Assassin's Creed is a stunning game that is bogged down by repetitiveness and unskippable cutscenes.
The story however, is really good with a fascinating mixture of modern/sci-fi atmosphere with the Medieval Era at the time of the Crusades. Written by Corey May who also did the same job for the Prince of Persia sequels, you can expect it to feature likeable characters and complex plot. I won't explain the plot since many already did that, but it'll be easy enough for yourself to follow in-game. It is original and interesting, with some well-written dialogue. I am a bit disappointed that it did not recieve much awards. The story proves to be the best point of Assassin's Creed.
The visuals are very beautiful with good amount of detail, and generate an extraordinary atmosphere throughout the game. The environment and landscape can be very eye-catching but require a powerful PC if intended to beat the console versions. I discovered that the game even on strong PCs can still recieve bugs and glitches. Hardly surprising considering that the maps in this game are huge so that is what you'd expect, but even meeting system requirements, there may be a bit of trouble with occasional glitches and such.
The gameplay in this game is very good, with polish and some unique and original elements. Climbing buildings and jumping from rooftops does not get old; after all, there weren't many games at the time of its release that let you do that, especially in a sandbox world. The sword fights are perhaps one of the most realistic you will ever see in a video game. The problem is that the game is a bit too easy, and half the weapons seen in the trailer do not even exist for you in the video game. Regardless, the counter-kills and counter-attacks are hugely entertaining and you will have a lot of fun if you use them in a sword fight.
The game is vast and although this can only happen minutely, the story can progress differently depending on whether you decide to rush or uncover all the answers. Since the main plot is about a man called Desmond Miles in the present day being put in a machine called the animus to relive his ancestor's past, you will have time out of the animus and have the option to ignore character Lucy Stillman the whole time, or converse with her to learn more about the place you are imprisoned and about here personally. Should you find the storyline and the game world interesting enough like I did, it means that you will want to try the game again if you think you missed something.
One of the game's problems is that it is repetitive. From the beginning to the end of the first three assassinations, it is extremely enjoyable. However, after that, you realise that the main missions just keep repeating. Other less important tasks also suffer from the same issue. In order to unlock vigilantes to help you when guards fight you, or a group of scholars for you to blend in with when you are chased, you always need to find some citizen to save from being attacked by guards. Problem is that it is always the same. It's hard to be further motivated after already helping 3 or 4 citizens. Also, the side missions to carry out investigations in the console versions were very repetitive. The improvement in the PC version is that you have more of them and can choose which ones. The problem is that they repeat in each city so it can be irritating.
One of the worst features (or lack of) is that you cannot skip cutscenes nor replay certain levels without starting at the very beginning of them (which usually includes a length, tedious lecture before gameplay) when you finish the game. The cutscenes are great to watch the first time through and I like how you can change angles, but when you replay a level, you always have to rewatch them before you get back into the action and not all of these cutscenes are short. It would be more redeeming if it would autosave during another playthrough of these missions or if you could choose certain points to start, but no. You just have to start at the goddamn beginning of the levels.
To the conclusion, Assassin's Creed is brilliant in design. The visuals are not ignorable and the massive worlds are interesting and compelling to explore. The few missions there are well-designed and the story is simply brilliant. It is just a pity that unskippable cutscenes and the high level of repetitiveness ruins the high potential. The now-released sequel is supposed to improve from all that. This game may be worth getting but it certainly is not worth full US$50.
Story - 9/10
Gameplay - 8.5/10
Graphics - 9/10
Repetitiveness - 9/10 (for consoles - 10/10)
Sound - 9/10
Music - 9/10