I'll tell you what changed, story and focus.I have a weird relationship with AC. I loved AC 1, 2, think i skipped brotherhood, loved Revelations... Hugely. But I've completely failed to get into any title since. I've tried. I've started multiple playthroughs of Black Flag, Unity, Origins and Odyssey, but I've generally lost interest about 2 hours in to every playthrough.
Why?
I dunno, for me personally i think the gameplay is simplistic, and doesn't live up to/fill up the beautiful worlds it's set in, causing those worlds to feel shallow. I think games like The Witcher 3 and RDR2 ruined me for AC. The earlier titles aren't too pretentious in their ambitions so they pass this litmus test...
SO that means my choice for this poll is AC 2.
What about you?... Tell us why...
Yes, odyssey in fact has some major revelations/modern story progression.The last one I played was Unity; was there any good additions to the modern era / story ?
I loved the wholestory; but I feel like it was only ever meant to be a trilogy and everything after Unity......well does it actually continue that stuff in any meaningful way?ancient aliens
I can't give one answer because I feel the three will ultimately provide the same type of experience but with a different flavor.sorry to bump an old discussion but - in the opposition to making a new thread...
Which of the modern 3 iterations (valhalla, odyssye, origins) is the one I should be playing as a relative series newcomer? I played the first two games when they released over a decade ago, but never touched anything after 2,
I have a good 100 hours of time to burn in the coming weeks and really want to get into one of these beasts. It seems like Odyssey is the most favoured for gameplay and world exploration.
TLDR - if you were only allowed one to play, which would it be and why?
Thanks for the bumpsorry to bump an old discussion but - in the opposition to making a new thread...
Which of the modern 3 iterations (valhalla, odyssye, origins) is the one I should be playing as a relative series newcomer? I played the first two games when they released over a decade ago, but never touched anything after 2,
I have a good 100 hours of time to burn in the coming weeks and really want to get into one of these beasts. It seems like Odyssey is the most favoured for gameplay and world exploration.
TLDR - if you were only allowed one to play, which would it be and why?
how does origins run on PS5? 60 fps like Odyssey or no?Thanks for the bump
Origins, in my opinion.. i don't have much to say to explain that other than that it's a bit closer to the gameplay features that the old titles boasted, and it's the first so play the first.. later titles play more like other series than AC, i feel
i doI always wondered why people preferred Origins to Oddessey. The latter improved on the new formula introduced by Origins in almost every way.
The only thing I can think of is the setting. Some people may think Egypt > Greek Islands
sorry to bump an old discussion but - in the opposition to making a new thread...
Which of the modern 3 iterations (valhalla, odyssye, origins) is the one I should be playing as a relative series newcomer? I played the first two games when they released over a decade ago, but never touched anything after 2,
I have a good 100 hours of time to burn in the coming weeks and really want to get into one of these beasts. It seems like Odyssey is the most favoured for gameplay and world exploration.
TLDR - if you were only allowed one to play, which would it be and why?
Lmao now I have to play it again. For some reason I thought Blackbeard's death was so much sicker than this.Black Flag, repetitive as it was because the sailing was still fresh and fun. Rogue comes next, if only to finally get a chance to put a few Assassins down. I haven't played any since the big ARPG shift.
Honestly, the series would be much better if Ubi just stopped trying to write the Assassins as a bunch of boysvouts. The writing is usually so hamfisted that it makes me want to root for someone, anyone else. Blackbeard whining about "Med'cines" for his men as he died just about had me crying laughing.
Pretty much exactly how I look at the series. 1 was amazing and it’s still my favorite because of what it offered at release.AC1 while a bit rough and with a repetitive gameplay loop was special for me because it was the first game to introduce that level of vertical exploration with parkour with an incredible atmosphere. It really seemed you were in living medioeval cities.
AC2 was also amazing and they fixed the limitations of the original.
Black Flag was also really good and also Unity (which imo was seriously underrated because of the bugs and bad framerate it was launched with but the game was really good and next gen ambitious).
Unfortunately with Origins, Odyssey and Valhalla the series was turned into a boring open world game with a giant map and fillers everywhere. The new RPG system has the only purpose to artificially block you from progressing and finishing the game unless you grind for hours or buy some exp boost pack.
It's a shame but this series at this point like most others Ubisoft games is not for me anymore.
Unfortunately the one thing that broke the balance of that gameplay was the whistling ability. You could move around the enemies at your will and just backstab them one after the other. There wasn't any challenge. Not that the challenge was very high to begin with in previous episodes, but at least you had to wait/observe the patterns of your opponents, instead of basically shouting "hey you, come over here and get stabbed !".Syndicate has a refined gameplay and some of the best Stealth in the franchise.
That was intense. Thanks for writing that up, I'd gift you gold if i had my card on hand those China and India side scrollers were fun on my vita, and the full release for vita, neither of them really caught me but I'm glad you mentioned the side scrollers yeah.. very nice art designIt’s a toss up between a few for various reasons. I loved Ezio. Of the installments I’ve played, he and Edward Kenway are my favorite protagonists. As an aside - Edward‘s whole family is badass, even Connor, which is why Edward is probably my favorite protagonist.
