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Assassin's Creed II - The |OT|

8bit

Knows the Score
Does it load anything from the save of the previous game? I played the first one on 360, but I'd like to know if there is any advantage in one version over the other.
 
Rez said:
oh? I thought that the ledge-grab and hay-grab were taught at the same time as the air assassination? guess I'm wrong.

Desmond gets his skills from the Animus but his ancestors relied more on their 'genetic memory.' They were already descendants of the Assassins, all they needed was a push in the right direction and they were much more receptive to the skills an Assassin would need. Desmond is an Assassin too, BUT...

Ezio's father, uncle and their friends were already Assassins
... Desmond needs the Animus because he is completely cut off from the Lore of the Assassins. Thats why he needs more time to learn the skills, unlike Ezio who more of a natural learner.
 
Solo said:
I dont fathom any scenario in which AC2 doesnt sll extremely well. The first game was a HUGE hit, and despite us whiny internet gamers, the majority of people who bought the game loved it. AC2 is the sequel to a beloved game that is by all accounts vastly superior There is no reason it shouldnt sell like crazy.



Thats the thing though. AC1 DIDNT receive a bad reception anywheres outside the internet, which is a small minority of gamers. Reviews were great, and the mass audience loved it.
Among people on a NHL video game forum that I frequent, a lot of people don't care about AC2. They are playing MW2, Dragon Age, FIFA 10, Smackdown vs Raw and Uncharted 2. A lot more people on that forum were hyped about the original.
 
This is annoying. Since I've gotten near the end, the game crashed on me three times. I finally finished it but I'm trying to get the last glyph and it crashed again.
 

duckroll

Member
akachan ningen said:
This is annoying. Since I've gotten near the end, the game crashed on me three times. I finally finished it but I'm trying to get the last glyph and it crashed again.

Yes it happens. The game froze on me a total of 3 times over 22 hours. It's pretty random too, so it's probably a memory leak. The first time I fell off a build and it froze in mid-air. The second time during a mission i walked up to a group of 4 guards, and I pulled off a dual assassination, and another dual assassination right after that, and it locked up immediately. The third time it froze while I was quiting the game. It locked up on the white animus loading screen while trying to load to the main menu. Lulz.
 

leng jai

Member
Into the third hour and I'm finally seeing some semblance of a decent game. Can't really I'm impressed though, the controls aren't that smooth and the game doesn't seem to be all that polished. The audio quality is downright bad, I have no idea why since I remember AC1 having a nice surround mix.
 
leng jai said:
Into the third hour and I'm finally seeing some semblance of a decent game. Can't really I'm impressed though, the controls aren't that smooth and the game doesn't seem to be all that polished. The audio quality is downright bad, I have no idea why since I remember AC1 having a nice surround mix.

pc version?
 

Minamu

Member
Please help! :D I have 2 Florins chests left in my villa (literally) that I can't reach :'( They seem to be inside the house according to the map, on the same level as the fighting arena outside or the
underground altar room
. How do I reach those chests? :S I've fully upgraded my city to lvl 3 where possible (though I haven't reached any other major cities so no fancy abilities I suppose).
 

Varth

Member
Minamu said:
Please help! :D I have 2 Florins chests left in my villa (literally) that I can't reach :'( They seem to be inside the house according to the map, on the same level as the fighting arena outside or the
underground altar room
. How do I reach those chests? :S I've fully upgraded my city to lvl 3 where possible (though I haven't reached any other major cities so no fancy abilities I suppose).

Via the well or the mine outside monteriggioni.

EDIT:
While I'm there: is it me, or the chance to play a single phase of the story after beating the game is missing? I wanted to play the
chariot run and the flying phase
, but couldn't find a way to do it. I'm almost positive you could do it in AC1, right?
 
Game introduces codex pages as optional but I'm at point where story won't progress until I collect all of them. I collected only 24. Luckily I found four in one city and one in another. Now I've to find one codex page from all these locations. And for that I've to climb all viewpoints too. Fucking great.

