Assassins Creed First Timer

So, I played Assassins Creed for the first time last week and didn't really like it. I started getting framerate issues in the 2nd city you go to, and didn't enjoy the gameplay all that much. I thought it was really repetitive since assassinating was really easy and did all the combat for you unless you got caught and had to fight off guards. The combat in that game was not my cup of tea though. I'm more of a God of War and Devil May Cry combat guy but I'm not strictly that type of combat only. I like any kind of combat as long as it feels good and like games from the past like Kingdom Hearts, Onimusha, Prince of Persia, and any kind of beat em up, but I don't want to get off topic here. I wanted to ask if the Assassin games get any better. I played the first and didn't like it, however I know the game has a popular following and was open minded to try out the rest. My friend has told me that the games do get better but I wanted to get the opinion of others on here before I decide to try the other games. With that said, should I play another Assassins and which would you recommend?

I would say the games certainly get better as they go along. Aside from Revelations, I thought the original was the low point for the series (though I still enjoyed it). The second game fixes the repetition by adding more to do and varied side quests, for example.

The combat gets easier as the series goes on but it gets more fun. It feels much more fluid as the series progresses and taking down large groups of enemies was always a blast. Core assassinations were never particularly challenging, but they were more creative.

It's hard to say you should absolutely continue, but really ACII is pretty cheap and worth a shot. If you don't like it I'd just give up on the series altogether.

Thanks man, I appreciate that.

The first Assassin's Creed game was launched in 2007 and, despite being great for its time (beautiful graphics, large environments, nice blend of platforming and combat gameplay), had some evident weak spots. Keep in mind that the AC game concept was still in the making. AC1 was repetitive, the missions were all similar, you had to go through the same pattern of activities in each city, and the cities themselves weren't particularly distinctive from eachother.

I would say that Assassin's Creed II was the game that established the series. It is regarded by many as the best AC game so far, and I agree, although I still haven't played Black Flag.

But Assassin's Creed II introduced all the particularities that make these games great. A great main character. A much stronger storyline. Beautiful and distinctive Renaissance cities and landscapes. More complexity in combat - although not particularly challenging. And a wide variation in mission types.

The following games, Brotherhood and Revelations, explored the open world format. AC2 had fairly large areas but the following games transformed AC into an hybrid story driven / sandbox title.

AC3 has mixed opinions. In many ways, it is great. The story isn't bad. The setting is wonderfully rendered. Many things to do and many areas to explore. But the campaign missions felt too scripted and limited, imposing a very strict approach to the gamer.

So, my advice to you would be: try Assassin's Creed II. If the italian charm of one mister Ezio Auditore da Firenze doesn't convince you, nothing will!

I highly recommend playing AC2. Best one in the series. (I haven't played AC4 yet)

Combat is not the main focus on the AC games. It is a open world stealth platformer.

I am not much of an Assassin's Creed fan, but it does get better. At least a little bit. I played some AC2 when my friend bought it. It still wasn't really my thing, but better than 1.

However as @wiouds said, it's more about ease of traversal and stealth than the actual combat. The idea is to avoid the combat rather than to clear out an area. But hey, my buddy I mentioned earlier still likes the combat so it can be done. But it's not going to be like God of War where the primary goal is the wholesale slaughter of the entire pantheon of Greek lore.

The combat is pretty simple always, but that doesn't make the game any less good.

I like this thread. Anxious to see more comments. I can't play any first person game and tried Assassins Creed VERY briefly once. I'm a strict 3rd person and thought this game would grab my attention. I didn't give it much time - confused if I was to go stealth or go all on. Maybe I should commit more time to AC2 and give it it's fair shot. I'd imagine they're loving Watch Dogs delay. I'm sure they'll score.

