This year Ubisoft has graced us with not one, but two Assassin’s Creed games, one of which is the subject of this review, the other being Assassin’s Creed: Unity.
It seemed a strange move by Ubisoft to release two games on the same day for differing generations of consoles, but the more I played through Assassin’s Creed: Rogue, the more I warmed to the idea and eventually managed to shake away the feeling that I’m being fed a second glass of milk from the same cow.
Read on for the full Assassin’s Creed: Rogue review.
Story
For the first time in the series we’re playing on the other side of the fence, though it’s really a second time if you count Assassin’s Creed III’s Haytham Kenway sections, but it’s the first Assassin’s Creed to place you within the Templar order for the majority of the game. An interesting story plot or just a gimmick to lure players in?
Thankfully it’s the former and Shay Cormac’s tale is told splendidly, albeit with a few misgivings here and there, though the story itself is fantastic and offers a real service to fans of the series, answering a few questions along the way.
If you’ve followed the series since it’s inception then you’ll have a pretty good idea as to what the timelines of the games are and you’ll also be painfully aware of how the series has gone back and forth since Assassin’s Creed III and Black Flag – Rogue doesn’t help the mind-bending timelines much either.
Shay’s story takes place between 1752 and 1761, concurrent to Assassin’s Creed III’s earlier chapters, even bringing back some beloved characters, not just from Assassin’s Creed III but also from Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag, so there’s a little bit of thinking required to work out just where you stand in history.
It’s not a bad thing though and each character brought back from the previous two games are a welcome addition to the already strong cast of characters that Rogue presents.
They’re not just throwaway characters either and they’re given adequate screen time to be fleshed out and become more than digital men who walk in and out of view. The re-introduction of certain characters isn’t just a novelty either, there’s a reason that Haytham Kenway and Achilles are brought back to life, though it’s not my place to spoil the tale for you, I’m only here to give you my impressions of the story. What I can say is that Kenway is just as dastardly yet charming whilst Achilles is a little, different.
In some respects Rogue’s story holds up with the best of them, even exceeding some and serves as a great companion to Unity. There’s a few secrets for you to find, which for me as a long time fan of the series was well received.
As a big fan of games with strong narratives I’ve come to associate the Assassin’s Creed with great story-telling, though Black Flag was a personal disappointment in terms of storytelling, Rogue has once again managed to capture my imagination and just as Assassin’s Creed III hooked me in and lead me to research the American Revolution, Assassin’s Creed: Rogue has got me pouring through history once more. Come to think of it, I’m pretty sure I’d have gotten a higher grade in my History A levels had Assassin’s Creed been released a few years sooner…
If you’ve an interest in the historical stories that unravel within the Assassin’s Creed universe then you’ll be pleased with what Rogue has on offer, especially if you’ve always wondered what came before Assassin’s Creed III and it’s characters, how they came to be and what preceded the events of Assassin’s Creed III and the next-gen exclusive Unity. I’ve said enough, if you really want to know the story of Shay’s journey then you’ll just have to plonk down the cash and buy the game.
I’ll wait for their XB1/PS4 Port, cause I can promise they’ll do it.
For info, you should play Rogue before Unity before it reveals some interesting plots details you’ll only know if you play Rogue.
boooo
-urns!
i think i might overdose on Creed this week.
Given that the only images you posted are stock, I doubt you’ve ever played this game. Shameful.
For your information I did play this, excessively. You’ll also notice that 99% of reviews contain press release screenshots as they show off the title in its best light.
Is your role as a reviewer to show a game “in its best light” or a more critical, fair one?
Good review. Buying it today. Keep up the good work.
Mr. Harding, would you say this has the second best narrative to Assassin’s Creed 2?
Hmmm, it depends on your personal opinion, I can’t really say that everyone will find the story to be the best, but like I say in the review, if you’ve followed the series and you’re a fan of the stories then you’ll be happy. And please, call me Chris 🙂
Okay Chris! It’s just, ever since II the series has been going down in terms of story quality if you get what I mean? Brotherhood had a lot of potential, but the short development time left much to be wanted in the relatively short campaign.
Revelations had beautiful finale, but was mostly forgettable with its Istanbul-coup de’tat tale. III was ruined for me by the overuse of timeskips and jarring transition from Haytham to Connor. And IV never really felt like it was going anywhere.
Rogue and Unity both have interesting concepts, but I’m really interested in a tale about Shay’s revenge.
Bullshit ‘review.’ Game was only released today and Ubisoft’s review embargo still hasn’t been lifted. So you’re either violating an agreement with them so you’ll never get a review copy ever again, or you’re full of shit and haven’t played the game. Given the shitty grammar throughout, my guess would be the latter.
Yes the game only came out today, but I’ve had my copy since before release and it didn’t come from Ubisoft do there was no embargo for this site. If you still feel the need to swear and make personal attacks, please be man enough to do it in person, or better still; grow up.
Bullshit ‘review.’ Game was only released today and Ubisoft’s review embargo still hasn’t been lifted. So you’re either violating an agreement with them so you’ll never get a review copy ever again, or you’re full of shit and haven’t played the game. Given the shitty grammar throughout, my guess would be the latter.
They are still milking that cow really bad.
Unity is a glitchy, low framerate ridden MESS. It’s not even playable, after a day one patch. Not sure what game some critics on metacritic were playing but i’s horrid. They tried pushing the graphics on two systems that can’t even handle it at 900p, which doesn’t give much hope for next gen only games of the future, trying for 1080p. And also the gameplay is just as bad. Nothing new, chase, be chased, kill, be killed, same ole same ole. Rogue has fresh ides, good graphics (for what it is), a great story line, a basic extension of BF, but even better IMO. You play in a great free roaming location. And it’s just a fantastic game overall. Take my advice, dust off your 360/ps3 and get gaming on it for another year or so. If they even make games run great on Ps4/Xbone. This isn’t the first time we’ve seen all new games perform better on last gen, than current/next gen because they push them to the limits, they can’t handle. That’s a shame the few reviews on Unity are all about the amazing graphics. When the game is totally unplayable. I rented it, so I know, and also read all the horrid reviews on the game. Even on PC is runs horribly, and crashes constantly. I rest my case.
I’m following the advice from the review, playing Rogue first then moving onto Unity. I never know, they may have a fix out for Unity by the time i get around to it.
Good review for the game none the less. I’ve played a few hours and i’m impressed, especially seeing some locations i’ve not seen since III (the Homestead for example).
Shut up James!