This +
minigames
totally ruined my last fourth of the game. I thought I was almost at end, would finish it before I go to bed. Last few sequences seems dragging too much. Too many escort and time run objectives.
 

Concept17

Member
So...the assassination missions... after doing them, you can still go back and do more from the same coop...are they endless, or are there a certain number of them from each coop?
 

Minamu

Member
Concept17 said:
So...the assassination missions... after doing them, you can still go back and do more from the same coop...are they endless, or are there a certain number of them from each coop?
Been wondering the same thing. Kinda hard to remember which ones you have already done this way.

Varth said:
Via the well or the mine outside monteriggioni.
Great, the well it is then :D Should've figured.
 

Stat Flow

He gonna cry in the car
MirageDwarf said:
Game introduces codex pages as optional but I'm at point where story won't progress until I collect all of them. I collected only 24. Luckily I found four in one city and one in another. Now I've to find one codex page from all these locations. And for that I've to climb all viewpoints too. Fucking great.

This +
minigames
totally ruined my last fourth of the game. I thought I was almost at end, would finish it before I go to bed. Last few sequences seems dragging too much. Too many escort and time run objectives.

But all the codexes are revealed on the map at that point regardless of viewpoints revealing them. They'll just be on your map when you press "back".

And what minigames?
 
Now that I think about it, this is my game of the year.
Even more than Uncharted 2.
Even more than Batman: Arkham Asylum.
Even more than Modern Warfare 2.
 

Zeliard

Member
conman said:
I will say though that the designers have obviously done their research into the history of banking. They are impressively familiar with the impact that double-entry bookkeeping had. They even seem to know something about the "secret chambers" associated with merchants and bankers of the early Italian Renaissance! If any of you are interested in this stuff, there are some great books and essays on this (for example, Mary Poovey has a great chapter in her book A History of the Modern Fact).

There is a lot of stuff like this throughout the game. Lots of little nuggets of info and plot twists based on things that someone with a familiarity with the Italian Renaissance will catch, but trivial enough that others missing it isn't that significant.
 
Really enjoying the game. (360 version)

Of all the improvements (graphical, more things to do, slightly varied combat, etc) the main hook for me is the narrative.

Any more these days, I need some type of compelling story to push me forward in a game. This is what I, and many others love about uncharted. In AC1, I just had a vague idea of what was going on. It just wasn't told very well and I didn't understand or didn't care about the characters motives. But in AC2, it all comes together so well. All of the places and characters are kept in a database, the missions and side missions really fit nicely together, and IMO the voice acting is great. Plus, Ezio is a much more likable character than Altair. I really hated that prick.

For a game with so many elements, both gameplay and story-wise, they do an incredible job putting it all together.

AC2 is just so much better in so many ways.
 

xbhaskarx

Member
Buying AC1 is my biggest gaming regret of this generation. I got sick of it after like 7 hours and have not touched it once since the day it was released.

However, I see that AC2 is getting good reviews and I'm tempted to check it out (360 version)...
Does it have any of the problems of the original? Do others who hated AC1 love AC2?
 

sangreal

Member
Rez said:
oh? I thought that the ledge-grab and hay-grab were taught at the same time as the air assassination? guess I'm wrong.
They aren't but air assassination is taught at some point. I think after the second or third hidden blade upgrade. I'm pretty sure you can do it from the start though
 

Solo

Member
xbhaskarx said:
Buying AC1 is my biggest gaming regret of this generation. I got sick of it after like 7 hours and have not touched it once since the day it was released.

However, I see that AC2 is getting good reviews and I'm tempted to check it out (360 version)...
Does it have any of the problems of the original? Do others who hated AC1 love AC2?

Read a few pages of the thread. These exact same questions have been asked and answered at least a hundred times.

In brief: No. Yes.
 
ashbash159 said:
Now that I think about it, this is my game of the year.
Even more than Uncharted 2.
Even more than Batman: Arkham Asylum.
Even more than Modern Warfare 2.

