Assassin's Creed 2 Catch-All

BadKen wrote:

So I've been watching this video walkthrough of the original Assassin's Creed (http://www.mahalo.com/assassins-cree...), since I never finished the game on 360, and I really only watched videos of the end of the story before starting 2. Now I find myself really wanting to play the original, too, despite warnings that Assassin's Creed 2 is leaps and bounds better.

Think I'll still enjoy the original? Based on the videos I've been watching, it looks like I might.

I think if you pace yourself, do one target a session, you'll be able to stay in the "What a fascinating historical artifact!" zone.

I just recently restart the first AC, and the only problems I have with it are the lack of technical improvements made in AC 2. You'll find yourself missing the fast climb, the double hidden blade, the ability to toss money, and maybe a few others, but the same core awesome experience is still there. Also if you aren't hunting down all the achievements, you can completely skip the collect-a-thon items, since there is no in-game purpose to collecting them, unlike in AC 2.

Long story short, I think you'll enjoy it.

When I decided to play AC2, I went back and played AC1 since I had never gotten much past the second assassination. I really enjoyed it, but I echo the above suggestions. Just play through the game, and don't worry about any ancillary stuff. Since there is a lot of traveling, I also went through as soon as I could and unlocked all the viewpoints in the countryside. Finally, I turned off all the HUD elements.

What a great game. I may even go back and collect all the feathers! I loved the ending, and especially what they did with the end credits.

I also really enjoyed the DLC sequences 12 and 13, if for no other reason than I got to kill that bastard priest Savonarola who was responsible for burning so much art and literature in 1497. I think I may have enjoyed it more because I got curious about the Medici and watched part of a PBS documentary series on them while I was playing the game. The Medici were bastards, but Savonarola was just an evil psycho.

Okay, so now I'm partially caught up with the world of video games circa 2 years ago...

I started playing this over the weekend. About 6h in. I like the improvements I have seen so far. Spent most of the time diligently collecting all treasures in the first two districts. What I wish they'd explain more is what good the codex pages you find in guarded buildings do and whether or not those and the glyphs puzzles to be found on buildings are necessary for the story line or possible endings. I kinda figured out that the feathers are the replacement of the banners from AC1. Also, I assume the main story missions will yield me a new sword, since the blacksmith doesn't sell one?

Overall, much stronger game than AC2, yet more videogamey. Oh, and the races and I still won't be friends.

Luggage wrote:

I started playing this over the weekend. About 6h in. I like the improvements I have seen so far. Spent most of the time diligently collecting all treasures in the first two districts. What I wish they'd explain more is what good the codex pages you find in guarded buildings do and whether or not those and the glyphs puzzles to be found on buildings are necessary for the story line or possible endings. I kinda figured out that the feathers are the replacement of the banners from AC1. Also, I assume the main story missions will yield me a new sword, since the blacksmith doesn't sell one?

Overall, much stronger game than AC2, yet more videogamey. Oh, and the races and I still won't be friends.

The glyphs puzzles are a "side story." I found them to be rewarding in their own right, but your own enjoyment may vary.

Yes, the feathers are mostly good for an achievement. There is a very small bit of story and reward for collecting them all, but it's not worth doing it for those if you don't enjoy the collection. I enjoyed hunting feathers because of the exploration aspect, but I'm also the dude who found pigeon hunting to be my favorite part of GTA4.

I think that with just about every game in the Assassin's Creed series, you will eventually be able to buy weapons from the blacksmith, but at any given point can almost always get something better from sidequests.

Luggage wrote:

Overall, much stronger game than AC2, yet more videogamey.

You're in the AC2 thread saying that the game you are playing is better than AC2?

I assume you mean you've been playing AC: Brotherhood? Or much better game than AC1?

BlackSabre wrote:
Luggage wrote:

Overall, much stronger game than AC2, yet more videogamey.

You're in the AC2 thread saying that the game you are playing is better than AC2?

I assume you mean you've been playing AC: Brotherhood? Or much better game than AC1?

I meant AC1 yes. A couple months ago, I read an article talking about how great a simulation AC1 was when turning most of the interface, and while I concur, it would have made the game even less approachable for most players (me included). I finished AC1 basically because I wanted to have the context and be able to appreciate all the improvements from 1 to 2. And I am glad I did.

Played another 2 hours yesterday, during which I did my first assassination. I can't remember the first on in AC1, but it felt smoother (if that makes sense) and the getaway was much easier. Maybe because I know have been sprinting across rooftops for 20h+. The ambivalent thing is that I don't sympathize or even care about Ezio yet. Him bragging about who he is and all that jazz after killing Alberti made me facepalm. But since I expect this to be an origin story I see where the writers came from.

I am definitely more engaged than I was when playing AC2. Also, I prefer jumping across Italian roof tops over the middle eastern ones.

AC1 and the whole series would have been quite different if they had followed that direction. I think AC2 was where they took on feedback and crystallised what AC was going to be.

Luggage wrote:

The ambivalent thing is that I don't sympathize or even care about Ezio yet. Him bragging about who he is and all that jazz after killing Alberti made me facepalm. But since I expect this to be an origin story I see where the writers came from.

