Assassin'S CreeD III

Another epic Release from Ubisoft and developed by Ubisoft Montreal , Assassin's Creed III is one of the best games that the gaming industry had ever witnessed till time . Making use of the new Game engine ' Anvil Next ' the game's environments looks stunning and real time when compared to its predecessor versions.  First time there will be a change in the weather as you move around in the game with rain , snow , lightning , and cloudy areas . The game was supposed to be in production from 2010 as soon as the AC II got released .

The entire story take place during the American Revolution from 1753 to 1783 . Players take the role of
Ratonhnhaké:ton aka Connor and also start the game with Haytham Kenway who later on becomes the leader of the Templars. Connor is a half English and Half Mohawk who is born to Haytham and Ziio of the native tribe. The present story takes place from where Revelations left off with Desmond Miles and his team in finding the Temple which houses the mechanism to prevent the end of the world by 2012 . In order to make the mechanism to work Desmond requires a key and to find which he goes into the Animus and bleeds into the life of Haytham Kenway whose blood line is then continued by Connor .

Desmond Miles Above Stadium

Contrary to the belief you start the game with Haytham ,whom you will think will be your player character and who will get to don the Assassin Outfit after some time as we saw with Ezio .But whoa you will get the shock of your life when he turns out to be a Templar . I mean even the game title pops up with the dramatic music when Haytham enters into America for the first time ..Sheesh . But later you will get to know its actually his half blood son who will become the Hero of the story. 

But it will take a long time to reach that . Haytham is so smooth in his words and refined that you will start to miss him after sometime , because Connor will be the exact opposite of him. Who is young and foolish that he rushes off into all things without even thinking it through . There is no grace in his speech , atleast tats what I felt . Ezio rocks when he says  'Rest in Peace ' everytime he kills off a guy . But Connor says something in his foreign language that will start to get irritating after sometime.

Gameplay ::

Young Connor running on a tree 

So coming to gameplay . Anvil sure is the next level engine in this game . I mean there is a fluidity in your character movements that was somehow lacking in the older versions of the game . The way that Connor moves is so smooth and easy with lithe gracefulness , that you will spend half of the game admiring his running :D. Not to mention the tree Parkour you now get to execute . My god . Being a native Connor is graceful while moving in trees as he was with the ground movements .It will be difficult at first to get a knack for moving from tree to tree without falling down , but once you get the hang of it , it would be the best . It looks so cool when he rests with a pose on the tree when you leave yourr character perched on the tree without moving him for sometime.

Running between crowds had never been easy wit AC due to the stumble and real time effects that was implemented in your character . But Connor can be easily made to move without hitting people at all through the crowds.

Fighting Style :: 

Another major aspect of the game which had seen a remarkable change is the fighting style of Connor . Introudcing for the first time is Tomahawk , traditional for Native tribe. Connor looks so cool wielding it that it becomes your most favorite weapon as soon as you go along . A new parry system is introduced which will successfully deflect attacks coming from every direction . But in order to successfully hit your enemy you must do a perfect counter when the enemy attacks . But not to worry the game displays a red icon above the head of the enemy who is above to attack you and when you counter correctly the game dramatically slows down during which you get to decide what form of attack you can use on the enemy  . After a successful counter if you press B you will throw your enemy in the intended direction , if you press X , then you will finish him with the actual combo which is for the particular weapon . and if you press Y you will use whatever secondary weapon you have in your selection to destroy the guy.

The chain quick kills is also present in this game where when you successfully execute a counter kill you can chain the quick kill to the enemy close to you by simply pressing the direction and X. One of the coolest things in the entire series of AC.

 1) Tomahawk ::

You will get to use the Assassin's special one or a blunt one or a native one . But the movements of Connor is absolutely ravishing to look . Especially the way he spins the weapon in air when you take it out of your sheathe . So cool. Each attack looks deadly with this weapon and when you take down the last enemy the camera slows down with a dramatic slow mo.