I'm really impressed with it. I had anticipated the Holiday/Christmas 2009 season to be a lot quieter than 2008, but I think if anything its far superior. Four excellent sequels (Uncharted, AC, OFP:DR and MW2), plus a great Bioware RPG, and a sleeper hit from Gearbox.

But back to the topic on hand: Is/was anyone else a little taken aback by how instantly gifted at killing Ezio is with his sword? As soon as he's wearing the assassin's grab, he's slashing guards and slapping asses with consummate ease. I mean, I knew he was a brawler, but a trained killer? My only complaint thus far, and a small one at that.
 
Rez said:
the highlight of the entire game was the Assassin's Seal in the church in Florence (I believe it's the seal most people will get second). It was just such an amazing area. Prince of Persia to the max.

All of the Tombs were just godly.


That was amazing. That and the catacomb assassins seal were what sold me on this game. The platforming in the church though <3 <3 <3. Completely blew me away.


I havent gotten to do any other assassins seals yet. Needless to say I will be doing them immediately when they pop up.
 

Concept17

Member
xbhaskarx said:
Buying AC1 is my biggest gaming regret of this generation. I got sick of it after like 7 hours and have not touched it once since the day it was released.

However, I see that AC2 is getting good reviews and I'm tempted to check it out (360 version)...
Does it have any of the problems of the original? Do others who hated AC1 love AC2?

Some core elements have remained mostly unchanged, but at the very least improved upon. The platforming, while better than the first, is largely the same. Its improved mostly due to the layout of buildings (less repetitive, flows better).

The combat is the same, only now theres a few more options, you can disarm, and use your hidden blades as a weapon (as well as poisons, double assassinations, and smoke bombs)...plus there are 22 weapons to purchase in the game.

There are a ton of things to do in the game. In the first you had to do investigations. There are missions types in AC2, but they are far from being a primary thing to do. They're more optional, and more fun. There are also glyphs, feathers, treasures, and codex pages. On top of that there are Assassin Seals, and various indoor/underground missions to do. There is also your city you can upgrade, and armor to unlock. Plus there are a bunch of dyes for your armor which make Ezio look even more badass.

I am now 10 hours in and have yet to find anything repetitive, and I'm at 36% synchronized.

Get the game, you'll like Ezio more than Altair, the characters and story are great. And there is so much to do, you'll likely never get bored until you've done it all.
 
xbhaskarx said:
Buying AC1 is my biggest gaming regret of this generation. I got sick of it after like 7 hours and have not touched it once since the day it was released.

However, I see that AC2 is getting good reviews and I'm tempted to check it out (360 version)...
Does it have any of the problems of the original? Do others who hated AC1 love AC2?


Really, the only problem I have is some of the button mapping on the controller. It can be entirely too contextual such as the carry/loot command. I still dont particularly like the combat (Almost completely consist of counterattacks) and because of how the combat is set up you never really die from any combat situation.

Other than that its leagues better. I played AC for around 5 hours and quit playing. It was boring and the story was bad. I would buy AC2 if I had the money but instead i am going to have to stick to gamefly. Oh and the first 3-4 hours of this game are slow. I almost stopped playing it. It does get better.
 

Zeliard

Member
Still wish they would've had different combat difficulties, or something. There hasn't been a single point where I've had to use any medicine, or been at all close to death (haven't upgraded any of my pouches and I don't plan on it).

They should've added some enemy types that can break your guard in some way (like by grabbing/throwing you) and interspersed them within the various groups of guards, since that would keep you on your toes a lot more.

The lack of difficulty in the combat is easily my #1 criticism of this game, and really my only major one. The controls can also be a bit unresponsive when it comes to making quick and precise movements (like you need to during races), as well.
 

jett

D-Member
Oh man, has anyone else attempted to try out AC1 after playing AC2? AC2 is SO much better in every aspect. When you fight soldiers it really hits home how much the combat has been overhauled in AC2(it's no longer any fun in AC1 now), the animation is A LOT nicer in AC2 too, especially the facial animation(which was just plain garbage in AC1), and the parkour mechanics feel much more rewarding thanks to the improved level design.

