Watch Dogs

Supposed to be release bundle along with PS4 , Watchdogs was the most expected Next-Gen Game that created a new fever among Ubisoft Fan Boys . In fact the response for the game was so high that even Ubisoft got scared that the just released AC IV: Black Flag will take a hit . So the PR and the financial team thought about it and finally pushed back the release date for the game to a much more safer zone of mid 2014 . Not to mention the huge backlash Sony had to receive because Many had pre-ordered PS4 in the hopes that they would get a Watch Dogs Bundle but now they have to settle with Killzone. Gosh ! such was the uproar that even I thought that Ubisoft had scarred its fans . But Finally the roar subsided and we get our hands on the game at an approx 5 months delay . Ubisoft had commented that they needed the extra time in order to polish the games . But we all knew wat that really was about ;)

Story ::

Players take the role of Aiden Pearce who lives in a Futuristic Chicago where the entire city is under one network , CTOS . All it takes is a click of the button to control crimes or to stop criminals in engaging in their day to day activities . Of course if the Good has so much power the evil will find ways to take control of it in order to maintain the balance . That is the nature of Karma . So what is the most scariest thing that can happen when everything is controlled and handled under one Network. HACKERS . Yup , tat is wat happens. Aiden starts the role with small time fixer contracts and slowly grows to be known for his special skills . Armed with his friction locked Baton ( Asp) and his trusty weapons and also add in the Free Running and Street Fighting tactics , this guy is unstoppable . A unreputed force that has to be feared because of his abilities to hack almost anything in the city . So when Aiden Attaks the Merlaut Hotel , Owned by Dermont Quinn , he sets off a chain reaction that results in the death of his Niece Lena Pearce . Now Aiden is out for blood . All he wants is to get to know the real person who was behind the hit so that he can put a bullet in between the mystery person's eyes . But Revenge is a not an easy choice . Regrettably or favorably the activities that take him on the path to Salvation turns him into the Vigilante who protects the city ;)

A Quote from the Final scene in the game ,

"I don't look back anymore. I don't regret. I look forward. Everything is connected, and I'll use that to expose, to protect, and if necessary, to punish."

―Aiden embracing his role as The Vigilante.

Graphics ::

The game engine that was used for Watch Dogs had used 2 of the best of Ubi Engines . Anvil and Anvil Next used in Assassin's Creed ( AC 3 and AC 4)  and Dunia ( powered Far Cry games) , Combine it together and you get the all new powerful Disrupt . yup a new engine which has the combined power of both engines and also has the added benefits of the AI and NPC characterizations they had required . One look at the game in Ultra Settings is enough to make you believe that this indeed is the next gen. I am not just talking about the Sun Rays or the lighting effects that make the game so special but its the number of person's who are available on screen . And The Profiler does the job of scanning everyone on screen at the same time that its almost impossible for the VRAM to incorporate every detail on screen. Sadly that was the cause for the game to be so demanding on PC . Even Enthusiastic gamers who had gaming Rigs much more powerful than the recommended specs were frustrated with the laggy frames and stutters . On a Cheerful note the Nvidia drivers did an amazing job of boosting the FPS in Nvidia cards [ AMD not so much :( ] and The Game's Lead Developer has mentioned that the team is working on a patch that will make the game work seamlessly . So far no other updates from the team . I guess this is the one of the major Drawbacks when they release a Multi platform title in all systems at the same day .

Get a detailed know how of how Nvidia has introduced Gameworks by Clicking on the Link Below

NVIDIA GAMEWORKS details .

But still the game Looks astounding even in the Medium settings . Although many players commented that GTA IV which was released for Last gen had much better attention to smaller details like , Scratches on Car and blood on hood while hitting a civilian and Watchdogs being a next gen game had failed to implement that .Check out the video that was uploaded by a very astute Gamer .

Gameplay ::

Free Running has never felt so good in a city . Aiden Moves the same way Connor in AC3 moved except he does not fly over rooftops or through the doors of houses . He is capable of Free running by jumping over fences and grills and even some car hoods if you time it just right. And he can carry a load of weapons with no restrictions implemented ( Thank god for that :P ) . I hate games where you have to decide between whether to drop a gun and pick a new one or not . Along with Crafted items like Frag Grenades , IED's , Pills that will give you  a Focus boost , CTOS scan , Blackout buzzers .

