izigame.me

The first time i played Assassin's Creed II was in 2011 if i remember correctly. I'm not sure how many times i've finished this game. Since back then steam was not as popular (at least where i live) we couldn't get games all the time. And no one would use internet around us. Only where it was needed. So i've played this game again and again and i can say i will be able to play it as long as i want even today. Now i'm gunna stop with my stupid story and talk about AC2. I'm gunna start off by saying

Assassin's Creed II is art and a masterpiece


Story
The best part about this game. The game starts with Desmond where you last left AC1. You get everything ready and hop in to the animus. The first thing you will see is the birth of Ezio Auditore Da Firenze. You get to experience Ezio's life from his birth. After that you play as he acts like how a teenager would. Free, in love and nothing to worry about. You get a basic introduction of every main characters before "everything" happens. As Ezio gets familier with Assassin's, his only perpose was revenge. We get to experience years of Ezios life as he develops as a character and the people around him. The rich story of AC2 will only make it better as Ezio grows up. You will see and feel the world around you changing physically and in story. As Ezio goes forward uncovering the Templar order to destroy it. I can't actually say many things about the story since saying one thing will just spoil you alot of the game. I know i did not explain anything but i can assure you that you will love the story.

Characters
Since this game follows the main protagonist and the people around him very closely i thought it's better to talk about the characters first. Every character that's associated with the story has their own story. From the Auditore family to the people around Ezio, everyone has rich lore. You will also meet and be with lot of people from the history of real life. But i want to talk about our protagonist here. Ezio Auditore Da Firenze is the best character i've seen. We play him from his birth as you start moving your hands and head. From that we see young cheerfull Ezio grow up. At first he's young and reckless but slowly you see him become an experienced Assassin and a wise man. But while all of this happens Ezio never loses his charm. There's nothing in his life that you will not know. You will be emotionally attached with him. I can never explain what Ezio is in words. He is beyond that. I haven't seen another character as much interesting and amazing as Ezio.

Gameplay
It's the better version of AC1. The sword fighting is much more fluid and there's different options. It's much more fancy as well. There's also much more parkour options. The hidden blade is way better as well as the assassinations. There's more weapons for better gameplay. But i'm pretty sure you will just be jumping over the rooftops of Florence, Venice, Tuscany and few more other places. Hunting templars in these beautiful places just made the game so good back then and i still enjoy it lot more than most other games.

World Design
They made the cities look almost same as the real world while making it accessible for the gameplay of AC. Running over rooftops, assassinating templars, jumping on groups of enemies or escape with the beautiful parkour. Everything is just perfect. The best part is if you've been to the places IRL then you will recognize every important parts of the cities from the game. The open world was HUGE as well. It was genius TBH. Not just one map like ACB or most other AC games. So many things makes the world of AC2 so good that i can't explain it fully.

Soundtracks/OST
A huge part of AC universe you can say. And Jesper Kyd did a fine job with the saoundtracks. You could listen to them all day. Running over venice rooftops and the "Venice Rooftops" OST starts, You just feel it all the way. And when you finish the game you will probably cry listenning to "Ezio's Family" OST.

Graphics
It's really good considering it's a game from 2009. If you play it today you will be amazed by how good the game looks. How well it shows us the beauty of these beautiful cities of Italy. I would love a remaster of the game but it's not necessary cuz the game looks fantastic even today.

Optimization
It was really demanding back then. But now a days talking about it is hard. Any PC should be able to handle it without any problem. And there's no FPS drop or anything. There are few funny glitches but that's all.

Controls
It's REALLY easy to get used to. It handles perfectly as well. There's no comment about the controls.

Overall - 10


Assassin's Creed II is my most favorite game of all time. The story just blows me away even tho i've easily finished it over 20 times at least. The gameplay never gets boring just like the story. I would say the entire Ezio trilogy is what masterpiece looks like. It's like a movie. I can't recommend this game enough. You can call me a fanboy but this game is a MUST PLAY.

You must play Assassin's Creed II at least once in your life. It's one of those games you can't just miss.