And oh yeah, you know what? Lucy looks a lot better now. All the characters look really creepy in AC1, they try for realism and fall into the uncanny valley category. AC2's new, more expressive character design is much more pleasant. It's definitely more Ubisoft-like now.

Not to speak of the cities, which are just LOL compared to the likes of Venice and Florence. Truly, AC2 has annihilated AC1 and there's no point in even considering playing that game ever again. Ever.

MirageDwarf said:
WHAT THE FUCK IS THIS
MINIGAME
BULLSHIT BEFORE CLIMAX?

It's ruining my ending.

Eh, the puzzles you are referring to aren't necessary to finish the game. So get a grip. And the codex pages are so fucking easy to find. Personally, I collected them all throughout the game. :p It's like a Zelda game with a radar to where the pieces of heart are collected...why wouldn't you go out of your way to get them? :p
 
jett said:
Oh man, has anyone else attempted to try out AC1 after playing AC2? AC2 is SO much better in every aspect. When you fight soldiers it really hits home how much the combat has been overhauled in AC2(it's no longer any fun in AC1 now), the animation is A LOT nicer too, especially the facial animation(which was just plain garbage in AC1), and the parkour mechanics feel much more rewarding.

And oh yeah, you know what? Lucy looks a lot better now. All the characters look really creepy in AC1, they try for realism and fall into the uncanny valley category. AC2's new, more expressive character design is much more pleasant. It's definitely more Ubisoft-like now.
Its understandable for people do have different opinions. But after reading all of that, I just think you are crazy.
 
So I was going to buy a PS3 this week, but now I have to wait till black friday, because walmart is giving away infamous, arkham asylum, and dark knight with a PS3. I can't pass up on that even though it means waiting a few extra days and drudging through a walmart filled with frugal rabid shoppers. However!

I was wondering if Assassin's Creed 2 is worth buying over a rental. I really loved the first game (it felt more like a toy than a video game) but after beating it there wasn't much replay value for me. Given the economy or more directly my wallet I can't bring myself to put my hard earned dollars to a game with no MP, that I would not be able to get more than one play through out of. Even if it's a GOTY material.
 

Greg

Member
Has there been anyone in this topic that absolutely hated the first game and is enjoying the 2nd? I'm thinking about giving it a rent, but the first one wasn't even worth a rental.
 

Sean

Banned
Now that I beat it and already praised it, time for some nitpicking and criticism.

I think a lot of the new gameplay mechanics were nice to have, but weren't really necessary. Why would you ever pickpocket civillians or loot dead bodies when there's treasure chests around every corner that have much more money? Why would you ever carry dead bodies and hide them somewhere when you could just run away easier? Throwing money, throwing sand in combat, etc weren't really necessary either. I basically only did these for the achievements.

The pistol seems like a waste, it's made obsolete by the throwing knives which you can hold a lot more of (20 compared to 6), purchase for a lot cheaper, and toss a lot faster than it'd take to aim. Disarming and stealing weapons was cool but you're almost never weaponless in the game anyway. All these extra choices make the combat more fun but they're completely optional stuff. I would've liked to see some more missions based on this stuff.
 

jett

D-Member
Oh yeah, forgot to mention the music. Yeah, I dare any of those that prefer AC1's soundtrack to go any of the cities and start up a fight. So dull. Especially Acre.

Lostconfused said:
Its understandable for people do have different opinions. But after reading all of that, I just think you are crazy.

How am I wrong? Explain please. AC2 shits on the first game from an insane height.
 
Russian Steve said:
I was wondering if Assassin's Creed 2 is worth buying over a rental. I really loved the first game (it felt more like a toy than a video game) but after beating it there wasn't much replay value for me. Given the economy or more directly my wallet I can't bring myself to put my hard earned dollars to a game with no MP, that I would not be able to get more than one play through out of. Even if it's a GOTY material.
Its long, but the game is still a rental for you.