I'd suggest trying AC2 before trying AC1 as AC2 is more likely to hook you in. Bar the gameplay having some changes here and there, the story and historical elements are probably the best parts. Brotherhood and Revelations did have pretty similar gameplay sadly and even the new stuff they did put in didn't do much for the series at all but the story was still decent. AC3 I liked because I felt more of a badass in AC3 then I did in any other AC game, this is mainly due to the fluid gameplay. I'm liking ACIV a lot at the moment. They may have reskinned it a little but the massive map and the new combat style Edward has, kind of makes up for it. + being in the Caribbeans in tropcial enviromnents is amazing.

i played the first one and never bothered with the rest. the balancing was just all off. if i messed up with the stealth, it seemed impossible to mess up with the action. enemies would take their turns with long windups to set themselves up for one button kills. there was just no incentive to be stealthy and every incentive to play it like sloppy hack n slash. then i hear all this stuff about how ubisoft gives the player more stuff to arm themselves with in combat in the sequels and i never really got the impression that ubisoft understood why the original didn't work.

I've only played the first one, but I think the others are probably a better experience. I still want to get around to them.

The second game is a almost a remake, it's so much better, it does everything better than AC 1 and perhaps the best AC game in the series aswell

I'm a mere echo, but Assassins Creed II remains the best of the series.

I liked Brotherhood as much as i liked AC 2, but it wasn't as fresh as AC 2 though, but i like both of them

Assassin's Creed had it's shortcomings, sure- but you have to look at it from the point of view of the fiction itself. Altaiir was the tip of the top, the best of the best- the Boss's right hand. But he was also vain and cocky and it screwed him. So he was sent back to GO and treated like a year 1 rookie. Now if the player continues to be vain and cocky- that is, if you only play it to rush through the story assassinations- then it gets boring fast. But if you get into actually gathering and analyzing intel from your investigations then you can begin to actually plan your assassinations to the point where you can slip in and assassinate your target before anyone realizes what's going on and sometimes get out without a fight.

That's my take on the first game, anyway, and is likely why I tend to rate it higher on my lists than most others.

The second game turned the gameplay from that kind of thoughtful planning method to a straight out GTA: Renaissance method. That isn't to say Assassin's Creed 2 isn't great(because it really, truly IS), it's just more direct. Which, again, makes sense when you look at the fiction- Altaiir was a cog in a great machine where by Ezio's time, it's a much smaller group and he's spends much of the campaign as one man seeking revenge.

But I warn you- don't sell these games short by rushing through the campaigns- if you play AC2, make sure you track down The Truth- it expands the story exponentially.

Prior to the release of ACIV I would have said that Brotherhood was the best entry in the series and if you're not reluctant to play the series from beginning to end than I would suggest you start there.

Most would consider ACII the best in the franchise but later games (Brotherhood/Revelations/III) would have a number of additions that enhance gameplay and replay value. Brotherhood would speed up the combat allowing the player to chain together multiple kills after a single counter, offensive combat is also more effective than previous titles. The hidden pistol would become useful when in combat as well. New enemy types and the ability to kick an opponent to open them up to offensive attacks was added as well.

Borgia towers were introduced, killing the Captain of the guards at each one of these will remove influence from each district allowing the player to open up shops and even recruit citizens to join your cause.

The parachute, a fun little addition was also added which could be used to glide over long distances. You can also air assassinate from these by gliding over an enemy.

You can recruit and send Assassin's on missions which bring cash rewards, these recruits can also be upgraded through an XP system during contracts. You'll also be able to call upon your recruits while in combat to slay enemies blocking your path or to remove some of the threat during a large fight.

New types of activities such an Da Vinci missions which are a nice change of pace, adding even more content.

Ability to ride your horse through the city was cool.

The list goes on... combat training mode, additional mission objectives, ability to replay missions, multiplayer and more that I'm probably missing. I just cannot fathom how one could assume that ACII is the best in the series. I think it was a surprising sequel but later games such as Brotherhood and Black Flag are surely better titles at the end of the day.

Not sure why people cling on to a title and claim it the best when it has been surpassed. You don't say GTAIII is the best in the series because it was the most surprising or revolutionary, you say GTAV is the best in the series... because it is.

But back on topic, keep going with the series. Brotherhood might be your cup of tea, you just need to give it a shot. But don't expect DMC or God Of War like combat in these titles. If you're looking for something along the lines of those titles but with a open world/semi open world construct than I would suggest Darksiders 1 or 2, maybe even Kingdoms Of Amalur: Reckoning.

I see a lot of praise for ACII and some for Brotherhood. I think I'll give the series another shot because it really does look interesting and I would like to expand on my gaming. I think I'll try my luck with ACII first and see where things go, thanks everyone!