Entertaining, but also the least in the Ezio Auditore trilogy.
The game starts off right after the conclusion of "Brotherhood" with Desmond Miles in an unconscious state. Sort of like where Neo was at the beginning of "The Matrix Revolutions". He's deeper in the Animus than ever before and ends up meeting with the mysterious Subject 16 who teaches him how to navigate. From here on out, Desmond enters into the memories of an older Ezio Auditore who know searches for keys in the Middle East that will unlock the mysteries of the ultimate weapon. Altair, the legendary Crusade assassin, hid the keys all around Istanbul. So the chase is on (once again) between the Assassins and the Templars to find them. Ezio meets up with the local Assassin faction and with the help of an Italian woman, attempts to discover the keys of Altair. Gameplay switches to the perpective of Altair after Ezio studies the keys, but unfortunately these segments are too short to make an impact.
The game is epic in scope but not in storytelling nor gameplay. A few segments travels the "Uncharted" route with cinematic camera shifts, but "Brotherhood" did too. Players will purchase weapons, buy stores, recruit assassins and change outfit colors. It's the same stuff as before with the addition of bomb missions. The inclusion of the hookblade is quite unsatisfying as riding by horse is much quicker (and not included in this game). The bomb making is also another pointless add-on. Using the crossbow, poison darts and pistol is more than enough in the arsenal. I forgot to mention den-defense which only occurs if you are in the "red". If you attract enough attention, invaders will attack Assassin's Dens and it must be protected thorugh "Risk" board game-like tactics. You place you're fighters in positions and command for attacks. It's okay, but nothing too exciting. Another downer is the absence of the Animus-based medal challenges. In "Brotherhood", you could refine your fighting skills by beating challenges and earning medals. Not so with this game.
While this review is a bit critical, the reason I rated the game highly is because it's still a lot of fun to play despite the lack of innovation. Also, on the plus side, the game is the best looking "Assassin's Creed" yet (on the PS3 at least) with stark shadows, crisp animations, colorful backdrops and detailed character models. Graphically, it's on par with "Batman: Arkham City" with some dips in the framerate rearing it's ugly head. Also, multiplayer adds some variety with it's "Manhunt" meets "Uncharted" feel. But it's not too different from "Brotherhood". The PS3 version also includes the original "Assassin's Creed" that was quite intriguing when it was first released. So if you're a fan of the series, you'll want to finish "Revelations". It's not a masterpiece, but it's still packed with tons of content and is a lot of fun especially for series vets.
Pros: Gameplay from "Brotherhood" retained (including multiplayer), great graphics, decent story.
Cons: Feels like an expansion to "Brotherhood". Few new additions are almost pointless. Novelty of gameplay feels old. Horseriding and hidden glyphs are no longer. No medal challenges.