But the most powerful one is of course Aiden's phone . It looks like an Apple but Dev team had squirted around the actual logo as they had to get a copyright stamp from the company :P Same has to do with all the cars you find in the game . Every famous car you know , is right there in the game except they just don't have the Company Logos on them  :P Aiden can use his Phone to hack Street Signals ( to prevent pursuers from catching up with us by making all signals Green and Go in a intersection) or blowing up steampipes and transformers to prevent Runners from escaping .And the most useful as well as a irritating feature is the Blockers . Conveniently placed crossing the roads but underground , these thing have the power that is equivalent to running straight into a wall . One time I triggered it too early and I smashed into it in full speed causing me to abandon the car and of course to die in the mission . Grrr !! But very handy as the game progresses and you get to know how to use them . Especially while trying to get away from cops . God they are so easy initially but as the heat level increases they bring in the SUV's . Man that is when the going gets tough as nails . Once you see them approaching , just tuck your tail and run. Or just jump into the water ;)

Apart from the main missions , you do get a lot of Side Contracts known as ,

Fixer Contracts ::

1. Driving Missions ::

Mostly has to do with acting as a Wheelman while driving a  stolen car from one place to another without getting caught by the police . Or acting as decoy while some other crooks have their free time with whatever heist they plan. Most Fun ones are where you have to reach a spot and then jump into another vehicle and then cross over to another spot . God these ones are really Thrilling .

2. Crime Prevention ::

CTOS analyses all the data it has and comes up with Citizen names who are probably going to commit a crime anytime soon . So you just have to be in the place when the system says that a crime is supposed to be committed and right when its about to happen you can intervene and take down the criminals . There are a total of 40 Fixer Contracts .

3. Gang Hideouts ::

These are the best ones . As these are the ones that concentrate on your Stealth kills. Being a Hacker you can hack cameras in a secure way and " Ride " the cameras to scope a area and find out your desired target . Believe me , don't ever think of going into a gang hideout with Guns blazing . You will either Die or end up killing the guy whom you are just supposed to beat . So end Result is :: Mission Failed :P Just make sure to identify your target , and then approach him from the least protected way . Take down one or 2 guys who are in your way and then once you take down the leader , run like hell out of the area . These guys are very good when it comes to gun fights that they will easily Flank you from sides or back . Very tricky . and the AI is really good . No matter how good you are , you always come within a hair of dying .  Most important use of Gang Hideouts is that you get to upgrade Skill points easily .

4. Convoy Missions ::

These are the worst or atleast tat is what I thought when I played them first . Bcos for one you have to take down a guy who is travelling in a motorcade that is fully loaded up with goons who can tear a whole in ur face with Machine guns in seconds . Initially I used to chase the guy in the car and try to take him down , but his motorcade always comes in the way and tries to push me off road . God these guys are good . I mean they can literally stop me from moving . Sadly when i try to do it one of them , it never works .
But finally I found a move that can end this mission so easily . All you need is to get a Rocket propelled Grenade Launcher . 3 Rockets to take down the motorcade is just enof to end the whole mission . KABOOM !!  easy peasy ! :P

CTOS towers ::

Ah the ever famous Area Unlocks that started out with Ubisoft's AC series and then continued on in FC 3 and now its available in its next series ( oh yes , its a series . Ubisoft has confirmed it .) This time its in  the form of CTOS towers that you have to unlock in order to gain access to the area so that you can hack your way out of trouble when you get into one again. Its almost like a puzzle section for the game . You have to use your Profiler and identify the unlock button as to where its hidden . Again its all about " Riding " your cameras . Quite a satisfactory touch when you do get to unlock it finally .

Mini Games ::

There are mini games that are scattered throughout the cities . There is digital trip section where you get a "Digital Weed" and get high and thereby taking you upon crazy trips like Spider Tank missions , Madness ,
PSYCHEDELIC ,  Alone , Conspiracy . I don t want to spoil the fun so just go ahead and have some fun with it . I am sure that you will come away impressed and surprised .

