From this point forward, we have no other option but to jump down. Down-climbing would take too long. So, we take a leap of faith to the stack of hay below. An interesting thing to note is that even though we are taking leap of faiths, the “intelligent” A.I. doesn’t seem to notice someone hawking down the wall with speed into a hay pile. The streets are certainly busy with guards chasing thugs, children, merchants, and even beggars, some of which are wives. They will spot Altair in his fanciful robe and will plead for money, or assistance. If you happen to help the guards catch a thug, or perhaps even give him a good hard beating, no one will mind. Each character has a societal value, subject to change. But, if you hurt someone like a guard, expect death.

When we enter Talal’s slavery location, we are launched into a cut-scene which reveals that the whole thing was a ploy, and he knew we were following him, by some miracle. As this happens, we are flashed by a spot of light on the screen occasionally, even an “Initializing Image…” text. You will be able to see scenes of your enemies showing off, hitting the active scene button, or currently R1, correctly. Holding down R2 puts Altair in a defensive stance. He’ll skillfully dodge any attack and while he does it, can make a counter attack by hitting X. Targeting an enemy requires just a tap of L1, and that can lock you onto a specific target for a more centric approach. Don’t worry. He is still defensive, and automatically switches to a new target if he is hit. For the entire attack system, timing is everything. Hitting X as soon as your enemy’s combat animation begins will play a cinematic like sequence that shows the opponents destruction.

Assassin’s Creed contains several bugs, palpable by several animation issues, a few times where Altair gets stuck, sometimes the enemies do not die and the mission could no longer progress, and unrecognized, inactive footholds and handhold’s, which most likely can’t be fixed due to the programming scheme of the wall objects.

The response of the A.I. crowd to your actions towards a person is far from amazing or believable and is the only reason why Assassin’s Creed will see a horrible downfall as a game. They cheer if you catch a thug, and run if you scare them, but one of the most disturbing thing aside from the A.I. crowd not noticing a person tomahawking into a hay bin, is them saying the exact same thing. Pure verbatim in their reaction is a huge turn off. “Run! Please don’t hurt us!” is the only response you will hear when they are scared at the slightest. It’s as if you casually sock someone’s arm, it is as if you’ve brutally beaten them in public and gouged their eyes out. Or a bleak “hail to the kind stranger!” If you do, however, attract the attention of the guards due to this serious “intelligent” A.I. crowd flaw, you need to break their line of sight if they are chasing you. To do this, an alert meter in the top left of the HUD will show red if guards are onto you and flash yellow the moment they lose sight of Altair. That’s your cue as an assassin to slip in somewhere. If you cannot do that, head around a corner and use the “blend” ability to assume the role of a monk, constantly praying while walking slowly. This is another annoying factor, which guard does not notice an assassin in a white robe and a big sword on his back, especially if these assassins are known to do the same thing repeatedly, over and over until it bores the player to an inch of death. Assassin’s Creed is completely made rotten by a horrible A.I. and moreover even worse gameplay elements.

All of this is supported by 10,120 string animations for Altair, not dynamic animations used in a majority of Sony’s first party titles. As a short brief, string animations are simple animations pieced together to add for a fluid effect. But, in reality, even a millisecond move of the blade or any object for the entire Altair character counts as 1 animation, not his whole character movement as 1 animation. String animations extremely simplify the process of detailed editing, exemplified from Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune or Heavenly Sword, and allow for a minimally smooth effect. So, don’t be fooled by this figure when it’s referred to as “animations” for Assassin’s Creed. Another gripe is that the camera is a huge irreparable problem in Assassin’s Creed at this point. It can sometimes lose its place or get stuck behind bushes and against walls.

In terms of overarching gameplay and storyline, Assassin’s Creed is not meant to be stealthy. There are elements where you will need to be a bit sneaky, but this is rarely always the case as you will also be forced to make split-second decisions on a regular basis and will almost always be running from something or someone. As for storyline, Assassin’s Creed takes place in an open world environment. True. You can go to any city, and choose where you will carry out a specific mission and how you will do that. That’s fine. But the apparent downside to Assassin’s Creed in general is that for a game claiming to be all about interaction and consequences, “the consequences of your actions will not alter Altair’s fate in any way,” said Jade Raymond. The display of their Le Parkour system, the crowd blending action, wall climbing with addition to the details for the environment as crucial, is certainly impressive. But the fact that their aim was to provide for an interactive experience that not only insinuates consequences of any action you choose, whether through the A.I. or the game’s main storyline missions, it will not affect Altair in an unique way, while still driving the central plot through—-the stop of the Crusades.

Despite all of these flaws, some minor and most of them major, Assassin’s Creed may seem like a promising title for anyone who wants to scratch the surface of the history of the Hashshashin sect, as fixing the core gameplay at this point will be impossible considering the release is a few days away. For anyone looking for a truly enjoyable definitive experience in the life of an Assassin, Altair’s robe is something you might not want to try on.