Assassins Creed 2

[Morfiend]

Comes out today.

Unlike some other people I really enjoyed the first one. I am fully aware of AC1's flaws, but I enjoyed the game anyway. I thought the free running was just great. Yes, the first one had some major annoyances and breaks with reality, but it was still fun. I cant wait to pick this one up.

Reviews:
Kotaku. Liked it.
IGN. 9.2 out of 10.
1up. -A.

[Trippy]

I got to the first main city in AC 1 and stopped playing.

I did order the PSP Assassins Creed special bundle as I wanted a new PSP (mine is the original 1001 model). If I can further along in that I'll probably pick up AC 2 when Fry's has it on sale.

[Morfiend]

I really think its a shame how many people quit AC1 in the first city. The game really picks up in the second and third cities. I know that who "if it doesnt grab me, then im done" and I dont disagree, its just that at about the half way point the game really opens up and gets more challenging.

I heard the PSP version is not so hot. But YMMV.

[stray]

I was really hyped on AC1, but didn't last long either. Cool world, style, story, main character though.. The gameplay was just limited, and the city areas started resembling one another. I always expected a sequel would be better though.... more time to diversify/flesh out content since everything else is out of the way. So I may pick it up.

[UnSub]

I played all through AC1 and its biggest issue was repetition. What you did in the first city was pretty close to what you did in every city. All 9 of them.

[Yegolev]

I agree with Morfiend and UnSub.

[fnddf2]

The real kick to the groin from AC1 for me was the fact that they did not let you roam around the Holy Land in free roam mode after the campaign so I could collect the rest of the flags.  Instead, you had to replay a mission, which means your powers were gimped if you chose the early missions and you also had to sit through the long and unskippable cutscenes.

Otherwise, that game would have been just right.

[lac]

the long and unskippable cutscenes.

This also was the one that required you to go through twenty something steps just to exit the game, wasn't it? It was a horrible implementation of an otherwise enjoyable game.
I'll probably pick this one up once I'm done with dragon age.

[Fabricated]

I picked up ac1 a couple of months ago for the ps3 and it was way better than I thought it would be. It's main problem to me was the really boring combat and that's solved by not using your sword. I kinda liked that the assassinations were largely the same thing only in harder to escape areas, rather than requiring me to learn some retarded minigame thing every time for the sake of "variety".

[kildorn]

AC2's combat is relatively similar. They added a lot to it (disarms/being disarmed, I don't recall all the grab and beat the shit out of aspects either, mass brawls)

But well, it's AC. Which means in reality combat becomes a bad ninja movie, where your hero sits in a defensive stance, waits for one of the thirty dudes to attack him, and counter kills. Repeat until everyone's dead.

They fixed the blend mechanic to not be quite as exploitable/bullshit, and guards will chuck rocks at you if you slowly climb your way out of danger now. But overall, it's AC with a much more interesting city design set, and that's about it.  I failed my first assassination multiple times because it had a stupid "if you are detected game over" mechanic, instead of what I'd remembered of the first one being "if you're detected, fight."

[Mrbloodworth]

AC2's combat is relatively similar. They added a lot to it (disarms/being disarmed, I don't recall all the grab and beat the shit out of aspects either, mass brawls)

But well, it's AC. Which means in reality combat becomes a bad ninja movie, where your hero sits in a defensive stance, waits for one of the thirty dudes to attack him, and counter kills. Repeat until everyone's dead.

They fixed the blend mechanic to not be quite as exploitable/bullshit, and guards will chuck rocks at you if you slowly climb your way out of danger now. But overall, it's AC with a much more interesting city design set, and that's about it.  I failed my first assassination multiple times because it had a stupid "if you are detected game over" mechanic, instead of what I'd remembered of the first one being "if you're detected, fight."

The method you described is ONE way to do combat, I used it, but not all ways, And the rocks, they always did that.

[Morfiend]

And the rocks, they always did that.