There are still a lot of side missions that I have not mentioned. just explore the world and get to know all :) 

Skills Upgrades :: 

You do have a skill upgrade system that is split into 4 sections Combat , Hacking , Crafting  and Driving . Depending on the skills you upgrade the gameplay changes dramatically . Concentrate on Combat and Driving and you are good to go ;) 

There were some complaints regarding the actual driving in watch dogs that was said to be horrible . But it looked fine to me. I mean it was difficult at first . The cars were too responsive and reacted immediately .  But think about it . the Developers are not idiots . If they build a game in a specific way there must be a reason for it. In order to navigate the confined alley ways and corners and streets you need the car in order to respond like that . I mean I have never seen a car respond so quickly . So instead of complaining just take the wheel and man up and start practicing. Its easy , My advice try some of the Driving Fixer Contract Missions and you are good to go .

Pro's ::

1. Amazing City that will open up to you with just one touch of  a button .Every thing is hackable and believe me they have tried to encompass everything as much as possible .
2. Breadth taking Graphics that will strain your GPU if you have a AMD card but smooth as a butter with the added benefits of Gameworks Technology if you have an Nvidia Card .
3. Excellent story script that starts out simple but in the end syncs up with the Protagonist and molds him into a Vigilante who stands up for the Good .
4. A lot of side missions that are just new and varied that it distracts you like crazy . You can spend hours and hours lost in this virtual Chicago .

Cons ::

1. Cars and vehicles are a little hard to handle . But nothing some good old practice can't rectify or a Controller ;)
2. AMD card users are going to grumble a lot as the game takes a huge hit in FPS while running on it .
3. Side Missions give more skill points for upgrades than main missions does . So its a must for you to complete side missions.

Verdict :: A Must play for Open World Sand Box Lovers . And a definite must play for all gamers as this may be a start of a beautiful Series like AC :D

Verdict :: 9.5 / 10

Batman Arkham Origins DLC :: Cold, Cold Heart

For Review of the Original Game Click HERE !  

Arkham Origins came into our hands on Oct 25th . WB Montreal followed up with a lot of downloadable content that kind of managed Arkham Fans for the sever backlash they heaped on the main game . Including Initiation DLC and few other skin packs with a mix of 2 extra MP maps . Lets face it . Batman multiplayer kinda sucked . I mean after 2 months of its release the servers were just plain empty .  Now exactly six months after that on April 22 , finally we get our hands on a worthwhile Campaign DLC . Way to go WB , Thanks to Ubi for starting this trend ;)

Story :: 

The story picks off after a few months from the main Game's story . It opens up with a video where its all warm and pleasant and enter Mr.Freeze who chills the hell out of everything . Now its upto The Dark Knight to once again put a stop to this Cold Criminal .

Although the story ain't that impressive, given that Ardent Batman Fans already know the story behind Mr.Freeze , the game still shapes up to a wonderful 2 hr entertainer.

Gameplay :: 

Gameplay remains the same with Batman's unique weapons and Traditional Attacks ending with Critical strike and a dramatic Slow mo for the enemies . Out of the numerous Areas that were available for Origins only 2 are accessible to fly across in this DLC . I guess they did not want the players to stray too much outside of the story mode. That was a real bummer . I was so looking forward to stream in my Jet here and there :( But still hey , you can't expect more form a DLC can you ? . Unlike Far Cry 3 DlC where  they just unlocked some key places which was already there in the real game , this was a entire new add on . SO I guess they needed to segregate it .

Still the highlight of game is the Thermo Suit that you get to don 20 min into the Story . Damn Batman looks cool . If you thought the initial suit made him look bad A** , wait till you see this . Especially with the bottom half of his face closed , he looks even more meaner and like a Dark Avenger . And the way the suit lights up with Orange (i.e) Thermal Energy is just too damn good. Although there are no new Gadgets , Hmm I don t think you can consider Cryo drill as a gadget bcos you get to use it only once , the game sure has its fine moments . Like Fighting against the guy with a Freeze gun . Doge here and there and when you get a gap , Stun him with the Bat Cape and pull his Freeze machinery out of his back .

