Video Game Review: Assassin’s Creed 3
This week I switch gears a bit with a Video Game review. Assassins Creed 3, the fifth game in the Assassin’s Creed series, introduces a brand new character and a brand new local. For those waiting for a proper sequel to Ezio’s prolonged story you might not be fully impressed with Ubisoft Montreal’s latest creation. Even though Assassin’s Creed is a well-known franchise in the gaming community, I have to point out that while the Assassin’s Creed games are based off of real world events, the story is always fictional. There is (probably) no real Assassin’s guild in the world.
Assassin’s Creed 3 story takes place during the American Revolution with the player taking the role of Haytham/Connor and their role in the American Revolution. AC3 is a free form open world game that is a mix between free flowing combat and fast paced parkour movement. Those who have played the previous games will be right at home with this new game. The combat is a little bit faster paced this time around but at the same time adds new challenges to the combat. Health no longer regenerates in combat, which forces the player to think more strategically about which enemies to combat. Weapons are a little bit more robust with a faster tomahawk along with a bigger focus on ranged weapons including poison throwing daggers, twin flint lock pistols, muskets just to name a few.
Assassinations have also been streamlined for fast paced action though I rarely found myself using the context sensitive actions. I really enjoyed the combat of the previous Assassin’s Creed titles. They were a joy to play with and they looked great. Honestly I don’t see a whole lot of improvement in the way I was fighting the baddies. In a way the whole counter-attack formula that we’ve all come to know and love is getting a little bit stale and for the Assassin’s Creed franchise will have to change something drastic to keep me compelled for future games.
Lets face it. You were getting bored with the Ezio and Altair storyline. Thankfully Connor’s storyline is a breath of fresh air for the series. Assassin’s Creed 3 takes place during the American Revolution as you fight along side the colonialists against the British. What I find most compelling is how they write Connor to be along side some of the most influential and important people in American history including George Washington and John Pitcairn (go Google him). If I were a major history buff though I feel as if it would be a weird slap in the face but as per the Assassin’s Creed story stuff it’s no different then from the other games in the series.
Fortunately Assassin’s Creed 3 gets real boring real quick. It’s nice to see all the attention to details like the ship combat, which I can see its appeal but I just don’t like it. The building of the homestead through trading and hunting for resources but at the end of the day it all just becomes a grind and for what? Upgrades for the combat, which aren’t all that useful due to the already basic combat. My biggest gripe with Assassin’s Creed 3 is that Connor is so powerful that there’s no need for a slightly faster sword or a slightly more powerful strike. If anything there is a need for bigger ammo pouches but the game isn’t clear which side missions unlock which till you’ve performed those tedious tasks.
On top of that if you’re an OCD gamer and feel the need to collect every Optional Mission objective you’re going to be frustrated. Many of the side objectives (even the main objectives for that matter) involve staying hidden for the mission. On top of that there’s another objective for getting all the hidden objectives in one go.