2) Hidden Blade : :

Hidden Blade - Concept Art

The most famous and awesome weapon of AC series , This time it has been a little upgraded from the previous version. You still have the dual blade in both of your hands . But the hidden blade now can be rotated and used in normal fights as if you are handling your short knife.  I still remember trying to get a counter kill in the previous versions with the hidden blade . Which would be so hard to accomplish that if you don't time it perfectly you will be slashed open by your enemy.

Hidden blade - Very useful against Predators in Wild

3) Bow and Arrow ::

The traditional Bow and Arrow of the native still makes an appearance this time . Gone is the cross bow and throwing knives but now we have the silent but lethal Bow with the quiver with you every time . It is more powerful than the cross bow if used correctly and can be used mainly to hunt animals silently.

Connor taking aim at a deer

4) Rope Dart  ::

A new weapon which has been introduced  this time which executes so coolly and awesome to master. Connor throws a dart which is attached to a long rope . When you stand at a higher position most probably a tree branch you can throw this at the enemy below you and then then jump on the other side thereby pulling your enemy effectively up by his neck and leave him hanging with the other end tied to the ground. It will be the coolest entry when you want to battle a battalion of soldiers.

5) Musket ::

The traditional English Musket with a sword at its end that can be used to fire a shot . When a group of soldiers aim at you to fire you can usually use a enemy who is nearby as a human shield in order to escape unscathed. U can use them as melee weapons too.

Another fluid movement that has been introduced is the ability to jump through open windows and run through the household in order to escape from the visibility of the guards who are chasing you .It will be so cool and most effective because simply running will not be enough to escape from guards who are chasing you . That is the one aspect of the game which I found out to be very difficult in this game.


6) Hand Combat ::

Hand to hand fight has been improved a lot in this game . I mean the usual counter disarm is there . But now Connor executes some special moves that looks  exactly like WWE moves :D .It will be so cool to look at . But i never got to experience it that much . Still it was enticing to look at .

Counter attack has also been upgraded , Like when more than one guy attacks you at the same time and if you counter it successfully Connor will execute his own stylish and dramatic takedown of all the three guys without receiving any kind of input from you guys .It will be so awesome to look.

Fighting never had been such a pleasure with Connor's stylish and graceful moves .


Eavesdropping ::

This never was this much difficult in the previous versions. But now they have upped the talent required for this . Because most of the time you have eavesdrop on moving targets which is the most hardest . These guys are so sharp that they they will easily recognize you . And your blending technique will work only at some places while the other places you have to hide by trying to hide behind a box or wall and peeping out ( another new feature). Although this will prove difficult only when you are trying for 100 % synchronisation while playing the mission. If you don't consider the optional objectives then the game won t be a challenge at all.

 That full sync option in AC series has always attracted me . Instead of compelling the players to play in the only way designed by Developers, Gamers are given a choice to choose between their own clumsy way of doing things or The Real Assassin's way of doing things .Hats off to the team for that .

Naval Battles ::

Connor will get to commandeer and ship for the first time . A ship which runs on sails and wood . Breadth taking to experience when the we have to battle against Rogue winds and rocks in the sea projecting out. Not to mention enemy ships who start firing with cannons . You have to align abreast to them in order to give an order to fire from your side Cannons . You also have a small slingshot gun for taking down smaller and more maneuverable vessels which acts mostly like a precision shot.The way you use your full sail and half sail matters a lot when it comes to quick turns and proper navigation in rough seas. Quite enjoyable experience  .When the enemy fires at you , you can give a command to duck which protects you and your crew as well as the ship from taking any kind of damage. The ship which Connor has in Davenport Homestead is Aquila which will be available always for travel.

You will get to experience the real Historic battles which occurred in the american History . Like the , battle of Bunker Hill, Naval battle Chesapeake bay which had happened in real time. When they said AC series is a better teacher of History I scoffed at the idea . But experiencing the battles I have to say that I was astounded. You will get to meet Benjamin Franklin , George Washington and other major Epic Historic Characters who have been brought back to life , thanks toUbisoft Montreal developers .

