Assassin's Creed II

Assassin's Creed II is a video game that consists of 11 releases
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47 user reviews 4.4 / 5 avg score
4/5 stars Reviewed on Nov. 17, 2009

Assassin's Creed II elaborates on the good ideas of its sneak-and-stab forebear, making an experience that requires far fewer excuses to enjoy.

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The second installment in the Assassin's Creed franchise follows the exploits of Ezio Auditore da Firenze as he seeks revenge on those who betrayed his family.

Assassin's Creed II Overview

Assassin's Creed II is the sequel to the popular 2007 action-adventure game. In the continuation of the saga, Assassins Creed II takes place in Italy in the year 1476. You assume the role of Ezio Auditore de Firenze, the new protagonist of the series, born of the bloodline of the late Altaïr and Desmond Miles from the original Assassin's Creed. This newest entry in the series introduces a revamped combat system, new side quests, a set of new, unique abilities, and much more. Rumors of Assassin's Creed II's existence began circulating in mid-2008, but it was officially confirmed by way of a cryptic teaser-trailer on April 6th 2009. Ubisoft announced at their press conference during E3 that Assassin's Creed II is slated for release on November 17th 2009. A DS game entitled Assassin's Creed II: Discovery as well as a PSP game entitled Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines, both from Griptonite Games will coincide with the release of the game.
 

Who is Ezio?

In the first game, Desmond Miles, a man with assassin ancestry is captured by Abstergo
Da Vinci style drawings
Da Vinci style drawings
Industries and is forced to go into a machine called the Animus. This machine lets him relive past experiences as his ancestors, first as Altair. The narrative then follows the exploits of Ezio, an Italian noble who is betrayed by the rival ruling families of Italy. Educated in poetry, and art, as well as trained in the art of swordplay and war, Ezio is both a scholar and a warrior. He is not, however, an assassin, although he finds himself moving down that path as he is faced with betrayal and murder.
 
Over the arc of the story, many historical figures will find their way into the narrative, including the Medici, Leonardo Da Vinci (his friend and supporter), and Machiavelli. The narrative will focus mainly on the struggles of Ezio, as he seeks revenge against those who betrayed him and his family, and in doing so continues the Assassin's and Templar's centuries long war and continue to influence the course of history.

Gameplay and Story in AC II

Players now assume the role of Ezio Auditore di Firenze as the game's protagonist. He hails from Florence, Italy and has blood ties to Altair, as well as Desmond Miles, the modern-day protagonist in the first game. Assassin's Creed II is set in 1476 in Italy, and similar to the original game, the second iteration of the series will feature an over world, and will include locations such as Saint Mark's Basilica Cathedral, The Grand Canal, Rialto Bridge, and Da Vinci's Workshop. The city states of Florence, Venice, Romagna, and Tuscany are the setting of Ezio's journey.

Unlike the first game where Altair was more of a lone soldier, Ezio this time has a sort of family helping him out. That is to say you can recruit people, or you can use family members placed on the streets, and have them be diversions or hide dead bodies. They can even help you out while fighting, and will join, when they think it's necessary.

The structure from Assassin's Creed where you would go out investigate, kill your target and return back to your master has been scrapped. You can now take on the missions in different ways. There are 15 individual mission types this time, however, the developers can combine the mission types all into one, creating a completely new way you must play. At E3, the developers stated that they had roughly 200 unique mission types. Also the AI is now more ruthless. It can remember you, and will investigate if it thinks it knows you. To make it a little more difficult on enemy guards, however, players have the option of buying different outfits to disguise themselves. Various capes and dyes will also help you pull off different looks, making it that much harder for the AI to find you.

Ezio
Ezio
Ezio, unlike Altair, wields dual hidden blades, a new and useful tool. Another new addition is the disarm technique; Ezio can disarm an enemy and take the newly acquired weapon as his own (for a short period of time). This is especially useful for the more armored and skilled blocker opponents. He also has a wrist gun hidden under his sleeve where his double hidden blades are, and can obtain and use several different weapons from shops. Available weapons include: swords, daggers, spears (after disarming an opponent), war hammers, battle axes, and maces. These all tie in to the updated combat mechanic in the game, which blends elements of the system from the first game, such as counters and parries, and implements them in the more fluid, realistic combat system of Assassins Creed II.

