aNewDomain.net — Ubisoft has done it again. This inventive company has created an incredible addition to the Assassin’s Creed III series, this time set in the American Revolution.
When I heard it was an 18th century-based RPG, I was a little skeptical. I thought it couldn’t be done. After all, that era was all about soldiers pressed into tightly packed lines, marching in mass and all firing the same guns over and over. However, Ubisoft achieved something truly great by throwing out the conventional rules of early modern warfare.
Photo credit: gameswagger.com
By setting the game in pre-modern North America, a more-wild country with less tradition and rules, Ubisoft created a game environment where Ubisoft could somewhat make its own rules. It crafted a world where stealth and hand-to-hand combat are the focus of your gameplay. That, in addition to the gunpowder-dominated era, make for an epic gameplay experience.
Take, for example, the way fighting mechanics work in the game. The protagonist, Conner Kenway, is able to fight with ninja-like skills with his native weapon, the tomahawk. This is classic Assassin’s Creed, and it works as well in the new environment as any other. Kenway is also able to fight with modern-era combat styles, like using an enemy as a human shield.
This modern-era combat-style feature is amplified greatly by in-game free roam mechanics, for example where the player is allowed to beat up random guards between missions. Ubisoft has greatly improved the guards’ mechanic in this version of Creed, because in previous franchises you would be desynchronized (i.e. you’ll lose) if you attack the guards. In this version the guards, and other normally off-limit aspects of the game, are fully playable.
Photo credit: www.ign.com
Conner Kenway is a wanted man this time around, which means open season on guards and a more hide-and-seek feel.
Overall, the changes Ubisoft made to the environment and franchise are solid. I was not sure if they could pull off the time period, but they did. The combat mechanics and epic style made me fall in love with Assassin’s Creed all over again.
Based in California, Fegelein Puching Zhang is a gamer and valued contributor here at aNewDomain.net. His articles are interesting and exciting. Read more of his work here or contact Fegelein at puching@anewdomain.net.