Your Electric Gloves which you get from The Electrocutioner is still with you ( I still laugh at the way that guy was taken down :P ) but say hello when they change them into Thermal Gloves . Although they don't sound and feel dramatic the effect they have on the enemies is just the same . One thing that was cool is that I finally Got the hand of continuing my critical Strikes without breaking the combo .Phew ! Although Batman did look silly flying from one corner to the other hitting enemies here and there looking more and more like Flash !

The final Boss Battle where you do get to take on Mr.Freeze was a huge disappointment. I mean we already did face him once in Batman : Arkham Asylum . Atleast that was a little challenging and employed the use of some cool gadgets and some other unique moves . This is just routine Perch and Glide and attack and then again run back to your vantage point and wait till Freeze comes under your Ice pinnacle . Boring ! Altleast they could have finished it out with a dramatic Flourish like they did in Origins .

Only 4 side missions do occur in the map . Anarky is again to his usual stuff and you have to find the bombs before he cause mass destruction. Not challenging enough .

And Oh ! I forgot . I could have finished the game in 1 hr. It was just because of a major Game stopping bug that I was unable to complete it at all . I had to borrow a save file from one of the guys in Forum who had experienced the same issue .

Pro's :: 

1. Play as the ultimate Dark Knight in a even more Bad A** suit .
2. Extra 2 hrs of Story Campaign .
3 .BGM is much cooler than the original Game . Felt more like the Hans Zimmer Version :D
4. Gameplay feels more smooth than ever .

Cons:: 

1. Boss battle was pathetic.
2. Major Game Stopping bug where Batman just falls and falls into a empty dark space forever. No official Patch yet . Only workaround is to get a save File from one of the guys in Forum and hope it does not get corrupted too.
3. Too Small .
4. No Jet :( .

Verdict :: A definite buy for Batman Fans . But is it worth the 10$ . Well I guess it definitely is .

Rating :: 8.8 / 10

Regards
Ram

Thief

I have never played the original Thief game myself . But I have heard of its praises everytime in various Gaming pages. It was the first Genre which brought Stealth in a First person perspective . So Like all games which paved a way for future games Thief became a legend in the gaming world for its impressive idea , but most of all ,  it was the first game to implement the new and Unique concept . Now 16 years after the Original Game made its debut , Thief comes back as a reboot , thanks to Eidos Montreal and Square Enix . 

Story :: 

Once again story revolves around the main protagonist of the game , Garrett the Master Thief . Who is extremely good at making off with Loots and your valuables that the entire " Fantasy " world is in awe and in deep Fear of this Dark Ghost that looms in the shadows. Erin , Garrett's apprentice and him move along to complete a Job for Basso ( the guy who gives us the odd jobs here and there to keep his own pockets filled ). The Simple mission takes a un-expectable twist when Garrett comes upon the Baron and his friends cooking up a weird Ritual that may provide them with the ultimate power . But something goes weirdly wrong and Erin and Garrett gets caught up amidst of the entire procedure . Garrett wakes up after one year to find the entire City suffering from a unknown disease known as the Gloom . Now its upto Garrett to team up with Basso and Orion to find out the cause of this Gloom and to find way to reverse it . 

Gameplay :: 

Whoa !! Deja Vu  , Nah .. Not likely since i had never played the previous game :P . But still the game reminds me so much of Dishonored . ( Now that was one hell of a game ). Game feels like exactly as it felt in Dishonored but here there is no Blink , instead we have swoop , no Close Kills but Take downs . One thing that is cool is the ability to climb above the walls and higher areas with the help of the Claw . Just when you feel trapped in a corner with a guard approaching you ,  at the last moment , just glace up and move out of his range of vision. 'Phew that was close' moments were a lot in this game . 

And the ability to Extinguish the flame with a Water Arrow or to Reach higher areas with the help of Rope Arrow , the game sure does supplement the player with a lot of choices . But the poor thing is that they are so limited that they never can be used in a full on head to head combat. Maybe you could take one guy head on but more than one , Tuck your tails and run like Crazy . Oh yeah ! Don't forget to throw a smoke bomb to confuse the guys or else there is no use in running. These guys are so bent on catching you that they will follow you wherever you run . You may believe that you had lost them , when Wola ! they appear in front of you and Bam you are dead . And what is up with the heart stopping Sound that pops up " You are Dead" whenever you die. I mean , I agree that I am dead but sheesh ! is that amount of volume really necessary . I mean there was one time I was playing with the headset on ,that the sound just scared the C**P out of me .

