ASSASSIN’S CREED: A newbie’s journey - Chapter 1

    As much skeptical as I was, due to the contradictory statements about the AC games, I always wanted to take a deep breath and submerse myself into the experience of the –so called by quite a few- “one of the best game franchises ever”. After months of flirting with the idea of acquiring the first game, a gentle soul was kind enough to run into –and endow me- “Assassin’s Creed: The Heritage Collection”, a PS3 quantology consisting of the first 5 games in the series. Fate had it that a movie adaptation of the game series (directed by Justin Kurzel and starring Michael Fassbender and Marion Cotillard) was in progress at the time. So there I was, ready to begin my adventure, blade in one hand and controller in the other.

    This is about the original game, Assassin’s Creed, originally out on November the 13^th, 2007.

Assassin’s Creed 1: Welcome to the Clan

    AC1 is one of the games of the franchise that has polarized fans and critics; some consider it boring yet some others think that it is an inseparable part of the Assassins' legacy. Both opinions are not far from the truth and do not necessarily contradict each other.

Storyline

   The story commences in a laboratory-like room. Soon we realize that we are in control of Desmond Miles, a guy who finds himself connected to a device called the Animus. The explanation is not belated; Desmond is a member of the Assassins –allegedly a clan fighting for the future of humanity- abducted and transferred to Abstergo facilities, where –despite his will- he is going to help his kidnappers find the whereabouts of a particular historic relic. The Animus is a piece of machinery that enables the user to travel back to its ancestor’s memories (oh yes, didn’t I mention? The whole concept is based on the fact that our DNA carries all the memories or at least big part of the memories of what our forefathers have lived! Time travel babeee! ). Through the Animus and Desmond’s memories, the Abstergo people hope to find the location of the so called Piece of Eden, an ancient relic-device the use of which is not clearly stated (till this day!). Thus, Desmond embarks on a journey to his ancestors’ past.

    In AC1, Desmond dives into the memories of Altair Ibn La-Ahad, an Assassin who lived during the Third Crusade in the Holly land, in 1191. Altair is a top notch Assassin who has nonetheless disobeyed his Master’s command (Al Muhalim) and must now prove his worth and devotion to the clan of the Assassins all over again. A number of missions await for him, along with the promise of the re-disposition of his weapons and abilities each time he returns to Masyaf, the base of the Assassin’s clan.

   Through the eyes of Altair we travel to Damascus, Acre and Jerusalem. Each time, the visit is accompanied by an assassination mission or an eavesdrop mission in need to be completed. The targets are mostly Templars, a clan with opposite beliefs that those of the Assassins -and more or less their basic adversary throughout the series-. The aforementioned cities have assassin-bureaus of their own that serve as “branches”.

Gameplay

  Altair has the ability to climb pretty much on every building, offering a joyful experience of ancient parkour. I think the most will find climbing on top of towers pretty amusing, especially if a “synchronization” is performed in the end (a function that opens the map around each synchronization point and essentially reveals side mission points). Eagle vision is another vital function of the game, enabling the player to distinct between enemies, targets and civilians (highlighted in different colors). What’s more, the Assassin has a relatively basic yet sufficient array of weapons and abilities to kill his targets, the most satisfying of which is the “hidden blade” (a small knife hidden in the wrist, serving for stealth attacks). The game also consists of finding Templar flags, killing random Templars and lots of “mom-I-am-flying” “leaps of faith” (bungee jumping without a rope from the top of a building to haystacks placed throughout the cities).

After roughly 25 hours of gameplay the first revelation of the series makes its appearance and the game ends (although it never really ends really; an open world environment awaits for those who will only be satisfied when even the last hidden flag is found). It should also be noted that there are intervals between the chapters (aka sequences) in which we are again in control of Desmond (mostly we put him to sleep).

Graphics

   The frame rate could easily be higher (at least at the PS3 version), however the lack of smoothness is not a major issue. Colors are also “washed out”, but maybe this also gives a certain “medieval” atmosphere to the whole context. Characters and environments are well designed (taking into consideration the era of the release) but we can’t neglect the fact that games like Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune that was released in the same period looked considerably better. The game runs at 720p which is fine if you are sitting 2 meters away from a 32” TV.

Gavel slam: I didn’t really know what to expect at first; an AC virgin I was till that moment. AC1 is a pretty enjoyable game in the beginning. Easy controls (although an adjustment of the camera speed is needed in the beginning), unorthodox but not difficult combat system and different options of mission execution offer this title a place in history. It gets boring though after a while; lots of travels from the base to the mission region and then back again make it almost impossible not to get exhausted at a certain point. Moreover, all missions, although enjoyable at first, tend to feel like you are doing the same thing again and again. 
   All in all, Assassin’s Creed 1 is a game worth playing, not so much because it is the best game in the series (which is certainly not) but mostly due to the fact that it introduces us to the franchise. Besides, Altair is one of the greatest Assassins in history; hey, let’s pay some respect to the man and begin the assassin-adventure knowing how it all started...

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