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Assassin's Creed (video game)

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Assassin's Creed
Developer(s)Ubisoft Montreal
Publisher(s)Ubisoft
Director(s)
  • Simon Peacock Edit this on Wikidata
Designer(s)Patrice Desilets (Creative Director), Jade Raymond (Producer)
EngineScimitar Engine
Platform(s)PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Microsoft Windows
ReleasePlayStation 3, Xbox 360 :
[1]
[2]
[3]
[4]

Microsoft Windows:

[5]
[6][5]
[5]
Genre(s)Action-adventure, stealth
Mode(s)Single-player

Assassin's Creed is a video game developed by Ubisoft Montreal and published by Ubisoft. It was released worldwide in November 2007 on the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 video game consoles.[1] On January 29, 2008, Ubisoft updated the expected PC version release date to March 28, 2008[6] for Europe, while the North American release is expected on April 8, 2008.[5]

A prequel for this game, titled Assassin's Creed: Altaïr's Chronicles, was released on 5 February, 2008 for the Nintendo DS.[8]

Gameplay

Assassin's Creed is a third-person stealth game in which the player assumes the role of Desmond Miles, an average bartender who is the last descendant of a long family line of assassins. Desmond has been taken to a facility where he is forced to use the Animus, a machine that traces and recreates the memories of his ancestors during the Third Crusade. Through these genetic memories, the player controls Altaïr Ibn La-Ahad (الطائر ابن لا أحد , Arabic, "The Flying One, Son of None"), a member of the Assassin Brotherhood which is allied with one of the sides during the third crusade. Altaïr's objective in the game is to slay nine historical figures propagating the Crusades in the year 1191. (According to Ubisoft developers, all of the main character's targets are historical figures who died or disappeared in 1191, although not necessarily by assassination.)

The primary goal of the game is to complete nine assassinations. To achieve this goal, the player must use stealth and a variety of intelligence gathering tactics to collect information on their target. These tactics include eavesdropping, forceful interrogation, pickpocketing, and completing tasks for Informers (other assassins who will give you information in exchange for assassinating targets or collecting flags). Additionally, the player may take part in any number of side missions, including climbing tall towers to map out the city and saving citizens that are being threatened or harassed by the city guards. There are also various side quests unrelated to the story such as hunting down and killing Templars and flag collecting.

The game takes place primarily in The Holy Land. It consists of four main cities: Jerusalem, Acre, Damascus and Masyaf, the assassins' stronghold; all but Masyaf contain three sections that are unlocked over the course of the game. An approximation of the land lying between these areas is present in the game as "The Kingdom." The game's developers claim the environments are all historically accurate. Each city features a highly detailed environment populated by many people of different types, and as the player interacts with his/her environment, the people around Altaïr respond in logical and predictable ways. For example, when Altaïr climbs buildings without the use of a ladder, the local citizens pause, gather round the building he is climbing and comment on his unusual behaviour, or how they won't help him if he hurts himself. After attracting their attention in an unceremonial way and climbing, or doing anything, really, the citizens will most likely start to throw rocks at Altaïr. This in turn can attract the unwanted attention of nearby guards, who may then choose to attack him or simply to call to him to come down.

The player is made aware of how noticeable Altaïr is to enemy guards as well as the current state of alert in the local area. To perform many of the assassinations and other tasks, the player must consider the use of both "low profile" and "high profile" commands. "Low profile" commands allow Altaïr to blend into nearby crowds, gently pass by other citizens, or other non-threatening tasks that can be used to hide and reduce the alertness level. "High profile" commands are more noticeable, and include running, scaling the sides of buildings to climb to higher vantage points, and attacking foes; performing these actions at certain times may raise the local area's awareness level. Once the area is at high alert, the player must use both low profile commands as well as aiming to climb away from ground level or using hiding spaces to reduce the alertness level. The player, as they complete the assigned assassinations, will gain either new weapons or new combat skills including counter-attacks and attack dodges. Besides his fists, Altaïr's weapons include an assassin's sword for standard combat, a short blade, and throwing knives which are used in conjunction with the short blade. Altaïr also gains the use of a hidden retractable blade on his left arm that can be used for killing targets at very close quarters without creating any immediate alerts (although, if others come across the body, the alertness level may be raised). This is the most noticeable difference between low and high profile. A low profile assassination can be performed within as little as a few feet of other guards or soldiers without attracting attention, whereas a high profile assassination attack will be noticed by everyone within eyesight.

