Assassin's Creed II (2009) by Ubisoft

Dip your toes into late-15th century Tuscany

I know there were a great many complaints about the first Assassin's Creed game, and they're mostly well warranted. I, however, had a great experience with the game. The wonder of playing an open world game set in an historical era was such a mind-blowing experience that I found it easy to look past the repetition, the janky climbing mechanics, and the various other problems the game shipped with. Honestly, new IPs as ambitious as the first Assassin's Creed game deserve a little leeway anyhow, since they're attempting to accomplish so much while starting from scratch. Nevertheless, the game was severely flawed, and it rightfully got some flak for it.

Assassin's Creed II is lovingly devoted to the era which it depicts

Assassin's Creed II, when it released, was a perfect example of why the medium of video games is filled with successful sequels. It's difficult for a studio to nail everything in their first try when, many times, they're starting from the ground up by building things like graphics and physics engines from scratch. So much time focused on the building blocks of a game leaves little time to flesh out the more dynamic aspects on top of those, which is why the first game featured so much repetition. Assassin's Creed II, however, improves upon everything that the first game promised. The graphics were superb at the time they released. There were literally no other open world games that looked this good, and they even stand up pretty well today. The cities were beautiful, they were alive. Florence is not a city that's changed much, and they completely nailed the feel of what I imagine it would be like at the turn of the 15th century. Platforming is improved, it's quicker, and it's more intuitive, but it's unfortunately not fully polished in this effort. When it works, it's improved massively over the previous game. The campaign itself is a meaty, lengthy game that's packed with content. You're visiting multiple cities here, you're visiting the beautiful Tuscan countryside, and the game is spanning decades. As somebody who's visited most of the areas depicted in this game, I can confidently say they've nailed the feel of the entire region. Ezio as a character is interesting, he's charismatic. He's an easy guy to root for, and his story begins personally and eventually emerges into a grand scale. He's been dealt a raw deal, but he lets things slide in a way that feels simultaneously incredible and admirable. Combat and player management has been expanded upon from the first game as well, as armor management, weapon and gadget management, and new costumes are all greatly designed. Customizing your Ezio is one of the most satisfying parts of the game. Combat is built upon from the first game, and now feels far more in depth. Probably the single best mechanic in the game is the build-your-own-stronghold aspect with Ezio's family villa. It's very addictive, and the visual change you experience in the small city is one that's immensely satisfying. As you invest money in building up your walled city, the population increases, the streets are cleaner and brighter, and the city is louder and more bustling as a result. I didn't realize quite how much it changed until I began a new game and saw how murky and depressing the place was when you first arrive there.

One specific thing I'd like to highlight here and really stress is just how good the soundtrack of this game is (see above video). It's been mentioned before but I haven't seen anybody truly do it justice, yet. Jesper Kyd absolutely kills it, and sets the bar so highly here that he can't hit the same heights of quality in AC: Brotherhood or AC: Revelations. The music all fits the settings so superbly that I really can't imagine playing this game without it. Half of the reason the world is so immersive is the setting, the ambient nose, the lighting, and the architecture. The other half is all soundtrack. No exaggeration. The music is all ambient, and very low-key, but it flows like a satin ribbon, enveloping your brain and keeping you floating through the streets like you're walking on air. It's just so effective at immersing you into Ezio's world. It breathes life into an already beautiful world, and Kyd's dismissal as the series composer is a big part of the reason why Assassin's Creed III seems dead and less alive to me. The Florence theme in particular is utterly spectacular.

This game, though, is certainly not without its flaws. Free running control has aged poorly since 2009 and can be frustrating at times, especially when attempting to move quickly. This makes any races and chase sequences an annoyance at best, and downright infuriating at worst. Ezio simply doesn't always go where you want him to, and story mission chase sequences are often purely trial and error as a result. Most frustrating would have to be Ezio's tendency to inexplicably stop when scaling straight up a building, and look the left at nothing in particular. This happening during a chase is especially frustrating. At times the camera is a massive pain during combat sequences, getting stuck behind buildings and spires. I also had an issue with the lack of a quick checkpoint restart option and fewer and further between checkpoints. It makes the light stealth gameplay here a frustrating experience at times.

To put it with as much brevity as possible: This game is an experience. It's a thoroughly atmospheric, immersive delight that will transport you straight into this time period and make you want to do nothing but walk the streets of Florence and pole through the canals of Venice for hours on end, with no goal in mind more than collecting a few treasure boxes, seeing the sights, and listening to Jesper Kyd's wonderful score. I love this game.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