The developers aim to create a system that makes Ezio feel more like an assassin than a simple soldier, encouraging the use of quick take downs over prolonged engagements with guards. To reinforce this feeling, Ezio will for the most part no longer carry any set weapon issued to him by a superior. The player can  buy and upgrade weapons and items at shops, letting Ezio keep them constantly in his inventory. The enemies Ezio will face have also been expanded upon so that now he will be forced to contend with both heavily armored guards, spear soldiers, swordsmen, and lightly armored foes wielding lighter weapons.

Ezio's health no longer regenerates to the same extent, and although syncing will restore some health, players must consult street doctors for more serious wounds. Hiding spots are no longer a guaranteed escape, as there is a new AI class-type named the seeker who can see through hiding spots. He can poke Ezio with his spear to draw him out of cover. You may still counter his attacks while inside cover. Assassin's Creed II also adds the ability to swim,  which proves useful in the canals of Venice. Another notable ability is being to assassinate enemies from hiding spots, such as hay bails. 

Re-Worked Assassin Symbol
Re-Worked Assassin Symbol
Other new features include a day and night cycle and a notoriety system in which Ezio will become recognized as he takes on more quests in each town; higher notoriety will result in civilians and guards becoming increasingly wary of the player's movements.This level of notoriety will be set within each city, so that while the player may be completely unknown in some cities, he may be infamous in others. The player may take on quests to bribe or kill informants and remove wanted posters in order to decrease his notoriety level. Another element returning are the hidden, scattered throughout the world. These include Gold Coins, Flags and mini statues. This time, however, collecting these items will unlock concrete bonuses: new items and rewards for players instead of just gamerpoints. 
There are fifteen mission types in Assassin's Creed II, a large increase over the number in the original, as there are now over 200 missions in Assassin's Creed II. Also changed is the fact that, upon entering the city, the player will not be forced to repeat the same side quests, in the same order, for each assassination, as they did in the first game. However, they have removed the passive quests of the older missions like eavesdropping or pick pocketing. Different mission types may be linked in a single quest: a robbery may turn into a chase, which may then turn into an assassination. 
 
Another feature that was announced is an all new economic system. Ezio is a rich nobleman and that's where the system comes into play.  Along with the ability to pick-pocket people in the game to take their money, you can use that money to buy weapons and upgrades from people such as Leonardo Da Vinci. Armor is available for purchase, as well as clothing dye to customize Ezio's outfit. You can also use the money to hire thieves and street hookers, if you didn't become friends with them before, for any assistance in an assassination plot.  
 
It is also said that Desmond Miles is going to do more than walk, because in the first game Desmond could only walk and solve clues.
 

Downloadable Content


There have been two DLC packs announced for Assassin's Creed II. The first DLC pack takes place during Battle of Forli and is scheduled to release in January 2010. The second DLC pack—Bonfire of the Vanities—is scheduled to release in late February 2010. These two DLC packs are loosely based off of actual historical events and will fill the two “corrupted” data files the game skips just before the final sequence.

The "Battle of Forli" will fill in Sequence 12 while the "Bonfire of the Vanities" will fill in Sequence 13. The "Battle of Forli" add-on will be available for $4, and the "Bonfire of the Vanities" will be available for $5. Both DLC packs have Ezio partnering with Niccolo Machiavelli.

“Battle of Forli” or Sequence 12 will include six new memories; once again, players will be able to pilot Leonardo da Vinci's flying machine.

“Bonfire of the Vanities” or Sequence 13 will include 10 new memories, and a new spring-jump ability for Ezio will be included. Also, this DLC includes a new, unannounced district in Florence.

 

Releases

Assassin's Creed 2 was released with four total versions which include the normal game and three, region-specific, special editions.
 
