Assassins Creed 2 Review - Xbox 360

9.5

Gameplay: 9
Graphics: 10
Audio: 9
Innovation: 8

Sequels are very risky business. More often than not, we see a fantastic new game or movie which is hugely innovative and remains one of the best for years to come, until the sequel comes around (we're looking at you, Matrix) and all hope is lost. What's important for a sequel to work is that the developers, directors, actors, producers, publishers, writers, EVERYONE needs to listen to the comments from the initial game or movie, and then work off of that. Obviously it's a little harder to achieve with movies, and the poor Wachowski brothers thought they had an epic trilogy before Keanu Reeves was even cast (could you believe they were considering Will Smith, but he turned it down in favour of the epic Wild Wild West which grossed half of what the first Matrix did). Ubisoft Montreal are real people. They have learnt that to make a good game, you have to make what the people who are going to be playing it want to be playing, and thus Assassin's Creed 2 was born.

Set in the late 15th century, the dark ages are over and Italy is flourishing with life. The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are out in full force, and you take on the role of the young Florentian noble Ezio Auditore, a descendent of Altair, and continuing the DNA trail to Desmond. If you haven't played the first Assassin's Creed, too bad, we just spoiled the sci-fi twist. As you work your way across Italy, you'll discover more of the truths behind Abstergo and their obsession for the Apple of Eden. Meeting up with such Renaissance icons as Leonardo from Vinci and Pope Alexander VI, Ezio travels through the blossoming cities of Florence and Venice as he seeks revenge for the death of his father and brothers. It is here that one of the greatest video games of all time sets its tone.

Gameplay

As the game kicks off, you are thrown straight in to the exact point that the first game finished. Desmond, still clueless about his adventures with Altair, must escape Aasbergo Industries and flee to the safety of a high-tech apartment, where you'll find your very own Animus. Luckily EA Black Box had nothing to do with the development, or your Animus may come with optional metallic paint, a full body kit, spoiler, and green glow underneath. Desmond soon jumps in to the role of Ezio Auditore, and the story begins. Thankfully, the initial sequences in Assassin's Creed 2 play out very much like a tutorial, but if you haven't played the first game you may find the controls a little awkward at first as the developers are assuming you're not the type that starts reading a book a third of the way in.

The young Ezio gets in to a lot of trouble due to his promiscuity with the ladies, and you soon find yourself being involved in a few fights until the worst happens. Your father and brothers are taken prisoner and executed. This ...