Yes they did, but only after about the halfway point of the game. That was what I was talking about. The enemies get much "smarter" later on and it made the game more enjoyable for me.

[KallDrexx]

Are the mission types more varied?  That was my main complaint on AC1

[Xuri]

Comes out today.

A PC version is scheduled for release in the first quarter of 2010.

[schild]

I don't mind repetition but something about this series says "Steam for $9.99" and no more.

[KallDrexx]

I don't mind repetition but something about this series says "Steam for $9.99" and no more.

It isn't just repetition I guess, but un-fun repetition.  I'm most likely going to wait until it's $20-30 used on Amazon anyways though (which for a single player game shouldn't take too long).

[Samwise]

Does AC2 still have speed traps?  If not, it may be worth the $10 bargain purchase on Steam.

[kildorn]

Does AC2 still have speed traps?  If not, it may be worth the $10 bargain purchase on Steam.

What, the dudes in the random wilderness that enforce the 2mph horse speed limit?

Alarm goes up faster if you're running, but I've yet to see anyone in a wilderness area. But hey, it's got fast travel anyways.

[Trippy]

I heard the PSP version is not so hot. But YMMV.

Yeah it's pretty mediocre. I like my new shiny white PSP, though

[Morfiend]

Picked this up yesterday. Quick rundown of the first few hours.

The game starts much more slowly than the first one. More story driven, and much less repetitive. In the first 3 to 4 hours I think the only thing I have done multiple times is climbing up different buildings to unlock the map. This game, so far at least, seems a bit more combat oriented, but not a lot. And I feel that will change as I am just kind of getting in to the real game.

Its enjoyable, but I wish Enzio could learn a trick or two from Cole (inFAMOUS) like being able to climb diagonally.

[AcidCat]

I never got around to picking up the first game, but I'm a bit more interested this time.

How open-worldy is the game? Does it have day/night cycles?

[kildorn]

I never got around to picking up the first game, but I'm a bit more interested this time.

How open-worldy is the game? Does it have day/night cycles?

I've seen shadows move like time is passing, but I've only seen night cycles on set pieces. I may not be waiting around long enough, or they just don't happen.

It's open City, not open World <3 The countryside is far less "explore and collect shit" so far, and all the real exploration and missions take place in the city proper.

That said, it's as open-city as GTA, as far as "do side missions/events, go to mission icon for plot, or just wander around collecting shit and stabbing guards", minus the civilian rampages and thankfully the period means nobody calling your cel every 5 minutes.

[Azazel]

I agree with Morfiend and UnSub.

And I agree with Yegolev.

I did finish and enjoy the first one. I briefly flirted with the idea of buying the Black or White editions, because I like sculptures and statues and that sort of thing, and the DLC, but then I decided I like paying discounted prices for my games more than that, so I decided to buy it when it hits the bargain bin instead.

[AcidCat]

This game is fantastic. Wonderful environment and atmosphere, I find it hugely immersive. Just running across the rooftops, exploring and climbing viewpoints has been really fun.

[Kovacs]

Frikken camera angles.  I'm not sure if I ended up spending more time staring at the wrong thing while trying to climb a tower or staring at nothing while jumping off of a roof.

[ffc]

I regret buying this for $40.  The fluid combat in Batman AA and climbing in Uncharted 2 makes Assassin's Creed 2 feel clunky.  I really like using face buttons to control different limbs which makes the contextual options intuitive but Batman and Drake manage to fight and climb like more of an assassin than Ezio.

[GenVec]

I'd say Assassin's Creed 2 is a mixed bag, though largely positive. I avoided the first game because of accusations that it was repetitive, and didn't get a sense of that at all with this release. The environments are beautiful, the animations are excellent. The storyline keeps things moving right along, even if it is a little hard to follow. The combat is... decent... though it seems that constant counter-attacking is really the only way to fight.

What I didn't care for at all was the story. It turned my medieval parkour simulator into The Da Vinci Code, with liberal doses of Chariots of the Gods and Stargate thrown in for good measure. The random conspiracy theory bullshit struck me as a godawful attempt to emulate Deus Ex.

