Recent reviews by Captain Martinis

Assassin's Creed Syndicate is the last installment of the Assassin's Creed franchise were the franchise follows it's classic Assassin's game feel. The game is very similar to Unity in many ways but unfortunately for me it is somewhat like a reskin of Unity with some slightly downgrades.

Syndicate has basically the same parkour as Unity but it is somewhat slower and less fluid. I especially don't like that they changed the leap of faith control. The combat has become more simple and therefore less engaging. The gear system is also somewhat downgraded. On the plus side I do think that being able to switch between two characters were one is specialised in stealth and the other is specialised in combat is quite interesting. I enjoy that in Syndicate you get a skill tree that enhances your assassin's skill progression and that you get different approach methods in some missions. The murder mysteries are a bit more interactive.The main story is not the best one out there but its okay. The map, London is well constructed but it does not feel as alive as Unity's Paris. Neither does the graphics look as good. But honestly it makes this game a sort of AC game were for me it's neither a wonderful or horrible experience to play.

My only complains that really bothers me is the absurd task that are needed to get all the perks Also the good old hidden treasure chest where some chest will not appear on the map unless you are near them made 100% completion somewhat harder.

7/10

The story in Jack The Ripper DLC is somewhat interesting but playing as the Ripper is what shocked me the most. I really liked when I played as the Ripper because it felt somewhat different to the base game. I wouldn't say that the DLC is amazing but it was a nice change.

6.9/10

Assassin's Creed Rogue is a game that fills the space between Assassin's Creed IV Black Flag and Assassin's Creed 3, which you can really feel when you play. The game reuses game mechanics and graphics from Black Flag which is not in it self bad since Black Flag was a really good game. Matter in fact, Rouge keeps basically everything from Black Flag and adds some new stuff. Like such as instead of there being one a big map like Black Flag, there is now 3 different maps like in AC 3 (New York, the Hudson River Valley, and the North Atlantic, specifically, the area around Newfoundland and Nova Scotia which all together results in being bigger than Black Flag's map). But unlike AC 3 where the naval gameplay was restricted to missions, Rouge uses Black Flag open world naval gameplay. Then there is stuff like the grande launcher or the air rifles firecrackers, or during naval battles, the Morrigan can be rammed by enemy ships, forcing Shay and his crew to protect the vessel from Assassin, stalkers hiding and waiting to strike Shay and the ability to kill civilians after joining the Templars which all of this differ from previous games.

Graphically the game didn't really improve but that's fine. The story is what makes the game more unique but at the same time is what makes Black Flag slightly better. This time you don't just play as an assassin but an assassin that turns into a Templar. THe story is maybe somewhat short but I didn't mind it as I think it fits better that way. But what I would like to se is a future AC game where from the beginning you play as a ruthless Templar with a longer and richer story. Overall I don't even think that I experienced any bugs that I can remember and overall I enjoyed the game.

8/10

Assassin's Creed 3 is a mayor improvement from Assassin's Creed Revelations and earlier titles when comparing in terms of graphics, map, combat system, parkour and other game mechanics in my opinion. It's important to separate what was already featured in the original Assassin's Creed 3 and the remastered. In both versions the graphics are a clear big improvement where the remastered is somewhat better. In comparison with the Ezio games, the total of size of the games maps is also bigger than any other. The kill animations are more brutal and the combat is far better. The game features assassinations with other weapons than the hidden blade, fully developed gun aim and control plus bow and arrow, fast travel from anywhere, mini games (board games), big naval combat and missions and animal hunting.

The story is rather different from earlier games as you start with playing as Haytham Kenway but then play as Connor who is on a quest for revenge and change in the colonies. Unlike the last game where the map was only to be revealed by synchronizing on various point, this game take the concept where you ha to fill the map by walking through it with the help of some synchronizing points. I am personally not fully a fan of this as it take a lot of time to reveal the whole map since the radius of uncovering is rather small compared with the size of the maps. Then there are many side quest like "The Common Man" or frontier quest that makes 100% completion a bit dragged out. Now, the remastered wouldn't be such a problem if it weren't for some bugs which makes playing the games at times frustrating. Such as the freezing/stuttering bug that would show up from the start to about 15 hours playtime. But with the fact that the game comes with Assassin's Creed Odyssey I can see past most of the negative experience.

7/10

The Tyranny of King Washington DLC on the other hand is honestly just unnecessary. It basically tells of a what if scenario that reuses previous map and adds a few new missions. Thankfully the DLC comes fully in the game the DLC has no real impact on canon. In the DLC you get to have 3 types of superpowers which I think was rather unfitting for this game. Also the DLC isn't bug free either which makes it less appealing to play.

