[DrBo42]

Thanks, I can never get gamestop videos to work. ... What the hell, he gets to drive around in a tank? Awesome! :lol

:lol Somebody hasn't kept up with the released footage. There's a very unfortunate spoiler in there if you've watched multiple trailers though.

[iNvid02]

DUDES

im kinda busy and findin it hard to keep up with new stuff
if i miss anything e.g a recent review please PM
i'll be able to see it and update the OP

THANKS

[dwebo]

:lol Somebody hasn't kept up with the released footage. There's a very unfortunate spoiler in there if you've watched multiple trailers though.

Yeah I skipped a few of the dev diaries that said they contained spoilers or whatever. I probably shouldn't have watched that launch trailer, but it's too late now. :lol

I'm not sure what unfortunate spoiler you're referring to, though, so phew. ADD causing me to not pay enough attention wins again.

[Ellis Kim]

Thanks, I can never get gamestop videos to work. ... What the hell, he gets to drive around in a tank? Awesome! :lol

The moment I highlighted your spoiler, I knew exactly what design was being used/referred to, and to my delight, its exactlly that :lol

[Ranger X]

GameSpot exclusive Launch Trailer

Oh snap! great trailer :)

[Irish]

More like.. AC1: average game. some people like. AC2: better in every thinkeable way. Most people like. ACB: ?

:/

I wish I could find that post of mine where I went through what I thought was better in each of the games. I should have put that automatic thread subscription thing on earlier now that search is gone.

[gdt]

Pre-ordered it on Amazon, will be here Tuesday. I'll probably use the $15 credit on...either Donkey Kong or Uncharted 2.

[faceless007]

AC2's structure is much more organic. The number of missions types are much more varied. There's no set number of missions you have to complete. It's not a super rigid, defined set of criteria that have to be checked off before you do another assassination.

I absolutely love AC2 but: Yes it is. The structure of the main missions isn't anything but a completely straight line from A to B. It doesn't repeat because it's an entirely linear chronology of memories, and you have to finish all of them to complete the main game. You don't get to the next assassination until you've done all its interim missions. As flawed as AC1 was, at least it did give you (very limited) choices as to which mission type you would rather do and in what order.

[Ether_Snake]

What they need to work on FOR REAL in future AC games is the whole "being an assassin" thing. I like how things are now, but you should be able to, maybe in certain missions, play as an actual assassin instead of as a tank. I want to climb up a building, eliminate some guards, OPEN A WINDOW, sneak inside the hallway, make my way to his room, stab the sleeping noble, set the place on fire, bust through the window, land on my horse, and run off to my hide out.

Basically, I want to do stuff like in the AC1 and AC2 CG trailers! I want to sneak, kill, run.

With the BAM system it could make for some great assassinations were multiple targets must be killed at once. I hope they evolve this system in the future.

[DrBo42]

Just an FYI there's a poll going on at the ACB UBI forums about whether the game will outsell MW2 first day sales. It's really scary and terrible over there.

[conman]

You're confusing "structure" with a repetitive set of expected criteria before you advance to the next assassin mission.

Not at all. In AC1, everything is about building up to a particular assassination. You do a set of small investigations that lead up to a climactic kill. That's structure. Even if you think it's "repetitive," its structured nevertheless.

AC2's structure is much more organic. The number of missions types are much more varied. There's no set number of missions you have to complete. It's not a super rigid, defined set of criteria that have to be checked off before you do another assassination.

Not at all. It's just a series of meandering dots that you connect. First, you go to A. Then to B. Then to C. Then to D. No climax. No rising and falling action. No structure. No complexity.

[Beowulf28]

Just an FYI there's a poll going on at the ACB UBI forums about whether the game will outsell MW2 first day sales. It's really scary and terrible over there.

:lol Try going to the Bioware forums some time.

[Grisby]

Nice launch trailer. Still think the one with unkles "Burn my shadow" had the best editing and overall feel though.

[INDIGO_CYCLOPS]

People were giving me a hard time in a Stream of AC2 recently about wanting to be able to actually crouch/sneak at the same time. This goes along with what Ether_Snake was saying. I really love where AC2 took the series, but there are so many failed attempts at playing a real assassin that it's disheartening at times. I'm thinking that Thief: Deadly Shadows really did this type of shit well; I fucking miss it and don't see why the AC series is avoiding the nuances of being a killer working in the shadows!

By the way, after firing up AC1 for the first time in a long time this week I realized just how much I love the setting. Man, I'd kill for another game in that setting with the updates from AC2/ACB and beyond.

