Assassins Creed: Revelations - Review

Assassins Creed: Revelations is the fourth game in Ubisoft’s Assassins Creed series and the final game in Ezio trilogy. Desmond has been put back into the Animus to reconcile his mind with his assassin ancestor’s memories before it is too late.

Main Story

Assassins Creed: Revelations mostly follows Ezio from the previous two games but this time the franchise puts the focus on both Desmond and Altair, from the original Assassins Creed. This creates extra depth to the Assassins Creed franchise and fills in the gap for Altair. This also allows the

Assassins Creed: Revelations picks up from the end of the previous game with Ezio travelling to Constantinople to continue his war with the templars. Along the way, he meets allies who give him missions, assist him on others or become central plot points. In terms of the Assassins Creed franchise, Assassins Creed: Revelations follows its predecessors, as Ezio travels to a foreign city, stops the templar operations and gains access to a mysterious artefact that turns the tide for the assassins in the Assassin-Templar war.

The Desmond thread of the story provides the player with insight to how Desmond got to where he is now although in a very clunky manner. The fact this provides a detailed explanation as to how Desmond fitted into the whole saga is very welcome, since this was one of this was always something that was never explain during the previous games.

The Altair portion of the game while being a nice touch feels as if Ubisoft left money on the table. This in the sense that more games could have been done to add more depth to the Altair story instead of having it as added on as part of the Ezio story. That aside the Altair story answer the question as to what happened to Altair after the original game.

Overall, many games try and have a multi-threaded story and usually these just end up coming across as convoluted. Assassins Creed: Revelations does this quite well with each story adding depth to the characters and Assassins Creed saga as a whole by expanding the story.

Gameplay

This is the meat of the Assassin’s Creed series and this latest instalment while adding some new aspects keeps many of the gameplay mechanics from previous games. The main additions into Assassins Creed: Revelations are the hook blade, den defence and bombs.

The hook blade makes traversing Constantinople easy with zip lines added as well as making free running more exciting. Now you can use your hook blade to hook over guards and keep running which as a whole fits into the free running movement system used in the franchise. Den defence is the second addition and it this adds very little to the game. Den defence is a mini-game based on tower defence from a third person perspective where you hire defence based on morale. The aim of this is to stop the templar’s attacks. In theory, this sounds fun and tactical but in reality this is executed poorly since telling what you have left is hard, deploying defences is spotty at best and aiming your own cannon is an exercise in frustration. Thankfully, due to other game mechanics this is avoidable apart from the tutorial. Bombs are a nice feature but like den defence, you can get by without utilising it. All bombs consists of is creating with three ingredients, planting or throwing them and waiting for the results. Bombs will vary in their in their effects and how they are achieved with effects varying from poison to distraction while they can be impact or delay by being stuck on a guard. Bombs are fun to play with in this game but are not a necessity.

Combat in Assassins Creed: Revelations is the same as it has been in the whole series with the weapons choices and close quarter kill chains still achievable. Assistance can be acquired from the three factions, the thieves, the mercenaries and the rebadged courtesans, the romani. Each will distract guards in their own unique way by either combating them directly or luring them away from a specific spot. Assassin recruiting and missions are back under the name of ‘Mediterranean Defence’ but this time given a little more depth compared to the last game. For each templar den that you take over allows you to recruit extra assassins. You can send assassins on missions to earn money and increase their level. Eventually you take over a city and gain money for every city you own. By focusing on this, it will allow you to rebuild the city quicker and up your bank balance much quicker. Rebuilding the city for income is back as well but this time is has no context and carries with it some of the negatives from the previous games. In the last two games the cities that need rebuilding were dilapidated and subjected to negative consequences of the templar rule. This time around rebuilding is there for the sake of rebuilding. The second negative consequence of this has persisted since the first game it was available and that is focusing on this right at the start makes the game a cakewalk. This is because you can buy the best equipment available at all times or use it for assassin missions.

Overall, the hook blade that was added brings a new dimension to traversing Constantinople whether it is free running or climbing. Den defence, which while being a nice concept, was poorly executed. Thankfully, through vigilant gameplay this is avoidable. Bombs while fun to play with, like den defence is avoidable. What has been kept the same still works but for some aspects such as the rebuilding of the city it seems irrelevant and added in there because no better alternative was available.

Graphics

As with most new released the graphics are of a high quality. Constantinople is well created with looking at it from viewpoints being one of the most spectacular views in recent video games. The views from the viewpoints give a good amount of detail and the skyline that is constructed for the game is simply breathtaking. As this game is set in the renaissance era the developers have done a great job of making sure the buildings and surrounding details such as haystacks and benches are not out of place. People are dressed appropriately with dresses and other types of clothing making one person distinguishable from the next. Additionally the guards look big and intimidating while suiting the part with their gold and silver armour making them easily distinguishable from the crowd. Overall the graphics are quite mind blowing utilising the graphical potential of this generations console to its maximum.