Especially that level where you had to roam around a Crazy Asylum . No Sireee !! no headsets for that :P  

Asylum

Graphics :: 

The game is so demanding that 5 minutes into the game with all the eye candy enabled can make any PC to sweat . But at the same time it does not tax your PC to its core . Since there are no colorful imagery associated with the tone of the game , the developers only had to worry about the light and Dark areas . The difference between a dark spot and a medium spot to a extremely bright spot is shown remarkably . Black and Various shades of Grey forms most of the Color Palette with a few dips of yellow for the flames from the Lamp and Mast heads and Green for the Arrow with Gas . But still even as you play it , you can see that the game is beautiful in its weird and Gloomy sort of Way . Although the game can instill a sense of depression when you play it for a long period of time :P 

Weapons and Mods :: 

What is a Thief without his tools of profession. I am not just talking about the Lock picks and wrench tools . Garrett comes fully loaded with Water Arrows ,  Flame Arrows , Blunt Arrows ( for turning on switches and using them as distraction) , Gas Arrows , Rope Arrows , Pointed Arrows , Smoke Bombs and the a Poppy Flower that stimulates him enough to give him a extra sensory perception of his surroundings . And finally some med Kit in the form of food . Its good to see a game that is employing the old school method of using Med kit to refill your Life bar instead of the Auto fill bars of the recent games . Say hello again to our long forgotten Friends " Quick Save " and " Quick Load " :) God I missed you guys so much .

The only way to upgrade your abilities is to 1. Donate gold to the Queen of Beggars and purchase Focus upgrades, or 2. Deal with the shady merchant near the Crippled Burrick tavern purchase new Tools and Trinkets.Damn this can be irritating . I mean who in the right mind is going to go back again and again to the same place to upgrade . Why couldn't they just blend it and and makes those guys appear whenever there is a break in the main story line . I just met the Queen only once and Shady guy thrice throughout the entire game .Who needs a upgrade when you are good as me :P But seriously not even a map to guide us back to those guys . Come on . Wat is up with that.

Queen Of Beggars - Scary isn't she ;)

The way the Bow unlocks and expands in Garrett's hands is just too cool .

Pro's :: 

1. Once again step into a Game that takes First Person Stealth to all new level.
2. Gameplay mechanics though old , do make you glued to the game all the time.
3. The surprising change between FP and third person camera was exciting at some places .
4. Some levels really need a lot of strategic thinking if you are planning on going in un detected .

Cons :: 

1. Game reminds me too much of Dishonored .
2. Gloomy Setting and Environment that may depress you if you play for long . Definitely a Eye sore if you play for more than 5 hrs at a stretch.
3. Story feels boring and the gameplay never ever mixes it perfectly . Its just there for namesake .
4. No Good BGM .
5. Fighting Mechanics feels poor and repetitive .

Verdict :: A game that will be Enjoyed only by those who Love Stealth in First person perspective .

Rating  :: 7.2 / 10

Regards
Ram 

Assassin's Creed IV :: Black Flag

 Exactly one year after the release of its previous Installment , Assassin's Creed IV : Black Flag comes into the world with a flourish aiming to knock the teeth out of all gamers with its glorious gameplay . Being the Sixth installment in the series , Ubisoft has once again proved that it still  got what it takes to make a game even more better than the previous one . If you thought AC III  was awesome , wait till you start playing this .

Story ::

The story picks up where AC III left off , with Desmond Miles giving up his life in order to save the world from Extinction . Abstergo Enterprises Recovers his body and uses the genetic material present in his body to recover information about the location of an Observatory . You take the place of a un named character who comes to work in Abstergo and is tasked with getting more details about the Observatory by taking up the role Edward Kenway, Father of Haytham Kenway and Grandfather of AC III  protagonist , Ratonhnhaké:ton . Edward starts up as an ordinary sea loving worker whose greed for easy money and Riches pull him into the World of Piracy which was famous during the 18th century . Edward stumbles upon another Assassin on his way and and call it a coincidence or Destiny , ends up donning the Assassin's Uniform without earning it . Once he realizes the True meaning of it , he makes it his goal to earn it in the end .

