I would like to do this review a little differently by using my review of Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag.
While playing the game, I just kept thinking that Ubisoft somehow read my review of Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag and fixed most of the issues.
The Fixed
First, In my Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag review, I said that the whole “Desmond and the modern Assassin’s storyline” was lost. Well, while Assassin’s Creed: Rogue did not fix this by setting the story back into motion, they gave us a story that can potentially be equally enthralling. Most reviews out there have already mentioned that you get to play as a Templar in Assassin’s Creed: Rogue. It gets pretty interesting at the end, and I truly believe that the story can become a great one if Ubisoft decides to go ahead to develop this story further.
But will they? I believe Assassin’s Creed: Unity is where their story is headed. This is merely a side story isn’t it? Maybe I’m wrong, and I hope I am.
Second, I also mentioned that Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag had identity issues. It was neither a true pirate game nor a true Assassin’s game, and I generally felt that there was a lack of direction. Well, this problem is gone. You’re a proper Templar now, and the reasons why you became a Templar has been properly established. Also, you’re not a pirate anymore, so there are two sides to a ship - friend or foe.
Third, I mentioned that the system of ship upgrades closely resembled the grind present in MMORPGs today. Well, I would love to say that the the problem has disappeared entirely, but it hasn’t. But fret not, I encountered absolutely no problems attempting any ship missions that were available.
I would say that I raided approximately 10-15 ships or so, which I would like to think is a fairly low number (you’re already forced to raid quite a few ships throughout the game). This amount of ships allowed me to complete all the ship missions with ease. I did not have to carry out “cheats” by dying and respawning with full health, or chaining together multiple boarding of ships to heal myself (all of this I did a lot in Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag).
Fourth, I also mentioned that it was a pain to farm for money and materials. It was pretty much another factor that added to the grind. I will not comment about materials, as I totally ignored that whole part of the game.
However, the bank system is back. You automatically generate money in the game, and you can go back to the bank occasionally to collect money. Yay for playing the game because it’s fun, not because I’m trying to upgrade myself!
The Meh, Kinda Fixed.
Fifth, I mentioned that the weapon selection in Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag was difficult in the sense that you had to frantically scroll through your weapons or memorize the number associated with them.
Well, while they still stuck with the system, they improved the way it works. Using the scroll wheel now brings up a small interface similar to the way time selection works on smartphones.
You can see what’s before and what’s after your current selection, which is a small but extremely helpful change. I would say this would be a nice compromise between usability and immersion.
Sixth, I mentioned the lack of improvements in Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag. Inevitably, there can be little improvements in Assassin’s Creed: Rogue as it’s sort of a parallel timeline between Assassin’s Creed III and Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag.
However, I want to really commend Ubisoft on the optimizations that they have made to Assassin’s Creed: Rogue. I played Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag on an average of 15-20 frames per second, and the experience was utterly terrible.
My average frame rate is now 45-60, and my graphics settings can be higher than that of Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag.
The whole Templar mechanic can also be considered an improvement as it is an entirely new mechanic introduced to the game. It’s actually implemented quite well into the game, and while it may get slightly annoying sometimes, it’s really your own fault if you do get caught by an Assassin, and not the game’s.
The Not Fixed
Seventh, I complained about the music. I specifically pointed out Ezio’s Family from Assassin’s Creed II as a masterpiece, and lo and behold, Ubisoft used it as the menu music.
But is that enough? No, of course not. It’s the music in-game that matters, not menu music. While the music in Assassin’s Creed: Rogue was not bad at all as I did feel like the music helped the mood, there was no music piece in particular that stood out. None that made me go “man, what’s this soundtrack called? I must have it!”
What Else?
Eighth, and this is where I stop referring to my Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag review. I tweeted this article a few months ago. It talks about how Ezio in Assassin’s Creed II is a likeable protagonist due to the time the player spends with him, his family, and his enemies. It builds up a great story on the mishaps that happen to Ezio’s family, which ultimately leads to giving the player a strong motive to continue playing the game with Ezio. (By the way, if you check out the comments in the Ezio’s Family soundtrack in the link above, you’ll find similar sentiments).
I’d like to believe that Assassin’s Creed: Rogue actually tries to fix some of these issues. You can sort of see Ubisoft trying if you squint hard enough. You get approximately a quarter of your missions as an Assassin, and the rest as a Templar. Sounds good, but Assassin’s Creed: Rogue is a short game, so while a quarter sounds like a lot, it really isn’t. You don’t get enough time with the Assassins to really interact and understand them, so you don’t exactly feel the impact of your actions later.
But still, the story is told. You’re first happy being an Assassin, then something happens, and you join the Templars.
I also feel that Shay (Assassin’s Creed: Rogue’s protagonist) isn’t as soulless as Connor or Edward Kenway (cue pitchforks)(Haytham Kenway was more interesting). Shay has a certain charm similar to the young Ezio, but slightly toned down. He’s a free man, hates rules, and he “makes his own luck”.
Ninth, the hacking games. I have to say, the hacking games in Assassin’s Creed: Rogue have got to be one of the most well-thought out ones I’ve seen. It’s not disgustingly annoying or stupid that you’d like to throw your monitor out of the window. It’s actually very intelligent. Sure, it is difficult sometimes, so you actually have to think to solve the puzzle.
Tenth, the length. It’s just way too short man! I don’t understand why such a good title in the Assassin’s Creed series is just thrown aside as some branching title. This should have been a main title.
Eleventh. The level design/mission design. It’s beautiful. It might due to the fact that I’m a very experienced Assassin’s Creed player (I’ve played everything on the PC and PSP except Unity), but there was absolutely no point in time where I had no idea where to go next. When free running, the visual cues where always there, and while it may not be immediately obvious, you would see the next cue just in time for you to react. It keeps the adrenaline pumping, and it keeps the tempo high.
When you play the Lisbon mission, you will know what I mean. It’s the most obvious mission in which it showed the designer’s guiding hand, but their hand is also present in the rest of the game, though in a much more subtle manner.
Closing Statements
Is this a must-play? Yes!
Assassin’s Creed: Rogue has got to be the best one in the series since the last Assassin’s Creed II title (excluding Unity since I haven’t played that). I seriously hope that Ubisoft will continue with the story of Shay Cormac (or the guy playing Shay Cormac).
Also, I think it’s time for me to try Assassin’s Creed: Unity as well. I’m pretty sure my PC can’t handle it though, the requirements are rather absurd. I’ll probably have to play it with 15-20 FPS like I did in Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag.
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