File:Assassinscreed dna.jpg
During gameplay, intentional glitches that include organic compounds and computer messages will flash on the screen.

The player's health is described as the level of synchronization between Desmond and Altaïr's memories; should Altaïr take damage, some amount of synchronization is lost, and if all synchronization is lost, the current memory that Desmond is experiencing will be restarted at the last checkpoint. When the synchronization bar is full, the player has the additional option to use "eagle vision" which allows the computer-rendered memory to highlight all visible characters in colors corresponding to, whether they are friend or foe or even the target of their assassination. Due to Altaïr's memories being rendered by the computer of the Animus project, the player may experience "glitches" in the rendering of the historical world, which may help the player to identify targets, or can be used to alter the viewpoint during in-game scripted scenes should the player react fast enough when they appear.

Plot

The overall story within Assassin's Creed is set in September 2012, where barkeeper Desmond Miles (the character controlled by the player) has been kidnapped by an unknown person prior to the start of the game, and is brought to Abstergo Industries, where researchers are working on the Animus project. The Animus is able to extract memories from the DNA of the user, allowing the user to replay those memories as if he were there himself. Desmond was "chosen" for the project due to his relationship to his ancestor Altaïr (الطائر at-ta'er in Arabic "Flying One"), a member of the Assassins during the Third Crusade of the Holy Land; the researchers express interest in understanding more of how the Assassins worked. Though initially Desmond's sub-conscious rejects the memories of Altaïr, he eventually learns to accept them and is able to proceed to follow Altaïr's actions through the Animus.

The memories of Altaïr that Desmond experiences start in AD 1191: Richard I of England has just recaptured the port city of Acre from the Conquer of Muslims. With a base of operations established, the Crusaders prepare to march south. Their true target is Jerusalem – which they intend to recapture for Christianity. However the Muslim forces are massing in the ruins of Arsuf, intending to ambush the Crusaders and prevent them from reaching Jerusalem. These war maneuvers have left the rest of the Holy Land wide open. While Richard and Saladin battle one another, the men left to govern in their stead have begun taking advantage of their newfound positions of power. Exploitation, manipulation, and provocation rule the day.

The first memory Desmond experiences is that of Altaïr failing (due to his arrogance and lack of discretion) to assassinate the Grand Master of The Knights Templar, Robert IV de Sablé, and recover the order's treasure. Because of this, and other offenses, Altaïr is demoted to Uninitiated (the lowest rank in the Assassin Order). But Al Mualim, leader of the Assassins, offers him an opportunity to redeem himself. Altaïr must venture out into the Holy Land and assassinate nine men said to be exacerbating and exploiting the hostilities created by the Third Crusade. In doing so, he will stabilize the region, allowing Al Mualim to usher in an age of peace.

File:Cryptic.jpg
Cryptic messages on the wall of Desmond's bedroom at the end of the game

Along the way, however, Altaïr discovers that his targets are bound by more than just a shared interest in personal gain, but are in fact Templars themselves, with the goal to unite all mankind under a common cause. Desmond further learns from emails when left overnight between sessions that Abstergo Industries is run by modern-day Templars, who are seeking the locations of several artifacts known as the "Pieces of Eden" that they can use to continue Templars' goals. Desmond learns that he was kidnapped by the company so that they may learn, through Altaïr's memories, where the locations of the other Pieces of Eden may be buried throughout the world. He also finds that what remains of the Assassin's Guild in modern days had tried and failed to recover him before that information could be learned. Altaïr's memories finally reveal that the assignment he undertook was a plot by the Templars to sow discord between the Assassins and the Crusaders and Muslims. In doing so, Saladin and Richard The Lionheart would instead work together and fight the Assassins, and in the process, bringing peace for the Templars. Altaïr finally catches up with Robert de Sable, his last assigned target, and defeats him. Robert de Sable reveals in his dying words that Altaïr's master is also a member of the Templars, and he has now the sole power of the artifact, the "Piece of Eden" that is able to alter what men can see and can be used for mass hypnosis. Altaïr travels to face his Master, who wields the "Piece of Eden", attempting to alter Altaïr's sight, but eventually falls to his blade. As Altaïr recovers the "Piece of Eden", the device activates one more time to reveal multiple locations across the globe in an holographic manner (including two locations, noted by the Doctor, on landmasses that no longer exist in 2012.)

