14 DAY TRIAL // Assassin's Creed was one of the most original games of 2007, since it introduced some brand new things to stealth gameplay, as you played an assassin during the Crusades at the beginning of the second millennium. It won critical acclaim, but sadly disappointed a lot of gamers because the mechanics were extremely repetitive and resumed to only a handful of tricks that the main character, Altair, could use to gather information and evidence.
Now, after the sequel has been formally announced, we were treated, at the beginning of the week, with a teaser website that confirmed a lot of the details that a Ubisoft game tester brought forth, telling of the action taking place in Italy during the 1400s. The website revealed that more details would appear in April's edition of GameInformer, and now it seems that some subscribers have received the magazine and shared a couple of the new tidbits of info with us. Be warned though, spoilers ensue.
First of all, you will play as Ezio Auditore de Firenze, a nobleman from Florence, who is another ancestor of Altair and Desmond. The action takes place in Venice, with locations like Saint Mark's Basilica, the Grand and Little Canal or the Rialto bridge. But don't worry, as this time around the main character will be able to swim, so no more cheap deaths if he falls into the water.
You will be very glad to hear that eavesdropping and pickpocketing won't be present in this new game, as they will be replaced with 16 unique mission types that guarantee a lot of diversity. Weapons will also be more numerous, namely two swords, daggers, axes or maces, all of which can be taken from the enemies by disarming them. All these weapons will have a special move, which guarantees memorable moments.
A notoriety system will be featured, and, depending on how subtle you are, it will send more or less enemy soldiers to track you down. If you are captured and beaten up by your enemies, you will have to see a street side doctor in order to regain full strength. Also, you will still be able to climb towers or ride horses, and you also have the option of assassinating someone while you are in a hay bail.
Leonardo Da Vinci's workshop will be present in the game as well, as you will get a chance to glide in one of the great inventor's flying machines. Other notable characters from that historical time that will be featured are Machiavelli or Lorenzo de Medici, whom you will get a chance to assassinate later in the game.
A day and night sequence will be featured in Assassin's Creed 2, allowing for much more different opportunities for players. Hidden objects such as flags statues or gold coins can also be collected, but they will get you in-game bonuses this time around, besides the satisfaction in the first title.
All in all, Assassin's Creed 2 sounds extremely good and will most certainly bring a lot of new things to the recipe of the first game. Hopefully, we will get to see some more details in the following weeks straight from Ubisoft itself.