14 DAY TRIAL // Ubisoft has unveiled the next chapter in its highly popular action-adventure franchise, Assassin's Creed: Syndicate, set in Victorian-era London, and once again following the ongoing battle between the Templars and the Assassins.
Of course, as people have been criticizing the series for going a little stale for years, Ubisoft itself doesn't believe that a mere change of scenery is enough to warrant an entire new game.
Among the changes coming to the upcoming Assassin's Creed: Syndicate is an altered way to go around town, in the form of a grappling hook and horse-drawn carriages.
If Assassin's Creed Unity, the French Revolution-themed blockbuster of 2014, offered us the biggest game world in the franchise, Syndicate aims to provide us with a higher degree of freedom when it comes to navigating the city streets of London.
The grappling hook, a new addition to the series, can be used freely and integrated with the existing parkour systems, allowing gamers to quickly get to the rooftops and even jump from building to building.
This means that crossing the street via zipline, outside of the reach of your marks, will become the standard way to approach your missions, and will allow you to make a quick getaway after eliminating your targets.
More like Grand Theft Carriage
Another novel addition to the game is in the form of transportation. With the industrial revolution in full swing, speed is the new name of the game. With railroads and train cars making the world ever smaller, the city streets grow increasingly busy, and this is reflected by the presence of numerous horse-drawn carriages.
You can jump into any one of them, kick the driver out, and then use the carriage to traverse the town faster, but be wary, as your enemies can do the same. There will even be high-speed chases around London, and for the first time in the series, traffic will become a factor in your gameplay.
This enables all kinds of crazy stunts to become part of the game, including furious brawls on the roofs of carriages, and jumping from one carriage top to another.
You'll even be able to engage your enemies while running down the length of some of London's many trains during your exploits
Assassin's Creed: Syndicate is scheduled for release on October 23, headed to the Xbox One and PlayStation 4 home consoles. The PC edition has a more vague "fall 2015" release window.