With Altaïr's memory complete, Desmond wakes up out of the Animus to learn that Abstergo Industries is already sending out recovery teams to those locations hoping to find additional artifacts. At one point, Desmond reads an email in the conference room detailing the failed recovery of three other Pieces of Eden, all resulting in disastrous accidents, two resulting in the Philadelphia Experiment and the Tunguska event. The email also refers to the Holy Grail, stating insufficient evidence to confirm its existence, and "Mitchell-Hedges Communicators", a reference to F. A. Mitchell-Hedges and his claim of Aztec crystal skulls that gave the owner the power of clairsentience.

Desmond, no longer being of use to Abstergo Industries, is to be silenced; however, he is saved by Lucy Stillman, who reveals herself to be an Assassin by showing her hand with her ring finger closed as if it were missing. In the conclusion of the game, Desmond, having become "synchronized" with Altaïr, is able to use the eagle vision (a sort of empathic sight to see hidden messages and tell friend from foe) and by Looking at Lucy, he can see that she is an ally to him (shown by her glowing blue), giving further proof that she is an Assassin. He also sees messages scrawled across the floors and walls that only he can see that refer to the end of the world described by several religions, among other writings; such writings include references to the biblical passage Revelation 22:13 ("I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end."), a Lorenz attractor, the Eye of Providence, as well as part of a Mandelbrot set and other writings in foreign languages. Additionally, there is the Mayan date of 13.0.0.0.0—December 21, 2012—which is only three months away within the game's timeline and represents the planned date of the launch of a mysterious satellite the Templars have created, which they claim will "permanently end the war". Some Nazca Line drawings are also found. There is also a reference to Yonaguni, a Japanese island. This leads to the speculation that the sequel might be set in feudal Japan, though Ubisoft has not commented. Further investigation after the credits reveals an Email sent to Vidic by Lucy, stating that the drawings come from a mysterious "subject sixteen" who went insane due to what they described as a "bleeding effect" (essentially, genetic degradation comes to a point where the subject can no longer distinguish between their life and their ancestors memories. Lucy speculates that, though Subject sixteen's "bleeding" was brought on by too much time in the animus, natural forms may occur, such as Multiple Personality Disorder and other forms of dementia).

Historic relevance

The nine men assassinated were based on real historical figures that lived in the Holy Land around the year 1191, but all artistic liberty has been applied. Most Hashshashin assassinations that actually took place were against fellow Muslims. In addition, Altair's assassination targets bear no historical resemblance in appearance or character to the actual figures. Most of the young men Altaïr was sent to kill were in reality old and sickly at this time in history. Some deaths actually occurred several years before or after 1191. The Teutonic Knights were not militarised until 1198, starting off initially as an order meant to take care of sick pilgrims.

The developers have justifed these changes by claiming in-game that the historical records were altered by the Knights Templars to deceive anyone studying the past.