Multiplayer

The multiplayer in Assassins Creed: Revelations is fun but ultimately its absence would not be missed. The core of the multiplayer experience has not drastically changed with the only noticeable differences consisting of the radar system, which now means you need to rely on noticing other players not fitting in with the crowd. The other noticeable difference is more customisation for your character using purchased upgrades from the in game store. This allows players to customise their character to suit their own needs. If a player wants to be offensive they can use unlocks for that such as poison while if they want to be defensive through disguises that is also possible. This adds to the idea of the franchise, assassination by stealth, but unfortunately, this is highly reliant on your opponent’s tactics in terms of deciding to run around the rooftops or blend in. As with most multiplayer experiences, these days there are team based objective based modes, which are always fun to play and challenging but also the stock standard deathmatch. Countering a known pursuer is also back but vastly improved with the introduction of the contested kill, meaning that the opponents need to remain inconspicuous at all times. This further underlines the notion of assassination by stealth, which fits in with the whole Assassins Creed franchise. The multiplayer as a whole changes very little from the previous game and while very fun to play in spurts is not very immersive.

Overall           

Overall Assassins Creed: Revelations is a game that does a lot of the same well but tries to introduce something new in terms of gameplay elements and generally failed at it by making them avoidable or just not fun to play. The story is very well put together providing much needed back story for the characters while wrapping up the Ezio trilogy perfect. Multiplayer is more of the same by now relies on players trying to spot out opponents who stand out. Unfortunately, the multiplayer is not immersive which is a shame considering it does offer something outside of the box.

Final Score: 7/10

Batman: Arkham City - Review

Batman: Arkham City is the direct sequel to the highly acclaimed Batman: Arkham Asylum. Set after the events of Arkham Asylum, Batman has to enter Arkham City jam packed with villains from the Batman franchise to rescue Catwoman. Little does he know that something bigger is about to happen.

Main Story

Batman: Arkham City is an open world game meaning that the story progresses at the pace you want it to. Essentially it is non-linear meaning if you want to do a side quest you can or if you want to beat up inmates you can do that as well. The main story sees Batman mainly deal with prominent villains from the franchise, namely The Penguin, Ra’s al Ghul, Hugo Strange and the Joker. Along the way there are cameos from Clayface, Solomon Grundy, Talia al Gul, Harley Quinn and Mister Freeze who all shape the story through their involvement. Generally games that try and work multiple villains into the main story can cause the plot to turn into a bit of a mess or result in a weak ending but Batman: Arkham City does this quite well filling out each story arc so that it has a satisfying conclusion.

As part of purchasing Batman: Arkham City* players have access to the Catwoman DLC which has its own story centred around Catwoman which occasionally interacts with Batman’s story arc. Catwoman’s story focuses on Catwoman trying to one up Two-Face and eventually Hugo Strange’s Tyger Personnel in the quest for loot. Along the way she is attacked and assisted by Poison Ivy in a nod to fans who know the history between both of these characters. Although only four acts long the Catwoman DLC provides another way to break up the story which highlights the non-linearity of Arkham City.

As a whole the main story here is every bit as satisfying as the original while also introducing more characters from the Batman universe compared to the original while not diluting the

Gameplay/Mechanics

Moving around Arkham City is easier now with the improved Batclaw which when upgraded allows players to propel into the air for that next glide after latching onto an object. With this upgrade it allows players to move across the map quickly and efficiently, this also has the potential for a player to traverse from one side of the map to other without ever touching the ground.

The freeflow combat system makes a return to the Arkham franchise which incorporates not only basic hand to hand combat and counters but also the usage of gadgets as well as counters to thrown objects to increase combinations. Timing again also plays a key in the freeflow system as this allows more damaged to be done if the right button is pressed at the right time.

Not all of Arkham City is based around direct combat. At times both Batman and Catwoman will come across enemies who guns which will require stealth to get past them. The stealth element involved in Arkham City is the exact same as Arkham Asylum which is a good thing since these require the use of strategy as well as the use of gadgets to get around these enemies. The layout of stealth areas play a part as well with gargoyles serving as vantage points. This allows for takedowns of enemies which can also be done using certain environmental aspects such as weak walls, ledges or even vents.

Graphics

Simply put, Arkham City is outstanding. It is completely understandable for players to stand atop a vantage point or tower and just look into the distance. As Arkham City represents the slums the dark, depressing and decrepit place the bleak and dark setting the game takes on is appropriate. Furthermore each of the main villains as made their headquarters distinguishable from the others. The Penguin will have an ice themed headquarters, while Hugo Strange’s headquarters will be more formal and structured. Overall expect to see a lot of bleak colours that resemble the slums of Gotham City mixed up with the themed headquarters of the main antagonists.

Sound

Returning to the reins for voicing Batman is Kevin Conroy while Mark Hamill does another wonderful performance in voicing the Joker for the final time. Other notable inclusions to the cast are Corey Burton, Nolan North, Dee Bradley Baker and Grey DeLisle who voices Hugo Strange, Penguin, Ra’s al Ghul and Catwoman respectively. The voice acting in Arkham City does a great service to the characters with nobody sounding out of place in terms of voice or dialogue. For example Hugo Strange is very authoritarian and proper while the Joker sounds completely insane.