Graphics ::

An AC game had never looked so bright and cheerful like this one. The First thing that you will notice as soon as you start the game is the Lush greenery of Forest and the mesmerizing Blue Depths of the Caribbean waters . God , I loved those moments when I could just jump into the crystal clear waters and swim by looking at the bottom where Crabs scuttle and Weeds wave :D . Thanks to Anvil Engine , the sea looks even more realistic with Waves and Dips that you had to consider when you fire your gun in a Naval battle . God ! this game is epic will be your thought when you take down a ship that is on other side of Wave Crest . Just Amazing :)

Gameplay ::

Gameplay is where AC always had proved its uniqueness . AC series was always praised for its climbing mechanics as it was the first game which allowed a player to climb any building of their choice in a open world Sand Box style game . And with the development of the series , the mechanic was even more refined to look fluid and a pleasure to play it for eg :: the Viewpoint synchronization or the lift Mechanic to take you up to the roof of the building in a second . Edward moves more or less similar to the same way AC III  Connor moved . With the ability to climb trees and rocks now , Edward is just unbeatable .

Connor of AC III

But where does Black Flag totally Rocks , Its when it comes to Jackdaw . Jackdaw is the name of Edward's Ship which he steals form a noble in a fight and later brands it as his own with his crew and personal touches . Jackdaw is not just for travelling from one Island to another but to dominate the Caribbean Waters with its impressive Cannons and Ram . Because keep in mind , the Ocean is not just for everyone to roam freely , especially Pirates . The Templars who occupy high positions in the British , Spanish and French Empires have conquered the entire Caribbean and keep it under their control . Now in order to venture safely you must avoid Restricted Zones in the seascape and skirt around them or take up the fort that is guarding the sector and claim it as your own . Its not as easy as it sounds . Jackdaw is just a small puppy when it comes under your control in the beginning  . Its upto you to turn it into a fearsome Mastiff that it is . Upgrades are now available for both Your ship as well as for Edward . Both requires money but upgrading your Jackdaw also needs Cloth , Metal or Wood depending on the section you are upgrading .

Now the Wood , cloth and Metal are hard to come by and can be got only by looting ships . The is where the game looks superb . We can even say that its the peak high light of the game .  Remember Pirates of The Caribbean , especially the sea battles between 2 ships at the climax, WEll you can do that in this game ;) Attacking a ship with your broadside cannons or Chase cannons , you wound it well enough that it becomes immobile . Once that is done you can begin boarding it , PIRATE style , like you saw in old Pirate movies . Best moment of mine for sure :)  . Once boarded you had to take down the Captain + a handful o Guards to make them give up . Once the ship is under control you can use it to repair the Damage your own ship had suffered or Release the Enemies and decrease your wanted level or send it to your Fleet . You also get Sugar and Rum in Loot which can be sold for money .

Boarding Ships 

Now you may feel disappointed when you went through all the trouble of Attacking and Boarding and found out you only got Sugar and Rum but no Wood and cloth which is crucial for upgrades . Believe me , I was pissed off at first , sometimes . But Later I came to know that the Spy glass you have can be used to find what a ship is carrying and its strength before attacking it head on . Quite useful . And Initially whenever you see a Man of War , a fair word of warning , just stay the hell away from it . These guys are like Big Brutes and can sink you in the blink of your eye. Not to mention the Legendary ships that occupy the 4 corners of the map . They look menacing and believe me , their bite is even more powerful . Even with your Jackdaw upgraded to the hilt , its difficult to take these guys down without a perfect Strategy .

Although  initially when you start sailing the Caribbean with your Jackdaw , you will feel scared and reluctant to cross the waters in fear that you may be pulled into battle , Once you start upgrading , you will just love the feel of Sailing in open waters . Especially when your crew starts singing a Shanty . It ain't the rock music you are used to hearing but still it soothes you :) .

Underwater Adventures ::

For the First time in an AC series , you get an opportunity to prowl underwater . Say hello to Diving bell ( deep sea diving as how it was done in olden days . God ! these guys are good in maintaining authenticity ) . And unlike the land , you can't prowl around or explore all over the sea ground . The diving bell can be dropped into waters at specific places, which will be filled up with treasure Chests and Animus Fragments . And who will be protecting this all ? Say hello to the Sea's most deadliest and most feared Predator of all time , SHARKS. God !! even now after years and years of watching JAWS i am scared to go under water alone . Man  these guys gives me the creeps . And they are vigilant like hell .