5/10

This game is quite familiar to Assassin's Creed 3 in aspect of graphics, game mechanics and bugs. The storyline is somewhat short but honestly I think that is perfect as some games need to be shorter than others to make the longer games better. Also with the smaller map, a shorter story fits better. The game features a new interning mechanic where the player can switch between different personas, "The Assassin", "The Lady" (civilian) and "The Slave" (something more in the middle), who have then has specific missions to said personas. Another new feature is chain-kill, which allowed Aveline to take out multiple opponents during combat which can speed combat up somewhat. My major problem with this game is first the need to walk around the map to uncover the map like Assassin's Creed 3. The second major problem is the smuggler bug which makes the player unable to finish a specific mission even though the mission wont effect 100% sync or achievements. But with the fact that the game comes with Assassin's Creed Odyssey I can see past most of the negative experience.

6.5/10

This game is the last installment of the Ezio storyline but unlike the previous 2 Ezio games you play now in Constantinople, Turkey. This game not only finishes Ezio's story but also Altair's story too. Not much is improved in the graphics department but the game still hold okay with today. There are some new features to the game mechanics such as the hook blade that among other things allows the player to use ziplines. Also the addition to the multiple new bombs and bomb combination makes the game stand out a little bit more. The story quality holds up as the same from the previous games but I do prefer the story in Assassin's Creed Brotherhood. But I do love how the Ezio story in this game is tied with Altair's story. Thankfully this game added so that when one has acquired all maps for treasure chest and fragments, all chest and fragments are revealed on the map unlike previous games were one could have all maps but some few treasure chest would still be unmarked on the map. This really relived me as a 100% completionist.

7.8/10

Lastly in the game, there is a side quest accessed via the Animus Island called Desmond's Journey. It is a first person puzzle like that give inside to Desmond's story before the events of the first Assassin's Creed game. While the story in it self is okay, the gameplay is rather unnecessary and boring. Desmond's Journey should just have been a cinematic cutscene instead of the first person puzzle game that we get. Furthermore, there is a DLC called Lost Archives which uses the same idea as Desmond's Journey where you get the backstory of Clay Kaczmarek/Subject 16. The same goes for the DLC where it's completely unnecessary and boring to have to play a first person puzzle game when it could all just have been a cinematic cutscene.

3/10

This game continues the storyline of Ezio Auditore while at the same time improving the game mechanics and story quality. I believe that Assassin's Creed Brotherhood is better than it's predecessor as the game not only improved parkour and easier combat but also a new feature where you can call upon recruited assassins and the economic system is on a lager scale. The graphics are also improved in comparison to Assassin's Creed 2. Unfortunately the game still uses earlier features like treasure chests, feathers and flags which is very frustrating for 100% completion. Personally I like that this game limits its map to one city as it then allows for more focus in said city, Rome. Other than that there is not much to say as the game is quite familiar to Assassin's Creed 2 with a few improvements and a slightly more interesting story.

7.9/10

Assassin's Creed 2 is the game that started the Ezio storyline which is the most beloved and known Assassin's Creed story. It a game that majorly improved everything since the first game from graphics and map to storyline and game mechanics. This game expands on what Assassin's Creed 1 already established. It's important to note that this game only tells the first part of the Ezio storyline. That why you will encounter that Ezio becomes an official member of the Assassin's Creed order at roughly the end of the game. Still the story is rather rich and eventful. I do have to admit that the Ezio story line and games are not my favorite. The reason is first and foremost the way the game is structured for a 100% completionist like myself. During this game there is an excruciating pain for collecting feathers and the hidden treasure chest if one was to reach 100% sync.

This made me spend a lot of hours not focusing on the quest and just looking for the last feather/chest. The second fault in the story for me was that Ezio could from the moment he put on the assassins armor, he could climb, fight and jump from buildings without any formal training. Later it makes more sense because he accumulates experience and knowledge but specify the beginning does not make enough sense. The graphics are an improvements but not really better than okay for a today's standards. The game mechanics are a big improvements from the first game like eagle vision or fighting mechanics and are good for a 2009 game but can sometimes be a bit annoying. Overall it a AC classic.

7.5/10

The game that started it all, Assassin's Creed. It's hard for me to review this game because of how old it is and how ill it compares to 2020 games. The game's story is a simple assassin's creed story where it establishes the main core of the franchise. The story is quite okay I would say because of the simplest but it does suffer from old voice acting and very look alike character models in some bosses which can make it sometime a bit confusing. The game mechanics are also simple yet very outdated and buggy to the point where it often could lead to frustration. The graphics as you would expect are also very outdated, but are not horrible to play with in 2020, they are acceptable, especially for an old game. One thing to mention here is that I personally do not enjoy as much cutscenes where the camera is just angled instead of a real cinematic cutscene like the ones when you kill a boss or the ones you get in later games. These angled camera cutsence are used 90% of the time instead of a normal cinematic one which is unfortunate. The missions get very receptive and to get 100% sync you have to find these flags which was horrible experience which is not worth it unless you are a hardcore fan. In the end, it's an old game which is why I can forgive the bad stuff. I wouldn't really recommend it to anyone that wants to play for fun, but I would recommend it for the hardcore fans. It's not a bad game, it's a classic game, but a very frustrating game.