The second part of the sound is the in game portion. While traversing through Arkham City you will pick up conversations from inmates concerning aspects of the game that have occurred. This can lead to hearing phones ring, gaining information on characters or prisoners assaulting other prisoners. Fights also sound authentic as punches and kicks sound brutal while weapons being fired sound authentic and attract the attention of nearby thugs.

The voice acting and in game sounds of Arkham City is believable as it does not go over the top while the combat portion is crisp with actions such as punches sounding realistic and brutal. Arkham City manages to achieve this without going of the top or becoming corny which is a great accomplishment from the development team especially when as this is a superhero based game.

Replayability

Outside of the main story, Arkham City is packed with side quests that introduce more characters from the Batman universe. Firstly the Riddler trophies and puzzles are pack and are even more numerous that before, when enough Riddler tasks are completed a hostage can be rescued from the Riddler’s grasp. All this leads to the newly introduced Riddlers Revenge aspects of Batman: Arkham City which consists of combat challenges and stealth based challenges with medals given when a certain amount of points are achieved or certain stealth based techniques are completed. Aside from this, players can undertake side quests that involve other villains from the Batman franchise such as Hush, Bane, Mad Hatter, Deadshot and the enigmatic Azrael means that aside from the main story players will be able to gain a greater insight into more characters from the Batman universe.

Arkham City also has a mode called ‘New Game Plus’ which allows players ot go through the story again but it is much harder with tougher enemy formations and boss fights. This mode also allows players to take on the story again in a much more challenging setting.

Overall

When Batman: Arkham Asylum was released it was deemed the perfect Batman game and Arkham City has exceeded it in every way possible. With more side quests, Riddlers Revenge and New Game Plus in addition to the main story, players will have a tough time putting this game down as there will always be a new challenge for them, whether it is a faster time, a higher score or a higher difficulty for players to undertake.

Final Score: 10/10

*Note: Only applies to those w­ho purchase the game new.

Gears of War 3 Review

Gears of War 3 is the final game in the Gears of War trilogy for the Xbox 360. Set 18 months after the end of Gears of War 2, Gears 3 sees the COG take up a final stance against the Locust and a new, unknown threat of the Lambent.

Campaign

The campaign while having some pretty cheesy lines moves at a good pace as well as varying up what is happening mixing it up between on-rails and actual on the ground shooting. The cut scenes explain the story well and Epic has done a great job of rounding out the current story of this trilogy. In particular epic has done a great job at exploring the emotions of characters outside of the main protagonist Marcus. The story will give a satisfying ending and not leave you asking any major questions.

Multiplayer

This is what the Gears of War franchise is built on and has added new maps as well as modes from Gears 2. Warzone, Execution and Horde modes return while Wingman and King of the Hill are revamped. In addition to this Gears 3 sees the introduction of Capture the Leader, Team Deathmatch and Beast modes. Finding matches now is much easier than Gears 2 with the new quick match option allowing you to join matches in progress instead of waiting to accumulate 10 players, this way there is always a game available. To get the most out of this game though you will need to have some mates to play with since playing with people on xbox live on certain modes can be very hit or miss, especially in Wingman, Horde and Beast mode. It also makes objective based games such as King of the Hill and Capture the Leader easier since you will not need to worry about a teammate running off trying to do the whole thing himself. Horde mode, easily the best aspect of multiplayer, sees you work with four other people to defend your base through building fortifications and defensive weaponry, to defeat 50 waves of Locust which include Reavers, Brumaks and Berserkers.  The newest most intriguing addition to Gears 3 is Beast mode which is a reversal of Horde mode, in which you take up members of the Locust army trying to defeat all the COG members over 12 waves. Sadly one negative is that the spawning is a little out of whack with the enemy spawning behind you and having the upper hand. Although this does not happen often it happens enough to get frustrating. Overall with all the modes available this game will not get boring and in addition there will always be people to play with.

Graphics

The graphics, quite simply, are brilliant. Gears 3, while being a post-apocalyptic game, manages to mix the right amount of carnage for this type of setting as well as colour to get away from the bleak grey and brown. For instance Azura is beautiful to look at, as while fighting there is the ever continuous hurricane in the background. Another instance is the Sandbar multiplayer which while being a post-apocalyptic world is also a lush and colourful beach. Overall these are lovely to look at and at times it can lead to you to just looking at the setting and not playing them game. This shows to date what the Xbox 360 is capable of.

Sound

The Gears of War franchise is not known for its sounds or music but it does what is necessary here. The guns sound as they should when firing, between shots and reloading with no glaring mistakes. The voice acting is good as no character sounds out of place or that the wrong voice is attributed to the wrong character. One great song is Mad World which plays under certain circumstances which fits the mood of the map brilliantly. Overall, the sounds and voices are not out of place and do not distract from the main gameplay.

Final Thoughts

This game presents massive replay value with multiple difficulties for the story as well as an Arcade mode to play story on. This as well as Beast and Horde modes which allow friends to work together co-operatively. Add this to the multiplayer match types and medals that are earned from all the modes and this game has plenty of replay value as well as offering something for everyone depending on how they play. Nothing is out of place and everything fits in perfectly capping off the end of the Gears of War trilogy on the Xbox360.

Final Score: 9/10