Protector of Deep 

You have to hide your self in underwater weeds or wreckages in order to escape from their field of Vision . Not to mention the Eels that sometimes make a grab for us underwater . God ! its a tense filled moment when you are in the deep down . Especially when your limited supply of Air seems to be going down . Thank god for our crew , they throw Air Barrels which contains Small pockets of Air that can be used to replenish our supply . Navigating through underwater has never been so much Fun and tense :)

Diving Bell 

I have to mention a level where you penetrate a Pirate's Cove / Assassination Contract Target . You will have to make your way underwater via  a Cave . Or shall we say a underground Mine that was later on swallowed by Sea .  Lets say its a underwater maze where you have to find a way out , in order to reach the cove . Damn ! you can imagine my surprise when a huge A**  Great White Shark prowled the Area just around a corner . At first I thought it had come in , without any idea as to why it was there and got stuck there , but later i realized that it was put there by pirates to avoid surprise attacks from Water ( Clever Guys ;) ) . But seriously that was a mini heart attack moment for me . I was completely frozen in my chair as well as in the game not even moving a muscle and holding my breadth until the Almighty crossed me .Phew !! Epic moment ever  :D

Air Barrels - replenish Air Supply  

Harpooning / Hunting ::

The Great White 

The game does bring back its hunting roots of Ratonhnhaké:ton . You can hunt all kinds of animals that are present all over the different islands and skin the dead corpses for its bone and Skin and use for upgrading your self or crafting new Dart Pouch , new dart or even another extra holster for a new gun . Edward can carry 4 at a time and can be used to chain shots together in cool combo .

Now when it comes to hunting in Waters , you need to reach a place where the jackdaw can drop anchor and Edward and a team of 2 go down in a row boat to bait the prey . It can be a Killer Whale , Great White Shark  , Tiger Shark ,  Bull Shark , Hammer head or blue whale . Killer whale is quite the tricky one as it charges at you from a distance and can cause you great harm . White Shark gives us quite a few scares by suddenly lunging up at us from the depths . All you have to do is to keep a look out for the bubbles that come up to the surface and just when your target breaches the water surface , throw the Harpoon at its belly . Whola , the harpoon is tied to your boat with the help of  a rope and so you are in for a ride as the beast starts pulling your boat along with it as it tries to escape .

And when you finally do finish of the beast , it will be lifted up into the ship , with huge amounts of cheers from your Crew members . I love these guys . I mean the round of applause and the cheers they provide EVERY TIME  when you get into the Ship and take the wheel is enough to make any guy giddily happy about these AI crew :D

Weapons and Combat ::

Pistols baby !!

Whats an AC  game without the infamous Hidden Blade, thanks to AC II where it was made dual ;) and this time or shall we say for the first time , the lead character will be capable of holding Dual Swords . God ! the possibilities of attacks and combo kills that you can get with this  is just so large that you will just forget to user other weapons in your stack . But still I missed an Alternate weapon in my collection . I mean in AC 1 , 2 and Brother hood series we had the small knife where the counter will be so brutal to look . AC III brought its unique Mohawk , kills which are done with that are just remarkably  exceptional . Not to mention the Free hand fighting techniques of Connor were just superb . When it comes to AC IV you just have the Dual swords and Hidden blades in your arsenal . You do have 4 guns , but that still doesn't equal the satisfaction you get from a close kill .

Dual Sword Prowess

You do get an opportunity to take down a enemy from above with your dual swords too .That was new . Other than that , combat wise the game was not that much . I loved AC III style of combat much more . You do have a Sleep Dart and Berserk Dart Blow pipe which can be used when you want to move in stealthily . And Smoke bombs to take care of Big brutes and Captains who just won t die . Rope Dart too makes a appearance near the end of the main missions. But again , its optional and most of the time you forget that they even exist at all .