Ok then let me go into more detail

jett said:
Oh man, has anyone else attempted to try out AC1 after playing AC2? AC2 is SO much better in every aspect. When you fight soldiers it really hits home how much the combat has been overhauled in AC2(it's no longer any fun in AC1 now)
If you remove the changes they made to hand to hand the combat in that game is exactly the same. Yes disarming opponents is fun and its the most powerful attack you have in the game now, but besides that the combat is no different between the two games.
jett said:
the animation is A LOT nicer too and the parkour mechanics feel much more rewarding.
None of these things changed between the two games. A lot of the animations have been re used from the previous game. And the climbing mechanic is no different either. Sure it might feel more rewarding to you when you unreasonably hate everything about AC1 apparently. Also Lucy's face is a horrible inhuman caricature here mouth is too large and it just makes her very unsettling to look at. I have no idea how you can see that as an improvement
 

Ranger X

Member
Russian Steve said:
So I was going to buy a PS3 this week, but now I have to wait till black friday, because walmart is giving away infamous, arkham asylum, and dark knight with a PS3. I can't pass up on that even though it means waiting a few extra days and drudging through a walmart filled with frugal rabid shoppers. However!

I was wondering if Assassin's Creed 2 is worth buying over a rental. I really loved the first game (it felt more like a toy than a video game) but after beating it there wasn't much replay value for me. Given the economy or more directly my wallet I can't bring myself to put my hard earned dollars to a game with no MP, that I would not be able to get more than one play through out of. Even if it's a GOTY material.

Well, there's ALOT of extra stuff this time around so replay shouldn't be a problem really.
And if you read this thread, a large majority see the game as a majoy improvement over AC1 in all possible aspects. (I agree).
Lots of people deceived by AC1 that are now turncoats and love AC2.

.
 

george_us

Member
Greg said:
Has there been anyone in this topic that absolutely hated the first game and is enjoying the 2nd? I'm thinking about giving it a rent, but the first one wasn't even worth a rental.
I'll probably pick this up Tuesday. I actually loved the first game's mechanics but good lord the level design was awful. Seems like this fixes every complaint I had about the first game though.
 
Sean said:
Now that I beat it and already praised it, time for some nitpicking and criticism.

I think a lot of the new gameplay mechanics were nice to have, but weren't really necessary. Why would you ever pickpocket civillians or loot dead bodies when there's treasure chests around every corner that have much more money? Why would you ever carry dead bodies and hide them somewhere when you could just run away easier? Throwing money, throwing sand in combat, etc weren't really necessary either. I basically only did these for the achievements.

The pistol seems like a waste, it's made obsolete by the throwing knives which you can hold a lot more of (20 compared to 6), purchase for a lot cheaper, and toss a lot faster than it'd take to aim. Disarming and stealing weapons was cool but you're almost never weaponless in the game anyway. All these extra choices make the combat more fun but they're completely optional stuff. I would've liked to see some more missions based on this stuff.
I think the answer is that the scope of AC (both the first and second game) is bigger than what it ended up being. I'm hoping AC3 will balance things out and give you more reason to be stealthy.
 

jett

D-Member
Lostconfused said:
Its long, but the game is still a rental for you.

Ok then let me go into more detail


If you remove the changes they made to hand to hand the combat in that game is exactly the same. Yes disarming opponents is fun and its the most powerful attack you have in the game now, but besides that the combat is no different between the two games.

None of these things changed between the two games. A lot of the animations have been re used from the previous game. And the climbing mechanic is no different either. Sure it might feel more rewarding to you when you unreasonably hate everything about AC1 apparently. Also Lucy's face is a horrible inhuman caricature here mouth is too large and it just makes her very unsettling to look at. I have no idea how you can see that as an improvement

Disarming your opponents is a big change for me, Ezio also has more finishers than Altair thanks to the increased amount of weapon types he can wield. In comparison AC1's combat is a lot simpler. Different enemy type force use to use different mechanics.

The animation blending in AC2 is actually nicer. While playing AC2 I too thought the animation was about the same, but coming back to AC1 it's clear improvements have been made. The enemies especially in AC1 don't change between movements as smoothly.

