OXCGN’s Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood Single Player Review

The Liberation of Roma Has Begun…

by exterminat

©2010 Nicholas Laborde

This console generation has seen a good amount (but not nearly as much as last gen) of new intellectual properties. Undoubtedly, one of the biggest masterstrokes of the last generation (at least for the beginning of the series) was Prince of Persia.

I vividly recall friends conversing with me about it right when the first game, The Sands of Time, came out. Bear in mind, this was in 2003.

The internet was still getting popular in the Southern United States (broadband wasn’t readily available here until late 2006, and wasn’t pushed until late 2007), and the internet in general was nowhere near the point of rivaling print media as it does now.

I’ll never forget the very first time I was enveloped into the atmosphere of ancient Persia; I’ll also never forget the amazement that ran through my mind when I learned that you could NOT ONLY climb/run on walls, but it was a fundamental aspect of the game!

Fast forward to 2007, and the original Assassin’s Creed came out, which started out as a modern-day Prince of Persia that eventually diverged into the series we have today.

While the game had its major flaws, it was a fascinatingly unique experience that managed to capture the minds of all who played it. It also made me realize just how much I enjoyed the stealth genre.

Look back just a year to 2009, and Assassin’s Creed 2 was released to high praise as a near-perfect game (OXCGN gave it the Game Of The Year). Ubisoft proved they could successfully manage two concurrent stories with one of the stories essentially changing every iteration.

Sadly, we now step forward to the present world of 2010, where NASA has no funding (because keeping them functioning at full pace “isn’t economical”) and nearly every game is generic shooter trash. But thankfully, that isn’t the case here (if it were, I’d probably just quit playing games altogether).

Assassin’s Creed 2 Spoiler Warning

If you are reading this, you’re most likely a fan of the series and have played the previous two installments.

I’m just going to give a brief warning here that major elements of the Assassin’s Creed 2 storyline WILL be discussed here, as they are a building block for what plays out in Brotherhood.

If you have not yet completed Assassin’s Creed 2, then stop reading now.

Now, with that out of the way, let’s talk Brotherhood.

The Crusade Against Cesare Borgia

Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood is one of those games. The sequel that’s not a sequel, but is a continuation of the main storyline with additional fresh content. Assassin’s Creed 2.5 is the easiest way to describe it.

The game’s main storyline focuses on events from 1499 or so until roughly 1507 (although there is a certain mini-series of side-quests that date back to 1476, and involves a portion of Assassin’s Creed 2′s beginning-ish time frame.)

The alternate storyline, which is the overarching focus on Desmond Miles, also continues. The game opens with you arriving at the modern-day Monteriggioni and setting up shop.

There are a significant amount of segments in which you play as Desmond, and they manage to stand out (unlike the other two titles which featured this). His role is more and more prominent as we get closer to the climax of this franchise.

As for the gameplay-related story, we once again assume the role of Ezio Auditore da Firenze during Renaissance-era Europe. The game starts a few seconds prior to where its predecessor left off, with the opening sequence being the mysterious figure fading from view (the Roman Goddess Minerva) and Ezio desperately yelling, “Wait! Who is Desmond? I have so many questions!”

After a slight pause, Ezio turns around to exit the chamber, immediately allowing the player to assume control. I wasn’t kidding when I said that it literally picks up where the previous game left off.

Prior to entering this room, Ezio fought hand-to-hand with the “Spaniard” (the man who assumed the position as the Pope). He spared the man, justifying it by stating that killing him would have changed nothing.

After this, Ezio returns to Monteriggioni to assume a “quiet life” of sorts. Ubisoft assumes you have played previous Assassin’s Creed games, because there’s no real tutorial. There are tips for some things, but no genuine introductory sequence.

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Ezio assists random city-folk with everyday tasks, happy that his days of constant homicide and hiding are now over. But, as with any good story, this doesn’t last for long. Shortly after, Monteriggioni comes under siege from the game’s new antagonist, Cesare Borgia. Monteriggioni takes heavy damage, and Uncle Mario is caught by Cesare and killed on the spot.

Ezio receives a nice parting gift (two bullet wounds!) and escapes. Thus begins Ezio’s vengeful crusade against Cesare Borgia.

Youth is a Disease From Which We All Recover

After escaping, Ezio seeks healing from a nearby doctor. After treatment, the doctor says “A man of your age needs to be careful,” to which Ezio shows contempt. By this point, players should take a step back and realize just how old this man truly is.