Some of these figures include: Garnier De Naplouse, The Grandmaster of The Knights Hospitaller; Ibn Jubayr, an Arab-Spanish geographer, traveler and poet; Meister Sibrand, Grandmaster of the Teutonic Knights; William V, Marquess of Montferrat, the regent of Acre; and Robert IV de Sablé, Grand Master of the Knights Templar. Most notably near the end of the game Altaïr convinces Richard the Lionhearted, King of England to bring peace to the land and stop the Third crusade. This is a plot device which distorts the historical Richard's decision of abandoning the plan to recapture Jerusalem, for the very reason of the lack of manpower. The stronghold of the Creed is never named, but for the Assassin's of the late 1100's, the main stronghold is historically known as Alamut (Arabic:قلعه الموت). The castle Alamut was fortress located in central Elburz mountains but now remains in ruins. Among suggested etymologies for 'Alamut' are "Eagle's Nest" (according to Sar Guzasht-i Sayyidna)[citation needed] and "Eagle's Teaching," although the most likely is that Alamut is the anglicization of the Arabic Qalat al-Mawt (Arabic:قلعه الموت), or 'Castle of Death'. During the beginning of the game Altaïr and other Assassins jump from the stronghold, flying downwards like eagles. In the Assassin's Creed art book, Altaïr is referred to as the bird of prey, and many poses are meant to look as an eagle would.

Development

On September 28, 2006, in an interview with IGN, producer Jade Raymond confirmed that Altaïr is "a medieval hitman with a mysterious past" and that he is not a time traveler.[9]

On December 13, 2006, in an interview with IGN, Kristen Bell (who lent her voice and likeness to the game) talked about the plot. According to the interview, the plot centers on genetic memory and a corporation looking for descendants of an assassin.[10]

"It's actually really interesting to me. It's sort of based on the research that's sort of happening now, about the fact that your genes might be able to hold memory. And you could argue semantics and say it's instinct, but how does a baby bird know to eat a worm, as opposed to a cockroach, if its parents don't show it? And it's about this science company trying to, Matrix-style, go into people's brains and find out an ancestor who used to be an assassin, and sort of locate who that person is."

— http://www.megagames.com/news/html/pc/theresmoretoassassinscreed.shtml, in Kristen Bell

Altaïr is voiced by actor Philip Shahbaz,[11] and is modeled after Cuban-American actor David Fumero.

It was mentioned in the UbiDays interview that Altaïr is not religious but rather "spiritual" and is the son of a Christian Mother and Muslim Father.

Altaïr (meaning "The Flying One" in Arabic) is a star in the Northern Sky in the constellation of Aquilla ("eagle" in Latin); this ties in well with the white eagle seen in the trailer, that is shown flying over the city of Acre, and lands on the bell tower Altaïr himself is standing on. To complete the theme the Assassin's clothes consist of white flowing robes. His hood also has a hook on the end and his lower robe features a stream on each side, therefore making Altaïr's shadow in air look like an eagle.

It is also stated that in events before the start of the game, there is an initiation where Altaïr's left ring finger is cut off, so that he is no longer a Novice, but an Assassin. This procedure provides for the hidden blade to extend from under Altaïr's forearm.

The release of the Nintendo DS prequel, Assassin's Creed: Altaïr's Chronicles, was February 5th, 2008. The Official Fansite has posted what information it has on 1191ad.com.


Demos

On July 10, 2007 during the Microsoft E3 Press Conference, a demo was shown using a previously unseen city, Jerusalem. Features that were demonstrated included improved crowd mechanics, the "chase" system (chasing after a target trying to flee), as well as deeper aspects of free running. This was the first time where Altaïr could be heard speaking. It was again showcased for nearly 20 minutes on Wednesday, July 11. The video showed an extended version of the E3 demo, and included Altaïr trying to escape after his assassination of Talal the Slave Trader.

On August 26, 2007 an 11-minute demo of Assassin's Creed was shown at the Penny Arcade expo. The level that was shown was the same as in the E3 demo; however, a different path was taken to reach the target. At the end of the demo, a conversation between Altaïr and the head of the Assassin's bureau in Jerusalem called Malik was shown.

There is no demo available for this game over Xbox Live or the Playstation Network.