[Net_Wrecker]

People were giving me a hard time in a Stream of AC2 recently about wanting to be able to actually crouch/sneak at the same time. This goes along with what Ether_Snake was saying. I really love where AC2 took the series, but there are so many failed attempts at playing a real assassin that it's disheartening at times. I'm thinking that Thief: Deadly Shadows really did this type of shit well; I fucking miss it and don't see why the AC series is avoiding the nuances of being a killer working in the shadows!

I agree. They focus too much on crowd blending public style assassinations, and not NEARLY enough on actual classic stealth. I don't get why there is no crouch walking, no cover-to-cover transitions, no light/dark mechanics, etc. etc. AC4 should provide us with the means of being the type of assassin WE want to be instead of this rigid, "hit, make a mess, and run" assassin we've been for 3 games.

[Darknessbear]

What they need to work on FOR REAL in future AC games is the whole "being an assassin" thing. I like how things are now, but you should be able to, maybe in certain missions, play as an actual assassin instead of as a tank. I want to climb up a building, eliminate some guards, OPEN A WINDOW, sneak inside the hallway, make my way to his room, stab the sleeping noble, set the place on fire, bust through the window, land on my horse, and run off to my hide out. Basically, I want to do stuff like in the AC1 and AC2 CG trailers! I want to sneak, kill, run. With the BAM system it could make for some great assassinations were multiple targets must be killed at once. I hope they evolve this system in the future.

Yea I wish there was more of a reason to run.

IT's ridiculous when you see a cutscene with Ezio talking to someone else about how it's impossible to infiltrate the fortress because of the overwhelming amount of guards. When in reality you could kill all of them with a broom... (true story I did that).

[DrBo42]

Yea I wish there was more of a reason to run. IT's ridiculous when you see a cutscene with Ezio talking to someone else about how it's impossible to infiltrate the fortress because of the overwhelming amount of guards. When in reality you could kill all of them with a broom... (true story I did that).

I've been replaying AC2 on PC with a trainer that makes enemies kill you in 2 hits. Very satisfying.

[Veelk]

2 Exclusive In-Game Single Player Maps

Uh, can someone expand on this please? I'm trying to decide whether or not to buy the limited edition, and this has me on the fence. Is it saying that the limited edition has 2 extra levels in it's single player that the standard addition does not?

[DrBo42]

Uh, can someone expand on this please? I'm trying to decide whether or not to buy the limited edition, and this has me on the fence. Is it saying that the limited edition has 2 extra levels in it's single player that the standard addition does not?

Yeah 2 more of those linear PoP type levels with some treasure or etc at the end.

[Veelk]

Yeah 2 more of those linear PoP type levels with some treasure or etc at the end.

Yeah, don't need that. The open world is what I play AC for.

[The Praiseworthy]

That Launch Trailer was epic as... EPICNESS :D

[Blue Ninja]

Cancelled my Limited Codex edition pre-order: thing's too expensive (€90, or an amazing 130 dollars) to justify a map and a few cards. That 'Codex' booklet looks nice, but I remember the one in AC2's Black Edition being filled with grammatical and spelling errors. I wasn't too impressed with Lineage, either, and I can do without one extra map. I've pre-ordered that Auditore edition now, and with a €15 gift certificate it'll be relatively cheap. I'll still be paying way more than those of you in the US, but I've grown used to that by now. :p

[OneMoreQuestion]

As much as I'm looking forward to the game, I think I'll wait for a 'complete edition' that comes with all the DLC... I'm not going to buy into the 'missing chapters' scandal again.

[Blue Ninja]

As much as I'm looking forward to the game, I think I'll wait for a 'complete edition' that comes with all the DLC... I'm not going to buy into the 'missing chapters' scandal again.

Were the expanded chapters for AC2 worth buying? I was planning on doing so, but then Mass Effect 2 rolled around and I never looked back.

[OneMoreQuestion]

Were the expanded chapters for AC2 worth buying? I was planning on doing so, but then Mass Effect 2 rolled around and I never looked back.

No idea :lol Still waiting for my complete edition to arrive, it's a beauty.

[DualShadow]

Were the expanded chapters for AC2 worth buying? I was planning on doing so, but then Mass Effect 2 rolled around and I never looked back.

From memory the first DLC was a bit average but the second one was pretty good imo.

Hopefully someone can confirm this cause it's been a while :D

[jett]

Were the expanded chapters for AC2 worth buying? I was planning on doing so, but then Mass Effect 2 rolled around and I never looked back.

I bought the second one.

I'd say you aren't missing anything if you don't buy it. There's barely any story and the mission types you get aren't anything different from what you got in the main campaign. But it is pretty cheap, 4 bucks.