In Assassin’s Creed 2, in which the beginning was a few years prior to 1476 (evident from a sequence in Brotherhood), Ezio was probably mid to late twenties. The end of Brotherhood takes place in 1507, putting Ezio in his late fifties, and possibly early sixties. A few jokes and lines are thrown in throughout the game regarding this, and it’s a little thing that I noticed.

It adds, in my opinion, to the atmosphere, and allows players to understand that Ezio isn’t a space marine with recharging power armor; he’s a human being and has his own mortality to deal with.

• Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood Darkest Days

But it’s not just Ezio that has aged. His best friend, Leonardo da Vinci, has also aged significantly. Roughly 25% or so into the main storyline, Ezio encounters him in a humorous meeting.

Ezio is walking on a street, and hears a whisper directing him toward an alley. He walks there and discovers a cardboard box, a nod to the Metal Gear series, and is greeted to da Vinci coming around the corner for a friendly embrace.

(Now that I think about it, cardboard was invented in China in the 15th century, but wasn’t produced commercially until the early 19th century in England. The credibility of this event is up for debate, but only picky critics such as myself would discuss such a frivolous matter.)

Renaissance Man

Ezio soon learns that the Borgia gave Leonardo a choice: create war machines for them, or die. Obviously, he chose the former. He gives Ezio an [optional] task of destroying these weapons, of which there are five. I won’t spoil what they are, but just about every design da Vinci ever created comes into play, all sadly becoming destroyed by Ezio.

If you choose to complete the mini-series of tasks, that is. Each of which involves killing a Borgia Captain, getting the location of the weapon, beating up an architect, burning the schematics, using the weapon against the Borgia and then destroying it.

Yes, the tank makes an appearance, and yes, you get to drive it. I speak no further.

The only new invention at your disposal is the parachute, which performs as you would expect it to. It’s a very dynamic addition to the series, but I honestly didn’t use it that much.

In terms of new items, there isn’t a Renaissance creationism spree as in the predecessor. You get everything you had in Assassin’s Creed 2, in addition to one new weapon: the crossbow. It’s a perfect weapon to be added to the assassin’s arsenal, and once you begin to use it, you’ll never know how you survived without it.

Notable Landmarks and Other Things

Since the game takes place in Rome (Rōma), there are many notable landmarks and places of interest. The three main places are full recreations of the Pantheon, Colosseum, and the Vatican itself.

All are ventured into throughout the story, and add more historical value and significance to the story. Plus, for history nuts such as myself, it’s fun to see how detailed the developers were in crafting these fascinating displays of the capabilities of the human mind.

The visuals are still top-notch, even though the game still uses a greatly unaltered version of the engine from 2007. That’s not saying it looks dated, but the engine will need touching up or ideally a complete rebuild by the time of next release.

• Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood Launch Trailer

Sound is absolutely hitting a perfect note this time around, continuing the same style employed by Assassin’s Creed 2. The score absolutely touches the heart and inspires the mind in ways that only a select few other titles can do.

The cast of characters is particularly interesting this time around, with one of my favorite historical figures being Niccolò Machiavell. Near the end of the game, Machiavelli jokes to Ezio, “One day, I’m going to write a book about you.” Ezio responds, “If you do, make it short.” This is a nice little historical reference to Machiavelli’s famous Renaissance work, The Prince.

One other thing to be mentioned is the unlockable costumes. You may recall how Metal Gear Solid 4 featured an unlockable Altair costume.

Well, Brotherhood returns the favor by allowing you to unlock Raiden’s cybernetic suit featured in MGS4. It’s a natural fit for Ezio, and the suit is ported into the series well. For example, Ezio stowes his sword where Raiden actually puts his.

It’s a fun little developer addition and even more fun for fans of the Metal Gear series such as myself. Now, if only I could find time to finish Peace Walker…

Not Your Typical Fraternity

The gameplay has received a complete rejuvenation in terms of fixes. Gone are the days of locking on to a specific target within a combat scenario in order to accomplish your goals of murder! You no longer have to lock on to a specific enemy in order to counter their moves, and combat has a dynamic fluidity about it that finally makes the game easier to handle.

Another new feature is kill streaks. No, Leonardo did not invent his helicopter with an attached cannon for you to use!  (Sorry about the bad joke, but it had to be said…)

After tapping your attack button several times on an enemy in combat, you will perform an execution. After that, if you continue pressing said button, you will move from enemy to enemy executing them instantly, racking up your kill streak even further. It continues until you are struck again.

• Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood Trailer

Outside of combat, there is an overall task of both rebuilding and “liberating” Rome. Regarding the former, you may recall how in Assassin’s Creed 2, you could rebuild Monteriggioni by paying to renovate different shops. Renovating said shops contributed to an income you had, providing a way of getting paid outside of missions.