Anyways, the series started getting really refined with the second installment, but of the Ezio games Brotherhood was the masterclass where it all came together.
Brotherhood mastered the combat system, making it much more fluid and visceral. It had some great animus game modes. It progressed the modern day story when it was still worth being invested in (fuck AC3 for this reason alone), and it continued Ezio’s story in an interesting direction. It had some great, if short, DLC, and gave me more of what AS2 did right. Rome is also one of the best locations in the series - incredibly well done setting.
Black Flag added in a much more fleshed out ship combat and ship traversal system. Despite coming after the modern day story clusterfuck of AS3, it dropped me into an interesting story disconnected mostly from the modern day story while planting seeds for a potential redemption / continuation (didn’t happen but was interesting), and it gave some closure on Desmond. Like I said before, Edward is perhaps the best character and had the best supporting cast. His motivations are understandable, he’s not overly brooding like Altair or Connor (which I don’t mind, but at least he’s funny and badass). And the game is packed to the brim with meaningful content, and the setting is beautiful. One of the best pirate games to boot, and the Freedom Cry DLC is probably the best DLC in the series.
So for me, Brotherhood and Black Flag are pretty neck and neck. But I also have special places I’m my heart for Unity, Assassin’s Creed 2, Revalations, and the first game (in that order).
Unity, by far, has the most beautiful architecture. The parkour system was extremely refined, probably the best in the series. Arno was alright, but the high points come in when they’re really nailing the secret order vibe. They made the Assassin’s seem cool and organized in a way that hadn’t been seen since the first game. For a portion of the story, they were really mysterious but then towards the end the story becomes increasingly lackluster and that whole vibe is ruined. The last few portions of the story, a main character carried more by the supporting cast and Paris, and of course the bugs keep it from my top two. Otherwise, it’d be the definitive Assassin experience. I think it’s unfairly remembered due to its disastrous launch.
Assassin’s Creed 2 is where the formula was perfected, and Ezio was such an amazing character. I personally enjoyed Altair and the Crusades, loved it actually. But Ezio and Renaissance Italy have so much more to offer. The three Ezio games had an impressive story arc and contains a majority of the thematic and narratives highs in the series. Plus, that fucking original soundtrack and the ability to curb stomp the Pope! Additionally, the combat was much better than the first installment, and they really started progressing / hyping up the modern day story. It gave me a really great wtf moment at the end. Also, that Adam and Eve shit scared the shit out of me as a boy. And all the history puzzles were mind blowing as a teenager.
Revelations wrapped up Ezio and Altair’s stories masterfully. In my opinion, it contained a fair portion of the series’ narrative high points. It also wrapped up a good portion of what was happening in Desmond’s story and really tied these three characters together in an interesting way. It was the perfect set up to the third game. But it would’ve been higher if the city wasn’t obviously rushed. Compared to Rome, a majority of the districts and architecture seemed to be copy and pasted. Travel across four buildings and you‘ve seen the whole city (excluding the historical landmarks and visit to the secret city - but even that wore off quick). I also hated the stupid district defense system, and it left me with the feeling that it was a cash grab… something that I would feel more often after this title. Syndicate and Rogue really hit me with this vibe, and I didn’t even play Rogue. I quit the series after beating Syndicate because the story had become a joke and the story in that title was utter shit.
Anywho, the last on my list of notable entries is the first game. It’s on here for a few reasons: an interesting premise; played up the mysteriousness of the artifacts and the cult war between the Assassins and Templars; the Assassins were completely exotic and undefined, their motivations were enthralling; the game felt like it was driven by religious fervor and felt convinced in its story. I don’t think any installment got that vibe correct again until Unity, and it’s the only title to carry that feeling through the whole story. It‘s clunky and doesn’t mechanically hold up well and it’s sparse on content. However, the repeating missions didn’t bother me, because I felt like I was moving through a world with purpose.
I haven’t played Origins, Odyssey, Valhalla, or Rogue but hopefully one day I get the desire to start back up. I’ve heard some of those are good additions, but Syndicate mostly killed the franchise for me. I cannot describe how much I detested Evie, her brother, their story, bleh. All the worst bits of the series with the only redeeming quality being London and the zip line. Wish they were brave enough to continue Arno’s story or make a similar game to Unity (w/o the bugs). The tone switch in Syndicate is what killed it for me. The fact that the two protagonists don’t even hide that they’re part of a secret cult is perplexing. The levity they treat everything is also maddening, and almost superhero feeling it off putting.
TLDR;
Black Flag = Brotherhood
Unity
AS2
Revelations
AS1
I’ve played every game excluding the last three and Rogue. That includes playing stuff like Bloodlines on the PSP, the numerous games and tie ins released to iOS (some of which are no longer available after the 64-bit transition), and the small side scroller titles released around Unity’s release - I remember China and India settings.
Unfortunately the one thing that broke the balance of that gameplay was the whistling ability. You could move around the enemies at your will and just backstab them one after the other. There wasn't any challenge. Not that the challenge was very high to begin with in previous episodes, but at least you had to wait/observe the patterns of your opponents, instead of basically shouting "hey you, come over here and get stabbed !".