PC Version

The PC version of Assassin's Creed is scheduled to be released in April, 2008 in North America. Four bonus mission types, not seen in the console version, will be included. These 4 new missions are archer assassination, rooftop race challenge, merchant stand destruction challenge and escort challenge[12]. However, a pirated version of the game has been in existence since late February Template:Vgy more than a month before its expected release, though players are only able to complete the game using extra content available on the net in its current state;[13] despite this, it was the most popular titles for piracy during the first week of March Template:Vgy.[14]

The PC system requirements are as follows:

  • Supported OS: Windows XP or Windows Vista only
  • Processor: Dual core processor 2.6 GHz Intel® Pentium® D or AMD Athlon™ 64 X2 3800+ (Intel Core® 2 Duo 2.2 GHz or AMD Athlon 64 X2 4400+ or better recommended)
  • RAM: 1 GB Windows Xp / 2 GB Windows Vista
  • 256 MB DirectX® 10.0-compliant video card or DirectX 9.0-compliant card with Shader Model 3.0 or higher (see supported list)
  • Sound Card: DirectX 9.0 or 10.0 compliant sound card (5.1 sound card recommended)
  • DirectX Version: DirectX 9.0 or DirectX 10.0 libraries (included on disc)
  • DVD-ROM: DVD-ROM dual-layer drive
  • Hard Drive Space: 8 GB
  • Peripherals Supported: Keyboard, mouse, optional controller (Xbox 360 Controller for Windows recommended)

Supported Video Cards at Time of Release: (* denotes only PCI Express version supported)

  • ATI® RADEON® X1600*/1650*-1950/HD 2000/3000 series
  • NVIDIA GeForce® 6800*/7/8/9 series

Reception

Assassin's Creed has received generally positive reviews, though several publications such as IGN, Electronic Gaming Monthly (EGM), and Eurogamer awarded the game average scores, Eurogamer stating that the gameplay "never evolves and ultimately becomes a bit boring, and quite amazingly repetitive."[16] In Andrew P.'s review for EGM(Kage), he writes that the game features "a challenging parkour path of escape..."[17] Famitsu awarded the Xbox 360 version of Assassin's Creed a 36 (9, 9, 9, 9), while the PS3 version received a 37 (10, 8, 9, 10) out of 40, positively citing the story, presentation, and acrobatics, while criticizing the one button combat, map layout, and camera problems.[18][19] Game Informer awarded Assassin's Creed a 9.5 out of 10, praising the control scheme, replay value, and intriguing story, but expressing frustration over the "repetitive" information gathering missions.[20] On the The Hotlist on ESPNEWS, ESPN's Aaron Boulding called the game's concept of social stealth "fairly original" and added, "Visually, the developers nailed it."[21] GameTrailers similarly praised the story (giving a 9.7 score to its story), and also cited repetitive gameplay and "moronic" AI as somewhat stifling its potential.[22] The game also received a 10 out of 10 from GamesRadar, and has a Metacritic score of 81.[15] According to GamePro, Assassin's Creed is one of the "finest gaming experiences ever created" if you are willing to be "patient" due to the lack of fast-paced action.[23]

Ubisoft announced that the game has sold more than 3.46 million copies as of March 1 2008, exceeding their initial expectations and prompting the company to raise their sales outlook.[24]

Awards

The following awards were awarded to Assassin's Creed at E3 2006:

The award nominations and wins after release included:

Spike TV Awards[26]
  • Nominated: Best Action Game
GameStooge Awards[27]
  • Nominated: Best PlayStation 3 Game, Best Action Game, Best Graphics - Artistic, Best Plot Twist, Best Trailer ("Lonely Soul"), Breakout Character (Altaïr)
X-Play Best of 2007 Awards[28]
  • Nominated: Game of the Year, Most Original Game, Best Gameplay Innovation, Best Action/Adventure Game, Best Art Direction, Best Animation, Best Sound Design

Sales

Sales for Assassin's Creed have been record-breaking. An official press release from Ubisoft stated:

Assassin's Creed has greatly outstripped Ubisoft's sales expectations and currently ranks among the top two or three best-selling games for the Playstation 3 computer entertainment system and Xbox360 video game and entertainment system in the vast majority of geographical regions. In less than four weeks Assassin's Creed recorded more than two and a half million units in sell-through sales worldwide, and is the fastest-selling new video game intellectual property ever in the U.S. Consequently, Ubisoft now forecasts that it will sell a minimum of five million units of the game in 2007-08 compared with its previous estimate of approximately three million.[29]

Other media

Books

Pocket Books had announced it was planning, to novelize Assassin’s Creed in a trilogy, written by Steven Barnes. However, the series has reportedly been cancelled.[30] The title of the first book would have been Assassin’s Creed Book One: The Invisible Imam, and would have detailed events leading up to the beginning of the game.