The Black Edition
A special version (pictured below) exclusive to Europe/Australia which includes:  
  • Collectible figurine of Ezio Auditore Di Firenze, the Assassin of AC2, wearing a black outfit
  • 3 in-game bonus quests (Palazzo Medicis in Florence, Santa Maria Dei Frari In Venice, Arsenal Shipyard Warehouse In Venice)
  • 64-page Conspiracy art book
  • Official soundtrack by Jesper Kyd
  • Bonus behind-the-scenes DVD
  • Collectible black packaging featured with unique authenticity holographic signature
 

 
The White Edition
A special version exclusive to Europe/Australia which includes:
  • Collectible figure of Ezio Auditore Di Firenze, the Assassin of AC2, wearing his white outfit
  • 1 in-game bonus quest (Santa Maria Dei Frari In Venice) 
  • Collectible white packaging featured with unique authenticity holographic signature 
 
The Master Assassin's Edition
            A special version exclusive to North America and only sold through GameStop which includes: 

  • Collectible figure of Ezio Auditore Di Firenze, the Assassin of AC2, wearing his white outfit
  • Artbook: The Art of Assassins Creed
  • Official Soundtrack by Jesper Kyd
  • Bonus behind-the-scenes DVD
  • Premium Collectible Metal Case
  • 2 in-game bonus quests (Palazzo Medicis in Florence & Santa Maria Dei Frari In Venice) 
 

Original Soundtrack

 
Assassin's Creed II's soundtrack was released on November 16th and was composed by Jesper Kyd.  
 

Disc 1

  1. Earth
  2. Venice Rooftops
  3. Ezio's Family
  4. Florence Tarantella
  5. Home in Florence
  6. Approaching Target 1
  7. Approaching Target 2
  8. Venice Fight
  9. Florence Escape
  10. Tour of Venice
  11. Flight Over Venice 1
  12. Back in Venice
  13. Dreams of Venice
  14. Home of the Brotherhood
  15. Leonardo's Inventions, Pt. 1
  16. Venice Combat Low
  17. Venice Escape

Disc 2

  1. Darkness Falls in Florence
  2. Sanctuary
  3. The Madam
  4. Approaching Target 3
  5. Flight Over Venice 2
  6. Ezio in Florence
  7. Venice Industry
  8. Stealth
  9. Venice Combat
  10. Notorious
  11. Night Mission In Venice
  12. Chariot Chase
  13. The Plague
  14. Wetlands Combat
  15. Wetlands Escape
  16. Leonardo's Inventions, Pt. 2
  17. Hideout
  18. The Animus 2.0

PC version  system requirements. 

 

Minimum Configuration:

  • SUPPORTED OS: Windows® XP (32-64 bits) /Windows Vista®(32-64 bits)/Windows 7® (32-64 bits)
  • Processor: Intel Core® 2 Duo 1.8 GHZ or AMD Athlon X2 64 2.4GHZ
  • RAM: 1.5 GB Windows® XP / 2 GB Windows Vista® - Windows 7®
  • Video Card: 256 MB DirectX® 9.0–compliant card with Shader Model 3.0 or higher ( see supported list)
  • Sound Card: DirectX 9.0 –compliant sound card
  • DirectX Version: DirectX 9.0
  • DVD-ROM: DVD-ROM dual-layer drive
  • Hard Drive Space: 8 GB
  • Peripherals Supported: Keyboard, mouse, optional controller

 
* This product does not support Windows® 98/ME/2000/NT

Recommended Configuration:

  • Processor: Intel Core® 2 Duo E6700 2.6 GHz or AMD Athlon 64 X2 6000 or better
  • Video Card: GeForce 8800 GT or ATI Radeon HD 4700 or better
  • Sound: 5.1 sound card
  • Peripherals: Keyboard, mouse, joystick optional (Xbox 360® Controller for Windows recommended)

 
Supported Video Cards at Time of Release: ATI® RADEON® X1950, HD 2000/3000/4000/5000 series
NVIDIA GeForce® 7/8/9/100/200 series.
Assassin's Creed II 69 images
General Information Edit
Game Name Assassin's Creed II
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Platformer
Action-Adventure
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Medieval
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Alternate Historical
Original US Release Nov. 17, 2009
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Original US Release November 2009 know the real date?
Aliases Assassin's Creed 2
OFLC
OFLC: MA15+
BBFC
BBFC: 15
ESRB
ESRB: M
PEGI
PEGI: 18+
Guides Create
ACII Glyph Puzzles Guide

A guide to unlocking all 20 glyphs in Assassin's Creed II. This will not help you LOCATE glyphs, just solve the puzzles
Assassins Creed II Achievement Guide

An easy how to to get the achievement of AC2
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