Feature review: Assassin’s Creed 2

At first, Assassin’s Creed 2 feels very much like the first game. The controls are almost exactly the same and Ezio handles similarly to Altair. Only after a significant time investment will the subtle improvements and tweaks become apparent. Ezio is a bit easier to handle while free-running, the climbing system is a bit faster, the combat controls are slightly tighter and less chaotic and, more importantly, the whole flow of the game feels a lot more coherent. Rather than completing a few missions in the Animus, being constantly shunted out into the real world, and having time fast-forwarded between every important event, Desmond experiences Ezio’s story in a much more uninterrupted, movie-like narrative. The idea is much the same though: Ezio’s main task is to track down and kill his father’s murderers and the heads of the Knights Templar in Italy. To do this, he must talk to people and gather information on where his targets will be and potential methods to reach them. Then all that remains is to get in there, kill them by whichever means you prefer, and escape before Ezio is overwhelmed by guards.

Among other additions is a new “notoriety” system. If Ezio is seen doing bad things, like murdering people, stealing, starting fights, and wandering into forbidden areas, his notoriety will increase. Once this meter is full, guards will immediately pursue him on sight, which can make even moving around the city a problem. There are remedies to this, of course, including tearing down wanted posters, killing the officials who are spreading information about Ezio, and bribing town heralds to shout about other news. Another new addition is that Ezio can use any substantial crowd of people to blend in and avoid detection – but he has to master switching from one group to another because one crowd might not be heading in the direction he wants. Early in the game, Ezio will meet Leonardo da Vinci, who is quite an eccentric and likeable character. As Ezio acquires secret documents from the Templars he kills, he can take them to Leonardo, who will use the plans to create new equipment for Ezio to use.

Aside from the main quest, there are tons of other things to do, including the mandatory item hunting (100 feathers, in this case) and plenty of side missions to engage in, like assassinations, races, deliveries, and roughing people up. Most of these quests reward Ezio with money, which he can use to buy new weapons, healing items, upgrade his armour, or even throw on the floor to draw crowds of beggars to distract guards. And then there’s the Villa Monteriggioni, the home of Ezio’s uncle, Mario. This is basically an entire town Ezio can invest in by renovating the villa, building shops, promoting trade, and generally sprucing the place up. The more he does this, the more money the town will make, money which he can use to buy the more expensive items in the game. Also, hidden around this villa are a few very secret, very powerful items, including the armour of Altair, if you can figure out how to get it.

Ubisoft really went out of their way with AC2 to address the issues players had with AC1. The result is a great action game with a far greater sense of immersion and grounding in the world than the first game. The graphics are a great improvement, too, and the story is really heating up, making this a must-buy for fans of Assassin’s Creed.