6/10

It was better before it became free because now all fortnite kids join in and sh¡t but I guess you could enjoy it with friends...

This Assassin's Creed game is one of the best AC games ever. It has one of the best stories and maps out of the whole franchise. I love the Caribbean and it's pirate theme. Also for the graphics holds up very good for a game that was released in 2014. Another thing is the huge wonderful map that allows you to set sail and explore. The beauty of sailing is that it's not only going in one direction but you can encounter ships to attack, whales to hunt and areas to take a dive underwater and find lost treasure chest. That plus all the exploration on main land and the Abstergo challenges really completes the map. The game mechanics are also very good and smooth as I never really encountered a ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ bug or glitch that would make Edward move towards a direction that I clearly did not intend to do. The story is also not only well written but also doesn't generate any "why", "how" or "what" questions. The only critique on the story is that you never truly become a official member of the Assassin's Creed order till the very end of the story but non the less the story is still amazing. The multiplayer is useless and I wish that it had like Unity's coop because that would have been just on top of the cherry. But other than that it's a wonderful game and as I said the story, game mechanics, graphics and map will make up for it.

9.2/10

I also bought the Freedom Cry DLC which continues the story of Adewale and his journey as an assassin who first appears in Black Flag as Edward Kenway's quartermaster. The DLC can be purchased as a standalone game and there for my review will treat it mostly like one. They reuses both the game mechanics and graphics which is both fine and understandable because they are very good. I believe its good that the DLC futures a new smaller map for this new story because its gives the player a sense of need for exploration. Since the game reuses the same graphics and mechanics it is good that there are new weapons that differentiates the game a bit more from black flag. Story is rather okay but it is quite a short story. But I think that it fits well with it being a DLC after all. The only complaint I have for this DLC is that there is a sound bug where weapons sounds do not sound which is rather annoying. There is a fix where you replace the sound file but then you will not unlock achievements as the game is now modified. Other than that, the DLC is generally okay.

6/10

Assassin's Creed Unity is by my opinion one of the best Assassin's Creed games made till this day. This game returns to the more traditional gameplay of Assassin's Creed like we see from Assassin's Creed to Assassin's Creed Revelations unlike Assassin's Creed Black Flag and Rogue which had that pirate/naval theme. Unity reworked most of the game mechanic from earlier titles were we got the best parkour, a new and harder combat system and a new gear system. As previously said the new parkour physics is by far one if not the best one we have gotten where the we get cooler and more realistic parkour animations, a downwards parkour system and in general just smother and satisfying parkour. The combat is more complex and harder which also motives the player to stay more hidden and assassinate more which is fitting. And while on the subject of assassinations, the assassinations animations and the finishing moves are amazing. I love how the game added a gear system where you could buy or earn a armor piece that could give different stats in health, damage, stealth and other qualities. This gives the player the change to truly customize Arno to their liking in terms of gear stats and looks. The new eagle vision design is also very good. The way the game mechanics are build work in my opinion very well on how the missions and the game is meant to be played, where you have to be tactical in how and hat you do. The game features new types of side quest like murder mysteries which fits very well with said game mechanics.

The main story is good, it not the best one out there but definitely not the worse. There is consistency, romance, likable main characters and some plot twists but I wish that it was a bit longer. What makes this game stand out the most though is the co-op. First of all the game don't force you to play co-op as you can choose to play alone. Secondly the co-op mission are not connected to the main story which is unfortunately as the mission become more about the objective and less about a story. Never the less, it's fun to be able to play with friends for the first time in a assassin's creed game (yes, I know there are previous multiplayer modes for Assassins Creed games, but they are completely different to the normal single player game). The map, Paris is wonderfully constructed and the amazing graphics really helps the game become a truly beautiful game. I love how the game added the possibility to enter houses without leaving free roam. What made the game get so many negative reviews was Unity's buggy lunch but now the game is generally bug free. One problem I experienced was the old hidden treasure chest where some chest will not appear on the map unless you are near them which made 100% completion some what harder. I feel that this game is really underrated.

8.9/10

The story in Dead Kings DLC isn't that interesting to be honest and the additional chests and other items that needed to be collected made the experience somewhat dragged out. But since you get the DLC for free, it levels out the complaint. One thing I do like from the DLC is that they implemented a map for the underground of the new city. Also the new mortar grenade launcher weapon was kinda cool I guess.

5.5/10