It's pretty good
I came in to this latest installment in the ever popular Assassin’s Creed series with some pretty high expectations. And for the most part they were all met. I'm a pretty big fan for the older games in the series, so I was pretty hyped to play 3.
Assassin’s Creed 3 picks up Desmond's story after the events of Revelations, and there is a nice recap of the story so far at the top of the game, if you missed a game or two like me, but several characters that were introduced in Revelations were new to me. If you haven't played an Assassin’s Creed game before, the basic premise is that you play as Desmond who is strapped to a machine called the animus, which allows him to relive the lives of his ancestors. In this one you don't play as one of Desmond's direct ancestors, but a Native American Assassin named Connor.
The story has always been a big part of the Assassin’s Creed series. In 3 they keep the tradition alive with Connor. The game takes place during the American Revolution, and like the Renaissance in 2, the folks at Ubisoft handle the time period exceptionally. Whether you're holding back redcoats for Lafayette or talking to George W. himself, it feels very natural and well done, without re-writing the history books. Most of the characters are very well done, the main Templar you chase is very well acted and realized. I found my self not liking Connor all that much over the course of the game, compared to the previous protagonist, Ezio, Connor felt a little flat and unrelatable. Don't get me wrong, his voice acting is great, and he is modeled amazingly, but his actions don't make the most sense at times, his motivations seem rather two dimensional, and his convictions are shaken at almost a moments notice. It might just be me though, but it is more than made up with all the characters around Connor, all of whom are great.
One of the things that always comes to mind for me when I think of an Assassin’s Creed game is the controls. The unique style of holding down a shoulder button to start running has always been a little sloppy in places. In AC3, they make some changes that are generally improvements. For instance holding down R1 makes Connor run, but unlike past games, you don't have to hold X as well, and it is a “safe” run. What that means is if Connor can't make a jump, instead of jumping to his death, he'll stop and allow you to look around and find where you need to jump to. This really helps when you are jumping around in the forests of Colonial America. Because you're no longer in well established, ancient cities in Europe, the buildings you're climbing on are small two to three story dwellings. They still feel nice and fluid to climb, but the smaller, less dense cities lead to me running on the streets a lot more than I wanted too.
While never directly billed as such, the name Assassin’s Creed suggests that there is some stealth elements to the game. While there is in this one, and there has been in the past games, in my oppinion it is the weakest part of the game. The controls and the way you move don't lend themselves to stealth very redily, and while the large buildings in the older games allowed you to stealth around verticaly, AC3 really highlights the flaws of trying to stealth around with this kind of control scheme. While it still works okay in the cities, it falls apart as soon as you get out into the wilderness. Trees offer some verticality, but in most instances, they are few and far between. To try and combat this, Connor is able to hide in tall grass. This adds some cover and allows for very minor non-vertical stealth, which doesn't fit the game at all. The lack of a crouch has always been one of my biggest problems with the stealth in the series, and it continues in 3.
One of the most exciting new mechanics is the naval combat. Ubisoft demoed this everywhere, and with good reason. I found the naval sections to be some of the most fun in the game. Commanding your ship feels solid and intuitive, and the combat is very easy to get the hang of, making you feel like the master of the seas. There are only a few story missions that involve the ship, but they make sense, and don't feel like they are thrown in wherever.
The multiplayer that was introduced in Brotherhood is still present, but I did not give it a try, as I wanted to get this review up as soon as possible. I played a little of the tutorial and it seemed like some minor changes had been made, but it was mechanically still the same.
Assassin’s Creed 3 is going to be one of the top selling games of the year, and rightly so. It is one of the best looking games I have played on consoles, and the changes they make to running and the addition of the naval combat make it a great game. The story is well done, the characters are well realized and the side stuff could make the game incredibly long. Despite the infuriating stealth and chase scenes, the game pulls through and delivers an amazing experience. Whether you are fan of the series, or are just looking for a great game that will last you a long time, I recommend Assassin’s Creed 3.
If you liked my review, check out my other reviews at: http://atomicexorcism.com
