Assassin's Creed series

For the first game in this series, see Assassin's Creed (video game).

Assassin's Creed Logo.png
Assassin's Creed series logo
Genres Third person, action, stealth, sandbox
Developers Ubisoft Montreal
Gameloft
Gryphonite Studios
Publishers Ubisoft
Creators Patrice Desilets
First release Assassin's Creed
14 November 2007
Latest release Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood
16 November 2010
Official website assassinscreed.com

Assassin's Creed is an award-winning historical fantasy and science fiction video game series that currently consists of six games, with one to be added, a short film (split into three episodes), a novel and comic books. The games appeared on the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Microsoft Windows, Nintendo DS, PlayStation Portable, Mac OS X, iOS, Android and Windows Phone 7 platforms. The main games in the franchise were developed by Ubisoft Montreal, with the handheld titles developed by Gameloft and Gryptonite Studios, with additional development by Ubisoft Montreal. All games in the franchise are published by Ubisoft.

The main plot arc of the series revolves around a bartender named Desmond Miles as he is captured by megacorporation Abstergo Industries (a front for the Knights Templar). Using a machine known as the Animus, Desmond is forced to relive his ancestors' memories, who were all assassins, in order to recover artifacts, called the "Pieces of Eden", for Abstergo. While the original assassin ancestor of Desmond is Altaïr, the most recent games feature another assassin from Renaissance Italy named Ezio. Assassination targets are mostly actual historical figures, although the timelines for their lives and causes of death have been changed to suit the games' plot (in-game these inaccuracies are attributed to the Templars rewriting history to cover up their actions, as well as honest mistakes on the part of historians).

The gameplay varies slightly from game to game, consisting of a mixture of action and adventure with a heavy emphasis on stealth in open world recreations of historical cities. The series has sold over 20 million units.


Assassin's Creed II is a historical fantasy third person action-adventure video game developed by Ubisoft Montreal and published by Ubisoft for Microsoft Windows, Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. It is the second video game installment of the Assassin's Creed series and is a sequel to the 2007 video game Assassin's Creed. The game was released for video game consoles in November 2009, and for Windows in March 2010.[8][12] The direct sequel, Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood, came out in November 2010.

The game is set in the 21st century, with player-controlled protagonist Desmond Miles escaping from Abstergo Industries with an employee, Lucy Stillman, after being forced to relive the genetic memories of ancestral assassin Altaïr ibn La-Ahad through a machine known as the "Animus". After escaping from Abstergo, Desmond enters a device which is more advanced than the original Animus, the Animus 2.0, and relives the genetic memories of ancestral nobleman Ezio Auditore da Firenze, who lived during the Renaissance period of the late 15th century in Italy. The player controls Ezio, who becomes an Assassin after his father and brothers are murdered by a traitor to the Auditore family. While controlling Ezio, the player can explore game renditions of Italian cities, regions and landmarks in open world gameplay.

Assassin's Creed II was met with widespread acclaim, garnering aggregated scores of 91% for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 and 86% for PC, from review aggregator Metacritic. The game was praised for its stronger emphasis on open-world exploration and interaction, non-linear gameplay and greater mission variety compared to the first Assassin's Creed. The game was also credited with improved non-player character AI and combat mechanics, and its new economic system allowing players to purchase accessories, armor and improved weapons through the course of the game.

Gameplay

Assassin's Creed II takes place in an open world with nonlinear gameplay, allowing the player to roam freely within several regions throughout late fifteenth-century Italy such as Venice, Florence, and the Tuscan countryside. The Animus 2.0, a new version of the machine of the same name present in Assassin's Creed, provides in-game context for changes and additions to several game elements. A database is also available, providing extra historical information about key landmarks, characters and services that the player encounters. The health system has been made more dynamic, with synchronization to the Animus and causing the character to recover only from minor injuries.[1] More grievous injuries require visiting a street-side doctor or use of medicine which can be purchased from doctors or found on bodies.

