ESRB warns of risque Assassin's Creed II content

By and large, BioWare has the market cornered on interspecies copulation, thanks to recent highly acclaimed role-playing efforts as Mass Effect and Dragon Age. Now, Ubisoft seems to be making a bid for the historical kink market, if the Entertainment Software Rating Board summary of Assassin's Creed II is any indication.

According to the rating summary, Assassin's Creed contains "strong sexual overtones," ranging from a kissing minigame to "adultery, sodomy, prostitution, and rape." The ESRB notes that most of the more taboo topics typically arise as part of character biographies of various figures that the protagonist Ezio meets throughout the course of the game. The ESRB calls out various instances in which characters swear in both English and Italian, as well as graphically detail sexual acts.

Players also apparently keep company in a brothel, as well as use prostitutes as part of a blending-in mechanic. The ratings organization notes that no actual nudity or sexual acts are depicted, though various dialogue lines contain such gems as "So the whip or the paddle today?" and "Does your wife know about your page-boy fantasies, Captain?"

Assassin's Creed II will be available for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 on November 17, with a PC edition due next year. Lest it not be said, Assassin's Creed II is rated M for Mature.