Anvil Next engine takes our breadth away in the reality based movement of Grass in Frontier and Davenport . Not to mention the snow which makes your journey harder like hell while moving through layers of it . Make sure u stick to your path when you travel the forest regions because not only the path will be difficult but you will come to face to face with wolves or bear or other kind of predators that roam the wilderness.

A quick look at the Anvil Next Engine Capability ::

Hunting ::

Another new aspect of the game that has been included in this game and which had come around remarkably is the Hunting talent . Since Connor is brought up from wild , he has the ability to hunt animals for food . Smaller animals are very hard to catch before you get the Hidden blade . Without the blade you have to rely entirely on your hunting skills to capture the pray.

1. Bait : 

You can use bait to attract deer or small animals like Rabbit or Foxes to come closer to you as you hide in Overgrown bushes . When the target gets too near you can hit them with a blow from your blunt weapon to get them down. Although you have to be careful because if you are too close to the bait then the animal will get spooked by you and will take off in another direction .

2. Snare : 

A small trap which can be combined with the bait to capture an animal. If you can t find any animal nearby , you can analyse a clue that can be a near by plant which has fruits which forms the major food item for Rabbits . Once you get to know that all you have to do is lay down your snare and after sometime you will find a prey snared into it . The main use of hunting animals is to Skin them . As their coat and Venison can get you a good price in Shops. Although you have to be a little careful . Because neatly killed animal coats will fetch you a larger price than the one  which had been mutilated beyond any saving .

Young Connor Setting up a Snare  

3. Analyse Clue :

Connor also amazing talent to track enemies or prey by analyzing clues that are found . You will first come to know of this when Connor plays hide and seek with his friend when he is little . Quite interesting and useful talent to lay a snare for Deer or another animal that nearby .

You can also use your Bow and Arrow to hunt animals . You will come across bears , wolves , Elks and deer , rabbits , foxes . Out of which I found Wolves as the dangerous ones . Because these guys travel in packs and as a result if you fail a QTE with your hidden blade when a wolf pounces on you , your life will almost be gone . Another failed attempt by its friend and Vola , you will get desynchronised .So watch out for these guys when you cut through the path next time.

Connor skins a Deer

The story of the game is good and even has its epic moment in it but the climax of the game was a little disappointing when compared to the awesomeness of the gameplay which you had experienced . I mean the last fight was too simple and the fight with Haytham was such a pathetic attempt .I don't know why they did that . But I felt that the end of the game was too choppy and abrupt .

Connor and Achilles -Mentor 

Character wise I found Haytham Kenway more interesting and felt proud to play with him than I felt with Connor. Haytham is the perfect Brit who has a roguish , good looking face with a superb drawl of the Brits . You will love the way he talks. And I found out that his views and ideals were mature when compared to Connor . Who acts just like a child and his voice too is a little simple . Ezio was awesome in it . I  don t know why but I didn't like this guy very much when it comes to his voice.

Haytham and Charles Lee

You would be amazed at the enormity of the open world that the developers have provided for this game .You have the city of Boston and New York to travel and explore , Frontier that acts as a path way to the different regions you can enter. Davenport Homestead , home of Achilles and where you get trained with you Assassin skills .The game really is huge . I mean it took me a solid 8 hrs to complete just the main missions .When you take the side missions and quests into account its going to provide you with another solid 8 hrs of gameplay for sure .

Pro's  ::

1. Its Assassin's Creed III , yeah baby :D ..That excitement will always be there when you open the game everytime .
2. Connor moves so slickly and gracefully that you will just play the game just to watch him run and slash through his enemies with his Tomahawk.
3. Epic Historic Battles will be shown with detail and you will get a chance to experience them first hand.
( AC series was always a better teacher of history than what the real teachers in classes did  :P )
4.Get a chance to navigate a real ship and awesome sea battle that can never be rivaled with the before games.
5. Anvil Next Game Engine helps a lot to make the environment look stunning and awesome with changing weather conditions.

Con's ::

1. Story's ending was a little abrupt.
2. Connor's character and Voice was a little disappointing .


A game which  ought not to be missed by anyone especially Gaming enthusiastic.

Rating  : 9.3 / 10

Regards
Ram