The player may now swim in water, and eagle vision —the ability to identify specific people and landmarks— can now be used in third-person view and while moving.[1] A young Leonardo da Vinci is present in the game, aiding the player by creating new weapons from translated "codex pages" that Altaïr, the original game's main character, left behind for future assassins' analysis and insight.[1] Within the game, the player will be able to use Leonardo's flying machine (based on real-life plans by Leonardo) while on one mission. The player also has the ability to control a carriage on one level, but can row gondolas, as well as ride horses at any point in the game where they are readily available between towns and cities.[1] The setting of the various places the player may go to have been made more detailed and in-depth. Civilians can carry objects and sometimes sneeze. Additionally, one can hire different groups of NPCs such as mercenaries, courtesans or thieves. These groups can be used to fight, distract or lure guards respectively.
Ezio stealing a gondola from a small pier

The combat system is more complex than that of its predecessor, with the ability to disarm opponents using counter attacks while unarmed. If the player steals an enemy's weapon, it is possible to follow up with an attack that instantly kills.[1] Leonardo da Vinci provides the player with specialized weaponry, such as the dual hidden blades, poison blade and the miniature firearm. Generic swords, cutlasses, maces, axes and daggers can all be purchased from vendors in each city or otherwise looted from corpses (spears and brooms cannot be acquired from vendors). In addition, players are able to purchase artwork for their villa, obtain new armor as the game progresses and even dye Ezio's clothing with a number of different colors. Other equipment includes: larger pouches to carry more throwing knives and medicine. Six additional weapons can be unlocked by connecting a PSP with Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines to the PS3.[13]

The Auditore family's countryside villa, located in Monteriggioni acts as Ezio's headquarters, and the surrounding property can be upgraded, drawing income for the player's use. There are several outlets for using currency, with vendors selling items such as medicine, poison, weapons, repairs, upgrades, paintings and dyes for changing the color of Ezio's outfit. When these shops are renovated, Ezio receives discounts at the shops on the goods they sell. Purchasing weaponry, armour sets and artwork also contribute to increasing the villa's worth, in turn generating more income for Monteriggioni.

There is now a broader array of methods for hiding or blending in the area. One can dive underwater to break the guards' line of sight, and blending may be performed with any group of people, rather than only a specific type, as in the first Assassin's Creed.[1] The game features a notoriety system, with guards more alert to Ezio's presence depending on his behavior, location, and current mission. This infamy can be reduced with bribery, removing wanted posters, or assassinating corrupt officials.[1]

A day and night cycle has been added to the game, giving the game more of a sense of time, in addition to setting missions and events at certain times of the day.[1] There are many ways to interact with non-player characters, with some NPCs available for hire, they serve as a distraction, or can fight alongside the player. Money thrown to the ground, or a corpse carried and then deposited on the ground may also serve as a distraction for both guards and NPC's. There are also several types of enemies, some more agile or stronger than others.

The missions in the game now have an expanded variety, with different structuring. For example, a mission may have the objective to escort someone, but may change to a chase and assassination. Investigation is less explicit, and instead missions may follow people and/or a narrative. There are roughly 200 missions in the game; about half are part of the main storyline, while the rest are side quests which need not be completed in order to finish the game's main story-line. Cities also contain hidden locations such as catacombs and caves, the design of which have been compared, by the developers, to the Prince of Persia series, where the objective is to navigate the area. Exploring these locations eventually rewards the player with an Assassin's seal; the collection of all six allows the player to unlock the armor of Altaïr in a concealed section of the Villa.

Like Assassin's Creed, characters based on historical figures are present in the game including Leonardo da Vinci, Niccolò Machiavelli, Caterina Sforza, Lorenzo de' Medici, the Pazzi family, and Pope Alexander VI.[14]

Locations in the game include the Tuscany region[1] (Florence, Monteriggioni and San Gimignano[15]), the Apennine Mountains, the Romagna region (Forlì[15]), Venice and Rome. Specific landmarks include St Mark's Basilica,[1] the Grand Canal, the Little Canal, the Rialto Bridge,[1] Santa Maria del Fiore, the Sistine Chapel, Santa Croce, Palazzo Vecchio, Ponte Vecchio, and Santa Maria Novella.[15]