Thoughts on Revelations so far [GAMEPLAY SPOILERS]
The whole game has my head a-whirling. I'm still in the early stages of the main memories since I've been running around trying to get a feel for the place (it's HUGE, and they've changed the appearance of the map in the little compass. At first I was worried that the audio and video weren't in sync because the sounds of Ezio's sword sliding through one of the guards didn't match up, but my worries were unfounded.
First things first. I like how they brought back the optional synchronisation requirements; it makes the memories just that bit more challenging sometimes and having just come off in the middle of my replay of ACII, I must say that these optional requirements are something I've come to love. Gameplay has been drastically overhauled to accommodate for Ezio's new weapons: the Hookblade and bombs (which the player can craft...eventually [I'm not up to that stage yet, sadly, but I can loot them occasionally]). The functions once relegated to the Y button for Xbox players is now shunted over to the Left Stick (Eagle Sense) and B button (conversing etc.), which can be quite confusing at first. The Y button now controls Ezio's secondary weapons, and players might find themselves killing civilians by accident in their haste to pursue a target or to speak with a shop-keeper.
Also in Revelations, the hunt is on to locate Animus Data Fragments and the pages of Ishak's memoirs (whom I believe is the prince...?). This replaces the feather-hunting in ACII and the Borgia flag-locating in Brotherhood, and once the player has enough fragments, certain parts of Desmond's past are unlocked which the player must then go through and complete (a process reminiscent of the Portal games, except without the gun). I think they made unlocking these a bit too easy, but then I was looking specifically for the fragments.
What else has changed? Instead of art merchants you have book merchants. I'm not sure what collecting all these books will do, nor the purpose of being able to enter a certain bookstore, but then collecting art was simply for aesthetic purposes so who am I to criticise? It's nice to see that they've balanced out the rate at which players earn money though. It's rather annoying to collect tens of thousands of whatever currency and be able to splurge on all the latest equipment as soon as it's available.
On to combat and side missions. Templar Dens replace Borgia Towers but the goal is essentially the same: free the area from the Templars' influence. The difference? You have to fight to keep it, particularly when your notoriety goes up (and boy, it accumulates pretty fast). This is done by a mini-game which has you deploying assassin units just like in your standard tower-defence games. If the Templars win, you have to kill their captain again and light a signal fire to retake the den. If you win, the den is safe (until you become Templar Aware [aka. notorious]). Personally, I like this feature - in Brotherhood it seemed like burning Borgia towers was something you did if you had a passing fancy. But with these Dens, you have to fight to keep them yours. I hear they can become permanently yours should you train an assassin to a high enough level that they can manage it for you, but until then, it's a constant battle.
Speaking of which: Templar Awareness. Every time you renovate a shop, kill a few guards, the red in the meter increases. No surprises there. There are no posters to tear down, only heralds to bribe and eyewitnesses to kill, and the amount of Awareness they lower has been decreased by 25% compared to previous games. On the flipside, heralds are cheaper to bribe. However, unless players like to play carefully, they'll soon find themselves quickly drawing the Templars' attention, and this means dens are at risk of attack, if you continue to be a nuisance.
Not only that, there are spontaneous events ('systemic events') that can occur while you're walking about, minding your own business. Think of the thieves suddenly waylaying you on the road in Rome. Except now you have stalkers. That's right, STALKERS. These people hide in plain sight unless you use Eagle Sense in advance. They'll run up behind you and - if you're not quick enough to counter - stab you in the back before running off. If you can catch and kill them even after that, then they reward you handsomely with loot.
There's so much more to say about this game and I could go on and on about it but aching fingers and unwashed dishes beckon so I'll wrap up with this: Revelations has lived up to the praise heaped upon it and has gone beyond my expectations. It improves numerous little issues I hardly even noticed in the third instalment and at this point in time I can find no obvious fault with the gameplay. With time and patience, any challenge thrown at the player can be overcome, and those beginning to tire of the Ezio storyline really ought to at least give it a try.
