By Greg Giddens

Quality or quantity is usually a choice you have to make; Assassin’s Creed II attempts to prove it’s possible to have both.

Behind the rigid design and mechanical flaws of the original Assassin’s Creed hid a true gem of a title, a delightful free-running action adventure set in a historically rich world. Now, two years on, the sequel sets out to raise the series to a new level.

In many ways, it achieves just that, but there’s still a way to go before it can rest on its laurels. Indeed, though a number of changes have been made to the existing formula, it’s a lack of refinement in certain areas that lets Assassin’s Creed II down. Instead, it’s the quality of the storytelling that stands out, and drives you onwards through the game.

//Once upon a time
With the twist of the original revealed, Assassin’s Creed II had to rely more on substance, and absolutely delivers. The first game introduced us to Desmond Miles, an ancestor of an assassin called Altaïr. Through the use of a machine called the Animus, Desmond was able to experience memories, locked away in his genetic code, of Altaïr’s life. Just like the original, Assassin’s Creed II sees you begin in the present day (relative to the game), but quickly finding yourself using the Animus 2.0 to play through your ancestor Ezio’s various memories.

The majority of the game takes place in late 15th Century Italy, where you will explore the cities of Florence, Venice, Forli, San Gimignano, and The Vatican. The authenticity of these locations is spot-on, with famous landmarks having been recreated in incredible detail. And while the cities aren’t built to perfect scale, it’s close enough, showing off each area’s character and splendor to great effect. The grand nature of the game world is complemented by the narrative, a tale of betrayal and revenge that has rarely felt so fresh. After Ezio’s father and brothers murdered, he heads to his uncle’s villa with his sister and mother. With his remaining family safe, Ezio heads out to kill those responsible for his father’s and brothers’ deaths, with uncle Mario and his associates filling in information along the way about how the assassins and Templars fit in to his own personal tragedy. The tale spans a full decade, skipping years between each major assassination, and does a remarkable job of remaining interesting and maintaining a solid pace. It’s very well written, too, and compels you to see it through. With its superbly delivered dialogue, each character is brought to life in a genuine and convincing way.

If the narrative alone doesn’t pull you in, Assassin’s Creed II’s authenticity almost certainly will. It’s not just the fantastic recreation of cities, either, but smaller details like the introduction of a young Leonardo Da Vinci to hold historical interest. Assassin’s Creed II makes a point of including plenty of this historical information, delivered to you from your fellow modern-day assassins, programming information about people and places directly into the Animus that will pop-up on screen and allow you to access it from the option menu, letting you really get to know the era you’re exploring. The presentation may break immersion slightly, but no more so than any of the other mechanics introduced – and the nature of the Animus at the very least explains death and mission failure in an interesting way through memory de-synchronisation.

//The bigger they are…
Assassin’s Creed II is all about scale, and the lengthy narrative plays out in positively huge areas. Each city itself is massive, and included in each area is a surrounding countryside, similar to the original. Unlike the original, you now don’t travel directly to each city via the countryside; instead, when you reach the edge of the map, you’re warped directly to the next area, cutting down travel times considerably. Additionally, within each city is a fast travel stall, allowing you to skip certain areas entirely. But while the implementation of this fast travel system is certainly appreciated, there’s still no way to travel quickly from the middle of one city to another at will, so travel times and distances can still grind. Still, at least gives you the chance to see and appreciate the game’s impressive scale.

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