Review: Assassin’s Creed: Revelations

You know when you enjoy a meal so much you go back for seconds? You don’t want the dish to have been tampered with too much between rounds one and two, right?

Well then I hope you enjoyed Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood, because Assassin’s Creed: Revelations is a hearty but minimally altered second helping.

The guys at Ubisoft certainly have their tweaking skills on lock: the way they managed to throw away almost everything that was hateful about Assassin’s Creed (read: that bloody hill in Masyaf) and leave behind all the good bits for Assassin’s Creed II. That tradition has kept up; so while the fourth game in the series offers very little innovation on previous titles, what is there is as solid as the muscles that I imagine rippled majestically across Ezio Auditore’s back when he was in his prime.

Okay, that was a weird moment, let’s just keep going and put it behind us, okay?

Revelations starts with a quick tussle in Masyaf, before setting up shop in Constantinople around 1511AD. Ezio Auditore, now 52, has travelled to the already huge city (did you know Istanbul is now the third largest metropolis on the planet?) to track down an ancient…thing…that Altair hid…it’s a weapon, and there are books…and…uh…something. You know what, the story gets VERY confusing, and if it’s been a while between games for you, or if you’re a newcomer, you’re going to have to flick open a Wikipedia tab and brief yourself, because Revelations continues the stories of Ezio, Altair and Desmond ALL AT THE SAME TIME, and there is a LOT of ground to cover.

Long story short, you’re in Constantinople looking for artifacts. And with the help of Yusuf, a Constantinoplite Constantinoplian Constantiniple local Assassin (who is as cheeky and rakish as the young Ezio in Assassin’s Creed II, providing some interesting generational contrast with the now middle-aged Ezio), you learn a few new fancy Ottoman tricks to, you know, assassinate the bad guys.

In terms of gameplay, very little has changed. You run, jump, hide, fight, assassinate and jump into haystacks by accident (or is that just me? I swear, I was trying to run up those stairs, what are you DOING, Ezio?). The two major differences are a new focus on the tactical use of bombs (which you can make yourself from parts found scattered over the place, or just buy from shifty looking guys on street corners); and a new hooked hidden blade. The hook allows you to climb higher and quicker, zipline down ropes, and pull off a few fancy new moves.

Both additions seemed like they were going to annoy me at first: because really, bombs? Yawn. But using the bombs as diversionary tactics (as opposed to straight-up KABOOM! death) is both incredibly handy AND fun. And the hooked blade really does make climbing easier and faster, and who doesn’t love a good zipline?

Nearly everything else you remember from Rome is in Constantinople as well, tweaked slightly to fit the setting. Art shops are book shops, courtesans are gypsies, Borgia messengers are Byzantine tax-collectors, “burning down the Borgia Tower” is now “lighting the Assassin’s signal fire” and so on. Part of me feels like it is cheap recycling, but it’s all stuff that works. I loved burning down those Borgia towers and liberating the surrounding city sections, so I’m glad to see the stuff I enjoyed dusted off and given another run.

One of the biggest strengths in this game is the emotional attachment to Ezio. Having first played the character as a carefree 17 year old, only just becoming aware of his destiny as an Assassin; in only three games we’ve played as Ezio has grown into a hardened 52 year old leader of the same society. He’s suffered loss and heartbreak and he has actually aged. We may have been playing with Lara Croft since the 1990s, but she’s been the same Lara Croft. Maybe I’m just being a big sap, but I am totally invested in the story of Ezio Auditore de Firenze. I scowl at my TV when the residents of Constantinople complain that he is “too old” to scale a building. I watch his interactions with Sofia, a fellow Italian in town, and hope that he gets to tap that, because she seems really nice and they both deserve each other. You know?

Okay, another awkward moment. Just leave it and let’s continue.

Along with the same good parts of the game come a few of the same annoying parts. Ezio’s continued sensitivity to his surroundings means you will still miss the odd rooftop, run up a wall instead of through a doorway, or dive into a haystack when you’re trying to chase down a target. It is frustrating, but it does make pulling off graceful manoeuvres more rewarding. And while it is fun to scale buildings and run along rooftops and explore the city you’re in, sometimes the journey from one mission point to the next, right on the other side of the map, will just be a giant pain in the ass. By the time you get there, you’ll have forgotten what part of the story you’re up to, and you may forget what your initial purpose was, so the chasing/running/searching can feel a bit arbitrary.

Speaking of arbitrary: OBLIGATORY MULTIPLAYER COMPONENT!

I’m kidding, of course. Assassin’s Creed’s multiplayer is far from arbitrary. It is literally the best fun I’ve ever had in multiplayer gaming. When Brotherhood came out, I played nothing but multiplayer for three months. I didn’t even play any other games at all. So I have been frothing at the mouth for this next instalment, and it is as good as I’d hoped. The maps are new, the characters are new, and the customisation is new (and so, SO much more detailed). There are also new games modes that are outstanding; providing so much more variety to the gameplay. In ‘Steal the Artifact’, the goal is to hold onto an item as long as possible, while everyone tries to steal it off you. What results is a mad sprint across rooftops, as you try to keep the artefact in your possesion and stop the other players from getting close enough to land a kill. ‘Simple Deathmatch’ takes away the compass and the abilities, so in order to kill your target you have to really observe your surroundings, and find your target the hard way. Hilariously, there is even a zombie mode, although it’s called ‘Corruption’: one player is “corrupted”, and has to corrupt the other players who are trying to stay hidden. Multiplayer: it’s amazing.

Assassin’s Creed: Revelations might not reinvent the wheel. It might not provide anything incredibly new, but why fix what ain’t broke? If you have enjoyed Assassin’s Creed so far, you’ll enjoy the next instalment; and if you hated it, what’s wrong with you? No really, are you okay? I mean, if you don’t enjoy the game or the story or the music or the graphics or the characters, surely you must AT LEAST singing that They Might Be Giants song every time they say the word “Constantinople”…?

“EV’RY GAL IN CONSTANTINOPLE LIVES IN ISTANBUL, NOT CONSTANTINOPLE; SO IF YOU’VE A DATE IN CONSTANTINOPLE SHE’LL BE WAITING IN IS-TAN-BUL…!”

No? Just me? Ah. Awkward moment number three. I’m out.