There was a small comic given out to EB Games managers during the company's 2007 annual conference. This was scanned and put on Photobucket soon after.[31]

Film

Ubisoft and IFC held a contest for short films based on Assassin's Creed. The winning film can be watched here.

Limited editions

Alongside the standard retail version, a limited collector's edition was released in North America for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. In addition to the game disc the set contains:

  • Collectible 3-inch figure
  • Penny Arcade comics
  • Strategy guide preview
  • Bonus disc including:
    • Winners of Assassin's Creed short film contest
    • Behind-the-scenes videos
    • Developer diaries
    • Trailers
    • Producer interviews
    • Artwork

The European limited edition contains the game and a 10-inch Altaïr figure.

References

  1. ^ a b "Launch date announced". IGN. Retrieved October 25. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  2. ^ Xbox.com | Assassin's Creed - Game Detail Page
  3. ^ Assassin's Creed | Official Site | Ubisoft
  4. ^ Ubisoft - アサシン クリード (xbox360)
  5. ^ a b c d "Unofficial PC ship dates on Gamespot". Gamespot. Retrieved February 26. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  6. ^ a b Dark Messiah 360 slips a week
  7. ^ Ubisoft - Assassin's Creed™
  8. ^ "Nintendo lays out Q4 '07, Q1 '08 slate". GameSpot. Retrieved December 29. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  9. ^ IGN: Assassin's Creed Preview
  10. ^ IGN: IGN Exclusive Interview: Kristen Bell
  11. ^ Philip Shahbaz
  12. ^ [1]
  13. ^ Rossignol, Jim (2008-03-04). "So… Assassin's Creed PC?". Rock, Paper, Scissors. Retrieved 2008-03-06. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  14. ^ Gillen, Kieron (2008-03-05). "The Yarr-ts: Piracy Snapshot 5.3.2008". Rock, Paper, Scissors. Retrieved 2008-03-06. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  15. ^ a b "Assassin's Creed (xbox 360: 2007) Reviews".
  16. ^ Assassin's Creed Review // Xbox 360 /// Eurogamer
  17. ^ Andrew P., "Review of Assassin's Creed," Electronic Gaming Monthly 224 (January 2008): 89.
  18. ^ Famitsu reviews Dragon Quest IV, Assassins Creed, Guilty Gear 2 and more
  19. ^ Assassin's Creed nabs 37/40 from Famitsu
  20. ^ Game Informer, December 2007 issue
  21. ^ ESPN - Easy Points - 'Tis the Season - Videogames
  22. ^ GameTrailers Assassin's Creed Video Review
  23. ^ Melick, Todd (14 November 2007). "Assassin's Creed review". GamePro. Retrieved 2008-01-08. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  24. ^ Brightman, James (2007-12-13). "Assassin's Creed Passes 2.5 Million Sold; Ubisoft Raises Guidance". GameDaily. Retrieved 2007-12-13. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  25. ^ "2006 Winners". gamecriticsawards.com. Retrieved 2006-06-25.
  26. ^ Magrino, Tom (2007-11-11). "Halo 3, BioShock top Spike TV noms". GameSpot. Retrieved 2007-11-11. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  27. ^ Falcon, Jonah (2007-11-11). "2007 GameStooge Award Nominations". 2old2play.com. Retrieved 2007-11-11. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  28. ^ "2007 X-Play Best of 2007 Award Nominations". G4. Retrieved 2007-12-10.
  29. ^ "Ubisoft Announces Outstanding Sales Performance For Assassin's Creed™ and Raises Guidance for Fiscal 2007-08". Ubisoft. Retrieved January 04. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  30. ^ Dar Kush: Why Even Care?
  31. ^ Assassin's Creed comic, Photobucket
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