The climbing mechanic is actually pretty different in AC2, first off you have two new climbing abilities, both which really speed up the process in climbing buildings. After using that, climbing shit in AC1 feels not just slow, but a chore. Climbing in AC2 is also actually pretty fun and not as automated as AC1, you actually need to plan your routes in a lot of the buildings in the game. In AC1 is more of pressing up most of the time and that is it.

The location of ledges that make up "parkour routes" all over the cities is way is a lot better too, makes for much more exciting free-running. Speaking of which, Ezio just feels faster than Altair, and he goes from one motion to another while jumping in a smoother manner.

And then there's Lucy. I don't know what kind of memories you have of her in AC1, but she looks god awful, and the facial animation is really really terrible.

AssassinsCreed_Desmond_and_Lucy.png


This is a shitty model, my friend. She literally has no hair, it's mostly just a flat texture over her head. She might as well be bald. She is even worse in motion. Moves like a robot when you talk with her.

Assassins-Creed-2-Kristen-Bell.jpg


Her model in AC2 is a lot nicer. Some people have some strange recollections of what AC1 looked like.
 

Mana Sin

Member
A mission re-play feature and/or a side mission involving the glider needs to be patched in. I don't want to replay the game just for one trophy :'(

I thought it would be more assassin-like to not try
kicking anyone
, and to stay far in the air like an angel of death.
 
jett said:
I don't know what kind of memories you have of her in AC1, but she looks god awful, and the facial animation is really really terrible.
I am just saying she still looks god awful. Now at this point in time for the argument to continue i guess i would have to do a full playthrough of AC1 again because none of the changes that you mention are obvious in the first 10 minutes of actually doing any of those things. But then there is the problem of the PC version not recognizing the wireless 360 pad which i still have to get around.
jett said:
Her model in AC2 is a lot nicer. Some people have some strange recollections of what AC1 looked like.
Also good thinking on using the side shot which hides the problem that i mentioned, bravo.

Edit: Stealth edit fail. Still though that weird look of concentration looks weird and it looks even worse when its animated.
 

jett

D-Member
Lostconfused said:
I am just saying she still looks god awful. Now at this point in time for the argument to continue i guess i would have to do a full playthrough of AC1 again because none of the changes that you mention are obvious in the first 10 minutes of actually doing any of those things. But then there is the problem of the PC version not recognizing the wireless 360 pad which i still have to get around.

Also good thinking on using the side shot which hides the problem that i mentioned, bravo.

ac2_s_059_present_lucy_talking_with_desmond_1024x576.jpg


Here you go. She has a weird look of consternation in her face, but that is actually more emotional response than the creepy mannequin in AC1 ever showed.

If you think they're of the same quality there is no point in continuing this conversation because then there's something seriously wrong with you.
 
Everything in AC2 is better than AC1....


....except the assassinations, haha. the build up of scouting, pickpocketing dudes for entrance layouts, and enemy locations, and all the little story stuff on why they were bad people was awesome. I loved the first one, even if it was repetitious.

Fantastic game all around though, I loved it from start to finish.
 

Solo

Member
jett said:
And oh yeah, you know what? Lucy looks a lot better now.

Oh god, no :lol

Solo said:
AC1 Lucy, looking at least somewhat Bell-ish:
lucy.jpg


AC2 Lucy, looking somewhat trollish:
943187680d1254433725-info-assassins-creed-ii-1.jpg


WTF did they do to her nose? :lol :lol

Can we all agree that Lucy doesnt look very good in either game?
 

Ranger X

Member
That comparison of Lucys pic is SUCH BULLSHIT :lol :lol


AC1 = 2 pics of the EXACT SAME POSITION demonstrating the high end version of the model that isn't even in the game like that. Of course it will look more like the photo.

AC2 = random ugly pic that is TOTALLY different than the in-game one. The in-game one is also taken at the worse moment possible, in the middle of a facial animation that when you "Pause" it looks wierd. OF COURSE it will look like the worse thing ever.

seriously :lol

.
 
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