And I hope that one day I might be able to enjoy the multiplayer section of this game, which I've been disappointed in missing out on. :( Damn you, Xbox Live Gold.
First things first. I like how they brought back the optional synchronisation requirements; it makes the memories just that bit more challenging sometimes and having just come off in the middle of my replay of ACII, I must say that these optional requirements are something I've come to love. Gameplay has been drastically overhauled to accommodate for Ezio's new weapons: the Hookblade and bombs (which the player can craft...eventually [I'm not up to that stage yet, sadly, but I can loot them occasionally]). The functions once relegated to the Y button for Xbox players is now shunted over to the Left Stick (Eagle Sense) and B button (conversing etc.), which can be quite confusing at first. The Y button now controls Ezio's secondary weapons, and players might find themselves killing civilians by accident in their haste to pursue a target or to speak with a shop-keeper.
Also in Revelations, the hunt is on to locate Animus Data Fragments and the pages of Ishak's memoirs (whom I believe is the prince...?). This replaces the feather-hunting in ACII and the Borgia flag-locating in Brotherhood, and once the player has enough fragments, certain parts of Desmond's past are unlocked which the player must then go through and complete (a process reminiscent of the Portal games, except without the gun). I think they made unlocking these a bit too easy, but then I was looking specifically for the fragments.
What else has changed? Instead of art merchants you have book merchants. I'm not sure what collecting all these books will do, nor the purpose of being able to enter a certain bookstore, but then collecting art was simply for aesthetic purposes so who am I to criticise? It's nice to see that they've balanced out the rate at which players earn money though. It's rather annoying to collect tens of thousands of whatever currency and be able to splurge on all the latest equipment as soon as it's available.
On to combat and side missions. Templar Dens replace Borgia Towers but the goal is essentially the same: free the area from the Templars' influence. The difference? You have to fight to keep it, particularly when your notoriety goes up (and boy, it accumulates pretty fast). This is done by a mini-game which has you deploying assassin units just like in your standard tower-defence games. If the Templars win, you have to kill their captain again and light a signal fire to retake the den. If you win, the den is safe (until you become Templar Aware [aka. notorious]). Personally, I like this feature - in Brotherhood it seemed like burning Borgia towers was something you did if you had a passing fancy. But with these Dens, you have to fight to keep them yours. I hear they can become permanently yours should you train an assassin to a high enough level that they can manage it for you, but until then, it's a constant battle.
Speaking of which: Templar Awareness. Every time you renovate a shop, kill a few guards, the red in the meter increases. No surprises there. There are no posters to tear down, only heralds to bribe and eyewitnesses to kill, and the amount of Awareness they lower has been decreased by 25% compared to previous games. On the flipside, heralds are cheaper to bribe. However, unless players like to play carefully, they'll soon find themselves quickly drawing the Templars' attention, and this means dens are at risk of attack, if you continue to be a nuisance.
Not only that, there are spontaneous events ('systemic events') that can occur while you're walking about, minding your own business. Think of the thieves suddenly waylaying you on the road in Rome. Except now you have stalkers. That's right, STALKERS. These people hide in plain sight unless you use Eagle Sense in advance. They'll run up behind you and - if you're not quick enough to counter - stab you in the back before running off. If you can catch and kill them even after that, then they reward you handsomely with loot.
There's so much more to say about this game and I could go on and on about it but aching fingers and unwashed dishes beckon so I'll wrap up with this: Revelations has lived up to the praise heaped upon it and has gone beyond my expectations. It improves numerous little issues I hardly even noticed in the third instalment and at this point in time I can find no obvious fault with the gameplay. With time and patience, any challenge thrown at the player can be overcome, and those beginning to tire of the Ezio storyline really ought to at least give it a try.
And I hope that one day I might be able to enjoy the multiplayer section of this game, which I've been disappointed in missing out on. :( Damn you, Xbox Live Gold.