LogFAQs > #896497149

39. Assassins Creed II (Johnbobb)


While I enjoyed Assassin's Creed from a gameplay perspective, I didn't think it was very strong in terms of narrative or characters. The sequel really surprised me in both of those departments. I think that's why I still like this one the best out of the trilogy. It has my favorite version of Ezio. I enjoyed his hotbloodedness and his single-minded determination to avenge his family. Understandably, he matures and mellows out with age in the sequels, but I liked his youthful impetuousness the best. One of the most memorable parts of the game is early on when he just charges into the crowd after his father and brothers are put to death and kills the man responsible. Then he turns to the crowd and yells, "The Auditore are not dead! I'm still here!" I think that was the moment that sold me on this game.

Assassin's Creed II also made a lot of gameplay improvements, most notably the dual hidden blades. They also revamped the combat system to where it was virtually impossible to die as long as you got the timing of counterattacks down. I guess that could be seen as a positive or a negative depending on who you are, but the less dying, the better, I say. The ability to use Eagle Vision in third-person was a big improvement, too, since it made navigation and tailing targets much smoother. I really liked Italy as the setting for the game, too. It looks beautiful, and the Renaissance era is a really cool time in history, so meeting fictional depictions of figures like Leonardo da Vinci and experiencing a lot of the history through Ezio's eyes was a blast. The best addition was the inclusion of Assassin's Tombs, where you essentially had to parkour through an area Uncharted-style to reach a seal at the end. I'd have done these things for no reward at all because they were so much fun.

I suppose no writeup of Assassin's Creed II would be complete without mentioning the endgame. Unfortunately, it's pretty hard to discuss it at all without delving into spoilers, so I won't spend a lot of time on it. Suffice it to say that the final stretch of this game is certifiably insane, whether it's the last boss fight or the out of nowhere wham one-liner afterward. Games that finish strong tend to leave a more favorable impression on me, and this game definitely succeeds in that department.

Bonus Question: Who is your favorite Assassin's Creed character?
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