[DarrenS]

92% in UK PSM3 mag

"it improves on every aspect of the Assassin's Creed formula"

"broadening of the series".

(Rome) "It's a glorious, rich city with a staggering amount of side-missions, secrets and hidden stuff to sniff out".

(multiplayer) "an inventive and entertaining addition"

(Verdict) "designed to treat fans" "entice newcomers"

[Ranger X]

I agree. They focus too much on crowd blending public style assassinations, and not NEARLY enough on actual classic stealth. I don't get why there is no crouch walking, no cover-to-cover transitions, no light/dark mechanics, etc. etc. AC4 should provide us with the means of being the type of assassin WE want to be instead of this rigid, "hit, make a mess, and run" assassin we've been for 3 games.

The problem is you guys seeing the series as almost pure stealth games. When you play AC2 it's pretty clear this IP is some "action game with stealth elements". You should revise your expectations and you might enjoy it all the more. AC2 is great at what it does and ACB looks to be fantastic! But they are no real stealth games.

[iNvid02]

The problem is you guys seeing the series as almost pure stealth games. When you play AC2 it's pretty clear this IP is some "action game with stealth elements". You should revise your expectations and you might enjoy it all the more. AC2 is great at what it does and ACB looks to be fantastic! But they are no real stealth games.

yup i agree, it would be nice to have a little bit of that in the future though

[ultron87]

Going to go order from Amazon.

I must admit I'm kind of surprised at how good this game apparently is, since it seemed like they were just like "well we still have lots of Italy assets, and multiplayer could be cool? *shrug*"

[GringoLOCOo]

is anyone playing AC2 before next week ?


I just started yesterday going to try and 100 percent it before Brotherhood come's out next week.

[bumpkin]

is anyone playing AC2 before next week ? I just started yesterday going to try and 100 percent it before Brotherhood come's out next week.

I got really close to 100%, but am somehow missing a fraction of a percent completion. I have no idea what I missed.

[Sai]

is anyone playing AC2 before next week ? I just started yesterday going to try and 100 percent it before Brotherhood come's out next week.

I'm trying to do the same... Even though I've played through the game twice already, and got 100% synch both times. :lol

Love me some AC.

I got really close to 100%, but am somehow missing a fraction of a percent completion. I have no idea what I missed.

A treasure chest, perhaps? You should be able to see what you missed in the DNA menu.

[ezekial45]

Will there be anymore of those piece of Eden puzzles from the last game? Those were such a pleasant surprise. I hope they continue doing them.

[BeeDog]

I got to play the first ~2 hours of this game at an event over here. While it's graphically/aesthetically very similar to the second game, this one begins much stronger, and some of the stuff that occurs during the beginning parts are really cool. Also, one platforming section (major spoilers)where you play as Desmond and run around new catacombs under the villa is really fun, although they really, really looked at Uncharted 2 (you guys'll see what I mean :P). The new lighting effects are swell as well.

Unfortunately, I didn't manage to win a Codex Edition of this game (one guy did), but everyone still got goodie bags that included various swag (even free games!). There was also a piece of paper in the bag with a Brotherhood-related code, but it doesn't say what it is for...

[Blimblim]

Will there be anymore of those piece of Eden puzzles from the last game? Those were such a pleasant surprise. I hope they continue doing them.

Yes they are still here :)

[Rikyfree]

although they really, really looked at Uncharted 2 (you guys'll see what I mean :P).

Well, Nolan North does do a voice...

I have a dilemma. This or Black Ops for Christmas. I'm not sure, I love Assassin's Creed for the whole stealthy kills thing, but I love CoD for epic set pieces. ARGH, WHICH TO GET?!

[BeeDog]

Well, Nolan North does do a voice...

Heh, that's one of the reasons. But you'll see what I mean (it was one minor complaint directed at Uncharted 2 that's repeated here in a clear way). Blim probably knows what I mean. :p

[Blimblim]

Heh, that's one of the reasons. But you'll see what I mean (it was one minor complaint directed at Uncharted 2 that's repeated here in a clear way). Blim probably knows what I mean. :p

Actually I have no idea what you are talking about ;)

[Net_Wrecker]

The problem is you guys seeing the series as almost pure stealth games. When you play AC2 it's pretty clear this IP is some "action game with stealth elements". You should revise your expectations and you might enjoy it all the more. AC2 is great at what it does and ACB looks to be fantastic! But they are no real stealth games.

