Assassin's Creed: Revelations Review (9.5/10)

Assassin's Creed: Revelations is a great game, going the distance to prove itself as a justifiable new addition to the franchise, and as a result turning out to be the best entry so far despite a few notable flaws. This time around, the plot revolves around Desmond's desperate rush to discover the final memories of both Renaissance Assassin Ezio Auditore's journey to Constantinople and Crusades Assassin Altair's final days in the Creed. The struggle between the Assassins and the Templars has escalated, and that means Ezio and pals must use deadlier means of weaponry to take down their enemies- as such, you'll employ new gadgetry like bombs, a developed brotherhood and the awesome hookblade to kick some ass history-style! These new gimmicks are cool, but like the bizarre 'Den Defense' and FPS-esque puzzle modes that have been thrown into the mix, they don't really do much to improve the tiring series formula, and in the case of those aforementioned modes they almost work against the gameplay at times. Worry not though, because for better or for worse, Assassin's Creed is just how you remember it: a tight, intense action-adventure title packed with comedy (one riff on the Guitar Hero series should resonate with gamers for quite a while), romance, battles and blood, and its setpieces have never been more engaging. Developer Ubisoft Montreal appears to have taken notes from some of the genre greats, because Ezio's epic adventures in the locations of the five Masayaf keys would feel equally at home in the likes of Uncharted and Tomb Raider, a trait which really adds to the blockbuster movie feel of the entire experience. Mostly, though, you'll get that sense from the fantastic storyline- while the writers have decided to shed many of the key characters from ACII and Brotherhood, there is a great new cast to get to know in all three time zones, and especially towards the end of the campaign some huge twists are revealed which really will shake up the franchise for long-term fans, promising big things from next year's conclusion to the Desmond 2012 arc. So, if Revelations is the best instalment in the series so far, and Brotherhood scored full marks last year, then why doesn't this? The answer is simply that video gaming has moved on since Assassin's Creed last shipped a new title, and Revelations does very little to prove that this franchise has moved on enough with the industry to justify its annual releases. Yes, the storyline is fantastic, wrapping up Altair and Ezio's stories beautifully, but it feels disjointed and lacking in direction on several occassions, and the cliffhanger at its conclusion is even more irritatingly vague than Brotherhood's. Yes, the hookblade and bomb system do help to ensure the gameplay doesn't feel repetitive and tired, yet at times you can't help but wonder whether less would have been more when the 'Den Defense' and puzzle modes are so jarringly inefficient. And yes, the multiplayer has seen a radical improvement, however it still won't be pulling people away from COD anytime soon. Ultimately, it boils down to this- Assassin's Creed: Revelations is a superb addition to the franchise, undoubtedly an essential play for fans, but if the development of gameplay mechanics is going to be this minor every year from now on, then the series could really risk getting stale in 2012. Sort it out for AC3, Montreal!