I did enjoy the Pope turning into a .

[DLRiley]

I played all through AC1 and its biggest issue was repetition. What you did in the first city was pretty close to what you did in every city. All 9 of them.

If mmos can get away with it why can't single player games 

[tgr]

Just stumbled upon a disturbing report. I'm not sure if it's accurate, but I wouldn't be surprised if it is, given UBI's previous record.

http://www.computerandvideogames.com/article.php?id=235290

So drop the connection while playing, and the game also drops? Are they really deliberately trying to fuck themselves with a splintered stick, or are they really just this incompetent?

[BitWarrior]

Seems to be yet another positive argument for my decision to move away from PC gaming to console gaming. This in combination with the complaint of "every company now distributing its own launcher" (ie: in the case of Aion, launch Steam -> NC Soft Launcher > Aion), PC gaming seems to be killing itself.

[UnSub]

But it isn't PC gaming killing itself, it's PC gaming development trying to something - anything - to reduce the rampant piracy of their games.

It's why PC gaming is eventually going to end up as the MMO- and casual-game platform (or any model that doesn't rely solely on players buying the game to start off with).

[Malakili]

But it isn't PC gaming killing itself, it's PC gaming development trying to something - anything - to reduce the rampant piracy of their games.

It's why PC gaming is eventually going to end up as the MMO- and casual-game platform (or any model that doesn't rely solely on players buying the game to start off with).

There needs to be some middle ground though.  I mean, I don't mind signing into things to play a game, its a minor inconvenience at worst to me, and I don't think that many people really mind it enough to simply stop buying the games that do it.  However, if you lose your connection mid-game and get kicked, in a SINGLE PLAYER game, thats going too far.  I think we are seeing a fairly specific line being crossed here, rather than a major problem with the industry.

[Threash]

But it isn't PC gaming killing itself, it's PC gaming development trying to something - anything - to reduce the rampant piracy of their games.

Doing anything should not include pouring gasoline on your burning house though.  They are better off completely ignoring pirates, most of whom would not have bought the game anyways, than losing people who were going to pay for it.

[Azazel]

But it isn't PC gaming killing itself, it's PC gaming development trying to something - anything - to reduce the rampant piracy of their games.

Doing anything should not include pouring gasoline on your burning house though.  They are better off completely ignoring pirates, most of whom would not have bought the game anyways, than losing people who were going to pay for it.

Without going into Hyperbole territory here. I'm buying far fewer PC games thna I was just a couple of years ago, because I simply cannot be arsed with the DRM dance anymore. Instead, I'm not buying some titles at all (bioshock 2), and others are becoming console purchases. (GTA4, Mass Effect)

[tgr]

Without going into Hyperbole territory here. I'm buying far fewer PC games thna I was just a couple of years ago, because I simply cannot be arsed with the DRM dance anymore. Instead, I'm not buying some titles at all (bioshock 2), and others are becoming console purchases. (GTA4, Mass Effect)

I wouldn't call it hyperbole, I've refused to buy Bioshock 1 due to activations, I've avoided spore due to copy protection (unfortunately I wasn't quick enough to stop a friend of mine from buying spore), I've avoided anno 1404 (and been vocal on the forums, to no effect), etc etc etc etc etc.

I never buy buy games on impulse anymore, I always wait until at least the copy protection situation is uncovered, and preferably also until real humans have played the game and made comments on how good (or bad) it plays.

I'm also not buying console games as a replacement for games I think will work much better on the PC, this includes FPSes. I'm also getting depressed at just how hard the consoles are working at fucking up the UI for FPSes.

Mass Effect was bought for the 360 just because it looked like it was never coming out on the PC, and I figured I'd give it a try to see just how bad the UI was. I've played worse (GRAW, anyone), but I was still annoyed by my inability to use keyboard/mouse. So fuck that.