Unseen, and Exposed. Anonymous is what you (should) desire, at all times, as guards will not interfere with any of your actions at these time. If you are Exposed, you have committed a crime and the guards will attempt to kill you. Unseen means that they have lost sight of you, but are still on the hunt. Vanished and Vanishing can only be achieved by using a hiding spot, and the guards will not find you in either of these states. You can sit on benches, hide in roof gardens, or blend with scholars to hide. It's well done, but you can spend a long time in Exposed, because the guards are spaced all over the cities, so it can be hard to escape and go back to Anonymous status.

Lastly, the content. While the game is rated M, it's only because of blood and violence, and language; there is no gore whatsoever. Some of the kills that Altaïr can perform are somewhat brutal, such as kicking a man in the kneecap, and then stabbing them in the neck with a short sword. Blood emerges from the wound and dissipates into a red mist in the air. However, it disappears in less than a second, and the blood can be turned off entirely in the options menu. Overall, I really don't think it deserves the M rating. There is no gore, and blood can be removed entirely.

To end it, the story is great, the sound and graphics are okay, but the game play and controls are great if you can get past the stiffness. This is certainly not the best game I've ever played, but it is a great game regardless.

I got this game for Christmas on my PS3, although I had played the game on the 360 previously. I have to say, I do not regret getting this game, and I will never allow it to leave my home.

You play as Desmond, a man forced to get into a machine and relive an ancestor's past as an assassin from early 1100 A.D. Every once in awhile you will be pulled out of the machine because of random causes, such as the machine overheating, you need your rest, you need to be spoken to, etc. The best part of this game is the freedom you get anywhere, even during fights and missions. You can climb and hold onto literally anything, including cracks in the wall, bricks sticking out, or windows. My one complaint about this game is when you get Counter Attacks. At first, you are doing great and facing an ass load of men, and your scared like hell. Then when you get Counter, you can do 1 hit kills on almost everyone, you can basically run out into the open, kill a load of ordinary people(Not recommended, seeing as how you lose 3 bars whenever you kill 1 person), get almost 30 guys surrounding you, and easily take them out within 5 minutes.

Graphics- 10/10 Gameplay- 9.5/10 Story- 9/10 Music- 10/10 Overall(Not averaged)- 10/10

For me, this game comes incredibly close to being a masterpiece. But it's let down in just one area, and unfortunately it's a key one. The missions.

It has a great many positives, for example:

Graphics. The graphics are good enough that the game is still perfectly playable today, especially the environment models, however I would say the character faces are somewhat lacking.

Mechanics. The game still plays beautifully, the combat mechanics are extremely good fun, as is all the parkour. It isn't as smooth as a modern game but who would expect it to be, that's just advancement.

Story. The story is brilliant. It's clever, interesting in my opinion the games best aspect. If anything it is worth playing just for the story, as it sets up the series, and for that reason, the game is a must play for any assassin's creed fan who hasn't already played it.

However, there is one huge negative to an otherwise great game. The missions are far too repetitive. They essentially consist of go to a place, gather information, kill person. It feels like they put so much effort and creativity into the overarching story that they just forgot about the missions within that. Additionally, it's quite tedious to have to ride between locations the first few times, as the horse riding isn't fun in itself and the area between the cities isn't too much to look at.

Overall, although the missions cause the game to have little replayability, it is definitely worth playing once, especially now it is reasonably cheap, even if you're only playing it for the great story.

This is Assassin's Creed at its most simple. But simplicity isn't bad, mind you. In fact, it's this game's rawness that still makes it feel a bit different than what followed.

As the very first game of its kind and the first entry to one of the largest gaming franchises, it definitely feels like its goal was to set the foundation of what was to come. In other words, setting up an ambitious and promising framework. As a result, AC1 takes some risks. It's avant-garde in nature, but it's that very nature that makes the subsequent titles seem so sanitized and accessible in comparison.

AC1's story is daring and thought-provoking, questioning life on Earth and religion. It's very much a game that prioritizes its themes over a deep character arc and a nuanced plot. Altaïr's character arc is still good, just not as prominent as one would expect. The plot is straight forward, but leaves enough room for the mysterious and thematically-driven narrative to flex its muscles. The storytelling feels very akin to Ghost in the Shell (1995) at times, with lots of dialogue and philosophical discussions. But the arguments presented here are genuinely well thought-out, and that is partly due to the strong script. Then there's also the suspensefully mysterious worldbuilding that makes the story much more expansive than it already is. The ability to leave the player with more questions than answers, but in a fair and compelling way, is the story's greatest strength.

The gameplay may seem simple on the surface (because it is), but there's more going on when you actually engage and experiment with it. The parkour may seem slow when you engage with it in a casual way, but when you add a bit of tactic, you'll realize that there's a deeper system behind it than you originally thought (even with special animations that you wouldn't see via casual play). The combat sees a similar level of depth, but to a lesser extent. Another interesting layer to the gameplay is the marriage of narrative exposition and how it can open up opportunities during gameplay. Doing certain missions will inform you about secret pathways for assassinating targets - granted, the player remembers that information.

Lastly, there's the atmosphere and art direction. AC1 has a bleak and gritty look, but the atmosphere and art direction go hand-in-hand very well. Certain environments are characterized by particular color schemes and the soundtrack informs the player of what kind of culture and history settles in these environments. A lot of the time, during story moments, this game has a very eerie vibe to it. The mix of ominous sci-fi and dark history only makes the atmosphere even more unsettling.

AC1, despite being the most simplistic game in the mainline series, still feels like the most unique entry. Its ideas are presented in ways that have been trivialized in later games. Its much more niche because of that. The series would go on to be a much more accessible historical/sci-fi epic, but this first entry is what Assassin's Creed could've been. An eerie and challenging series that analyses philosophy and questions conspiracies.

Assassin's Creed delivers a new generation of game play. A bit of how the grand theft auto games are set up; you can do the missions, but you can just free-roam as you please! This game also had a great storyline that had everyone questioning. This game has four awesome weapons at your disposal (well sort of 5 as throwing knives and the short sword are of the same block) the sword, the hidden blade (my favorite), the short sword and throwing knives, and the legitimate weapon for thugs, fists. A great buy EPIC! (great price as well)I think anyone can enjoy it, and it being on a wide variety of platforms makes it one of the greatest games of all time.