I think you are intended to see a character arc with Ezio, across this game and across the rest of the games featuring him. I was very pleased; I felt they created a realistic, dynamic character who noticeably matures over time.

I mean, realistic other than the whole jumping across rooftops and (*REDACTED - SPOILER*) thing, but you know what I mean.

Hell, how evil/genius is the Monteriggioni city building mini-game? O.O

I spent an hour or so finding all 8 statues (really easy to find during night time) last night and spend all my money on unlocking all buildings. This morning I just let it run for an hour and put the resulting credits into bank and blacksmith upgrades. Here's to hoping getting an insane cash flow out of this will free me from races and pickpocketing and still allow me to buy all the equipment and courtesans I need. :p

Don't see myself giving up the treasure chests though. I just enjoy hunting them down too much.

So long as you don't totally ignore the rebuilding, you have more money than you know what to do with later on.

Scratched wrote:

So long as you don't totally ignore the rebuilding, you have more money than you know what to do with later on.

Well, I think I am already at 7k+ per 20 minutes, so I guess that qualifies.

I picked AC2 and Revelations up for a combined $15 during a steam sale of some sort, and I'm really happy with AC2 so far. I keep bouncing inbetween AC2 and D3. Both games are easy to play in smallish chunks, and it's really keeping both titles fresh for me.

I'm playing with a gamepad, and there are a couple of frustrating moments during the free running, but most of those kinks are getting ironed out as I get used to and account for the oddities of the system.

I always used the xbox gamepad on the PC version. Mouse and keyboard just never worked for me with the AC series. I still get moments where I'll leap off the side of the building accidentally, but hey, that's what parachutes are for.

I had this laying around for over half a year now, borrowed from a colleague. I started it in between ME3 and D3 and got about 2/3 in. Yesterday I finished it after about 24 hours of playtime. And I have to say, where AC1 was an intriguing concept that felt unrefined in a lot of ways, AC2 was the game that made me a fan of the series.

The overarching story is still ape$#!+ crazy, but thankfully way more in the background than in AC1. While I didn't really care about Ezio as a character, I really liked that dude at the end and am looking forward to seeing him again. And assassinating the pope must be every agnostics wet dream, amirite?
The combat felt so much more refined. I only used the hidden blades and unarmed combat styles, because that's all you needed. Unarming the heavies and killing them with their own weapons never got old. Throwing the archers off the roofs instead of killing them as well. Over the course of the game I must have used no more than a dozen health potions, because the counter and dodge worked so flawlessly. I was a little miffed that they apparently cut my favorite combo of "throw enemy down and then kill him with the hidden blade while he's down". Also, assassinations from above and below ledges - awesome!
The free running and climbing got turned up to 11 and was so much more responsive and respecting of the player's time than AC1. I am still far from a fan of the races, but if I failed them in AC2, at least I felt it was my own fault and not Ezio running up the wrong wall or missing a jump because I aimed 5 degrees too far to the left. The culmination of course were the assassin tombs, each of which I completed as soon as they became available.
From a tool perspective, it felt a little too gimmicky. Why do I get a gun 2/3 through the game, which I only need for exactly one kill in the whole game? Throwing knives are so much better? What do smoke bombs do? Or the poison blade? Never used them.
I did appreciate the Monteriggioni mini-sim though. Collecting the 8 status and letting AC2 idly run for an hour here or there while playing ME3 MP allowed me to fully upgrade the town and never worry about side missions or hunting down those treasure boxes again. About halfway through I stopped buying the maps and still finished the game with ~400k in Ezio's pocket.

All in all I love the game more than I thought I would. I am definitely looking forward to AC:Brotherhood now.

PS: I wish they would either just drop or redesign the vehicle mechanics. The carriage and horse "races" drove me mad. Surprisingly enough, the flying machine actually worked well.

Okay, I have mostly dealt with the horrific mouse smoothing problems by disabling "Enhance Pointer Precision" in Win7 control panel. But is there a way to disable the blinding white screen that flashes every single time anything changes in the interface? Inventory, BLINDING WHITE FLASH. Map, BLINDING WHITE FLASH. Codex, mission update, switch to a cut scene, switch FROM a cutscene, access the menu, BLINDING WHITE FLASH.

I'm sort of enjoying the game -- far more than the infuriating AC, of course -- but the eyestrain is killing me.

I'm about to boot this up for the first time. Good to hear it's a little fun at least. I bought it on the general impression that it's "like Assassin's Creed, with less Utterly Dull".

My guess is that it's worth playing with a controller, since it's nearly the definitive console game.

Honestly, it was my favorite out of all the Assassin's Creed games. Brotherhood and Revelations just did an utter overkill, what with adding bombs, and ziplines, and the hookblade, etc, etc. AC2 keeps it nice and tidy on that front, no fancy schmancy arsenal here.
Oh, and the protagonist doesn't dissolve into bits the instant he touches water, so that's gotta be a plus!

Looking forward to reading about your first impressions!