This same style of gameplay mechanic was brought into Brotherhood, but expanded upon to cover all of Rome. Throughout the city, you’ll see art shops, weapon merchants, banks, and things of the like. If you renovate them, your income every twenty minutes increases. This income can be collected at any of the many banks you will renovate along the way.

Another addition are the use of underground tunnels called Aqueducts which are scattered throughout the city that serve as fast-travel locations. Since Brotherhood focuses on one large city instead of several, it’s a natural addition to the game and proves to be extremely useful and well-adapted.

But none of these places can be renovated until you destroy the nearby Borgia Tower. This goes back to the “liberation of Roma.” Throughout the game are miscellaneous towers that are controlled by the Borgia.

You must enter these areas, kill the residential Borgia Captain, scale the tower, and burn it to the ground. This liberates the area, opens it up to renovation and removes Borgia troops. Later on, it makes story missions a tad bit easier.

Once liberated, the towers become an Assassin Hideout. This then opens the door to recruiting new Assassins into your arsenal.

After towers are liberated, Ezio has the location of common civilians that are engaged in fights with guards throughout Rome. After appearing on the scene, fighting breaks out, and you must save the civilian in question.

Following the guards’ defeat, the person typically bows down and asks to join you. Ezio then extends his hand and says, “The liberation of Roma has begun.”

The person is then in your band of Assassins, and can be tasked with separate missions throughout Europe. These come by way of (how else?) carrier pigeons located in pigeon coops throughout the city. When interacting with these, you receive a function that’s almost like a mini-game with RPG elements. Your assassins are listed below with their level, skills and outfit.

Contracts are located throughout the continent of Europe, going from Italy to Rome to Germany and even as far as Moscow. Each area has tasks of varying difficulty that can be carried out by one or multiple assassins depending on the degree of difficulty.

Completing these tasks nets them ‘experience’ that can then be used to upgrade their armor and weapons, and ultimately allowing them to rank up. Depending on their level, their candidacy for success is displayed. Based on this, you select multiple people for the job.

The eventual goal is to get them all the way to the rank of Assassin. Once achieved, they are as powerful as you are.

At any given time, you can call the assassins that aren’t away on contracts to aid you in combat. Ezio simply looks at the target of importance, and motions for his Assassins to strike. They dynamically jump out of hay bales, leap off of buildings, or come out of random civilian groups. It gets even crazier when they are of high rank, because they can unleash a Crossbow arrow attack upon targets.

One of my most notable moments with these Assassins was near the end of the game. I was engaged in a major battle, and could only use a certain weapon as a result of the story.

As I was about to lose, I called in my assassins. Three of my five targets were dropped seconds later in a flurry of arrows as my assassins came leaping out of the shadows. They fought with me until the very end, with two being led to their unfortunate demise.

Requiescat in Pace

When an Assassin dies, they’re gone forever. If one dies in combat with you, a brief sorrow song plays. After the battle, you can pay your final sentimental respects to your fallen comrades. It’s a nice emotional touch and allows the player to be more intimate with their character.

Assassin’s Creed 2 left a terribly difficult endpoint to continue forth with, but Brotherhood proves that it can be done, and that the series has plenty of life and flexibility to survive multiple occasions of those sequels.

It manages to tell a riveting, powerful tale unlike anything you’ve ever seen before, and leaves you hanging with an ending that will undoubtedly force your jaw to drop at the sheer unexpected perfection of it.

Not only does the story reek of perfection, but the gameplay that compliments it is some of the most fun that I’ve had this generation. Add in all the extra side opportunities to partake in, and this is definitely a contender for my personal game of the year.

OXCGN’s Platinum Award

“10/10

©2010 Nicholas Laborde

And even more Assassin’s Creed:

• Next Assassin’s Creed Teased Via Da Vinci Disappearance DLC (Spoiler Alert) - Read More
• The Assassin’s Creed Effect: 3 Templar Games in 2011 - Read More
• Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood Review (Single Player)
• Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood Review (Multiplayer)
• Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood: (Almost) Modern Warfare – do you agree with new direction? Look Here.
• Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood novels HERE
• Assassin’s Creed Ascendance Animated Film teaser HERE
• Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood: Beta Kill Video and Verdict here.
  
• Assassin’s Creed 3 – Where and When to Next Part 1. – Read more.
• Assassin’s Creed 3 – Where and When to Next Part 2 – Read more.

Check out our latest comp while you’re here – OXCGN’s Splatterhouse Horrendous Head Hunt – $AU 1000+ WORTH OF PRIZES UP FOR GRAB

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