Side Missions and Quests ::

Side missions are one thing that have to be mentioned . In the earlier AC series I had always avoided Side missions like a plague and continue on only with main missions , so that I can get a feel for the main plot of the game . And this was the first time ,  I got so distracted by the side missions that I forgot that a main story existed :D . Such was the variety and uniqueness that was present here . You just have so many interesting stuff to do , that you literally forget that there is a story to play , until the game reminds you to progress further in the Main story in order to unlock a certain thing that will be crucial for completing the side mission .

a ) Mayan Steale ::

One Such Side mission is The Mayan Steale you come across in remote corners of the Deserted Islands . Sometimes when you go in to explore a mysterious Island the creepy music that sweeps in , just rocks you and creeps you like anything . I expected some kind of weird or Mystic enemy to pop out of the bushes anytime. So back to the Mayan Steale , These are Mayan Statues that are present in the remote corners of the Map in deserted Islands. All you have to do is to climb atop one and solve the puzzle with your Eagle vision . Once you are successful , you will get a Mayan Stone as a Reward . Collecting 8 such Mayan stones will unlock a Mayan Door in the island of Assassins and you will get a fully armored outfit of the Mayans.

b) Treasure Maps ::

This is another superb side mission that just gnaws at your curiosity . Once you sync up a Viewpoint , your mini map will show a pic of floating piece of paper in the  near vicinity. Once you reach it , you will be able to search the Cadaver there and get a treasure map that has some vague drawings of the environments and with a X marking the spot where the treasure is supposed to be . Some co ordinates will be scrawled on the map that will tell you where the Environments will be located . Sounds Easy right ! Well guess again ;) . The twist is ,  once you reach the co ordinates , you will realize the co ordinates were not pointing  to a particular area but an entire Town . Bam !! .. Now its upto you to open your map , memorize some unique environment structures that are displayed on the map and match it to the environments as you run around the entire town . It is a huge task . But believe me,  when you do get to solve the mystery , even though the reward ain't that much , the Happiness you get is immeasurable .

c) Warehouses::

Looting Warehouses is another new venture that AC 4 can proudly speak off . This is another way of gaining Wood , Cloth or Metal used for upgrading your Jackdaw . Initial step is to enter into a restricted Area and to loot the key form the Guard unnoticed. Once that is done , you have to sneak up to the tavern and loot the S**t  out of it . Again this may sound easy , but The sharpshooters in the top of the barns and Watch towers make sure that its not so . They have a very sharp sight when it comes to identifying a target since they are in a good vantage point . Here is where your Sleep Darts and Berserk Darts are very much useful . But use them strategically as they can blow up in your face , tats a idiom by the way , not literal :D

Looting the Key form Captain 

d) Forts ::

Fort takeover is another new aspect in AC 4 if you need to roam the seas without being pulled into unnecessary naval battles . Most forts starts with 4 embankments that you need to take down . They have a heavy amount of firepower but rely mostly on Mortar . Best way to take them down is to move in close and quick and take them down with correctly placed heavy shots and with Swivel guns . Once the Fort Security collapses , its upto you and your crew to board the fort and kill its commanding Officer and take over it . Once you accomplish this , that area will open up in map with all the treasures and places of interest in the sector being marked on the map .

You do have the usual, save the Pirates from a British troupe that is attacking them, Assassination Contracts and Templar takedowns ( Which helps you in finding the six keys that are required for opening the Templar Armour that is present in your home town Villa ) . And the occasional Catch the papyrus ( in this case its a shanty ) or collect All Animus Fragments and loot all chests in the area / Town .

Pro's ::

1. Play once again as the mighty and invisible Assassin .
2. Hidden Blade Kills .
3. Beautiful Graphics that Strains ur Hardware when you crank it up but also runs fairly well in a medium level PC .
4. Caribbean has never looked so bright than in this game .
5. Impressive Side missions and endeavors that are too distracting that you end forgetting there is a main story for you to play .
6. Naval battles that just astound you and takes you back to the 18th century .

Cons ::

1. Main mission story line is better than AC III but not impressive .
2. BGM is a little simple , could have made it even more better .
3. The escapades into the real world by player character feels forced as always .

Overall :: An impressive game that has to be enjoyed by all . Especially AC fans are going to crazy over it .

Rating :: 9.5 / 10  ( Excellent )

Regards
Ram