No, no, don't get me wrong, I LOVE this franchise, but in the future I believe if they added those features I listed, and made the game more open ended when it comes to your assassination approach, it would be better for it. There's nothing particularly "wrong" about how the game is now, but if they added some more real stealth abilities that allowed us to make the hit, and leave with absolutely no panic or attracting attention until after the fact, it would be even better.

I know it's not a pure stealth game, but there's no reason they can't expand on the stealth aspects in the same way they've been expanding on the free running, and combat.

[Victrix]

I've never had such mixed feelings about a series

The entire over-arching storyline is one of the most embarassingly awful bits of writing I've had the displeasure of experiencing in any medium. But the game itself is great, and was so improved in AC2 over AC1, I'm curious about AC:B.

Also, they fucked up the marketing on this game hard, until a week ago, I thought this was a multiplayer only mini expansion.

[Arnie]

Can't wait for this game. Going to buy it and save it for Christmas day.

[ZealousD]

Not at all. In AC1, everything is about building up to a particular assassination. You do a set of small investigations that lead up to a climactic kill. That's structure. Even if you think it's "repetitive," its structured nevertheless.

I'm not saying that it's not structure. But it's a repetitive structure. There are no surprises there.

Not at all. It's just a series of meandering dots that you connect. First, you go to A. Then to B. Then to C. Then to D.

Yes, it is a mostly linear path. But it's not meandering.

No climax. No rising and falling action. No structure. No complexity.

Now that's a load of bullshit. Just because something is linear doesn't mean that it doesn't have rising and falling action, structure, or complexity. Every mission you take leads you to the ultimate goal of assassinating a target.

[dwebo]

Yes they are still here :)

Regarding eden puzzles, I really hope they change them up a bit (each piece unlocking just a few frames of video = incredibly unsatisfying), or at least rework the difficulty on later puzzles. They just got stupid hard towards the end in AC2, for increasingly little payoff.

[conman]

Also, they fucked up the marketing on this game hard, until a week ago, I thought this was a multiplayer only mini expansion.

Yeah, it was weird. All the early press made this sound like it would be a multiplayer only release. Then a few months ago, they started up with the single-player hype. I'm sure you're not alone in being confused.

It was a really unbalanced marketing tactic. They kept all the singleplayer info close to their chest (and have only just started releasing info about it), but started pushing the multiplayer stuff very early. I understand why they would do it that way, but I'm not sure that it made for a very clear message about what the final game will be.

Just because something is linear doesn't mean that it doesn't have rising and falling action, structure, or complexity. Every mission you take leads you to the ultimate goal of assassinating a target.

The only two parts of AC2 that had any real structure (and where you knew what you were doing and why you were doing it) were the very beginning and the very end. Everything else in-between was just a blind series of "go here because I said so" missions. No sense of who or what you were chasing, or why you were doing anything you were being asked to do. Meandering.

[dark10x]

What they need to work on FOR REAL in future AC games is the whole "being an assassin" thing. I like how things are now, but you should be able to, maybe in certain missions, play as an actual assassin instead of as a tank. I want to climb up a building, eliminate some guards, OPEN A WINDOW, sneak inside the hallway, make my way to his room, stab the sleeping noble, set the place on fire, bust through the window, land on my horse, and run off to my hide out. Basically, I want to do stuff like in the AC1 and AC2 CG trailers! I want to sneak, kill, run. With the BAM system it could make for some great assassinations were multiple targets must be killed at once. I hope they evolve this system in the future.

What you're looking for is something more like the Thief series. That's exactly the kind of experience they provide and is what I was hoping AC could pull off.

[Ledsen]

Pre-ordered this today using Gamestop's "Trade in 2 games get AssBro for 1 kr". Traded in Borderlands and Darksiders (both of which I got cheap from the UK). Looking forward to it :D

[DrBo42]

Pre-ordered this today using Gamestop's "Trade in 2 games get AssBro for 1 kr". Traded in Borderlands and Darksiders (both of which I got cheap from the UK). Looking forward to it :D

Ass Creed is as far as I'll go. No to AssBro.

[ZealousD]

The only two parts of AC2 that had any real structure (and where you knew what you were doing and why you were doing it) were the very beginning and the very end. Everything else in-between was just a blind series of "go here because I said so" missions. No sense of who or what you were chasing, or why you were doing anything you were being asked to do. Meandering.

Then you weren't paying attention. In the first part of the game, you're hunting down the people responsible for the Pazzi Conspiracy and later you're trying to take out the Doge of Venice. Both the Pazzis and the Doge were part of the conspiracy that killed Ezio's family, a conspiracy that you find out to be orchestrated by Rodrigo Borgia.