Up until now the war, at least from our perspective, has been pretty one sided, but Ubisoft and the newest recruit in the ages long struggle between the Assassin’s and the Templars are looking to change that. Follow in the footsteps of a young talented Assassin, as events unfold that seem him switch allegiance. Direct sequel to Assassin’s Creed: Black Flag, hit the high seas, and discover the view from the other side of the fight, with Assassin’s Creed: Rogue
Assassin’s Creed: Rogue is developed and published by Ubisoft
Release Date: Nov 11, 2014
Consoles: PC, Xbox 360, PS3 (Strategy guide also available)
Genre: Open-world, Stealth, Action-adventure
Rating: M
Time To Go Rogue
In a war as old as time, or at least the Third Crusade, since that’s when we first hopped in an Animus and lived the genetic memories of Desmond Miles, when it all began in our first experience with Assassin’s Creed. With eight major releases, and a bunch more side titles, a lot of us have run around with a knife up our sleeve, looking for some dirty nobles of the Templar’s ilk. What we haven’t done, is work for them. Our favorite third- person, parkour, stealth, action-adventure open-world historical assassin simulator (possibly because there isn’t another one) has us playing for the other team folks, its Assassin’s Creed: Rogue
They flipped the script! What’s that line about being a hero long enough to become the villain? Doesn’t really matter, I just wanted a clever pop culture reference at the top that related to our theme. The point is, the lot of us have been hunting Templars in a war over centuries for quite awhile now. Through the backdrop of assorted historical periods, we’ve pit our skills against their numbers and come up on top, stopping who knows how many nefarious schemes? Well, Assassin’s Creed is doing a Heel Turn (that’s a Wrestling term for going from good guy (face) to a bad guy (heel)) and it’s time to join the dark side, let’s hunt some Assassin’s, let’s see how they like it.
I have to say, the Assassin’s series is coming a bit hot and heavy, two titles in a month? Seems crazy right? Particularly when one of them is for last gen, another for current gen, even though they’re both in the same story line. It goes like this; taking place after the events of Assassin’s Creed: Black Flag, and before Assassin’s Creed: Unity, Assassin’s Creed: Rogue ties it all together with an Assassin turned Templar named Shay Patrick Cormac. A cheeky Irishman with a rebellious streak, Shay becomes disillusioned with the Assassins, wondering perhaps, if what they are doing is best for the world, or best for the Assassins? Left shot in the back by his best friend, what else is there to do but find out?
I’m on a Boat!
Basically a direct sequel to Black Flag, which gave the series a healthy dose of rejuvenation in the form of Piracy, I mean, seafaring, this franchise is nothing if not built on the success of previous games in the series, so you get a boat again. A colonial era tale, Shay mans a tiller, and pokes pointy bits of metal into his enemies along the eastern coast, now with a shallower draft, players will be able to sail shallower waters, such as rivers, which just means more map and more gameplay. As well as ship to ship fighting, a series first, and some lovely new toys for seafaring destruction (including the ‘Puckle gun‘, which is really the best name in shooting stuff).
Trained by Assassins, Shay, spends a fair bit of the game unaligned, and in this Rogue is being praised for its story telling. Rogue plays like previous assassin’s games, regardless of the colors sported by the protagonist . It’s a bit of a shame, as being a ‘Templar’ would have been a great excuse to change things up. As with its predecessor Black Flag, Assassin’s Creed: Rogue takes place in the 1750’s,during the French and Indian war. So, prepare to parkour your way around the eastern seaboard, particularly New York, where Shay will spend a fair amount of time, unaligned, and fighting the gangs of that fabled city.
Who doesn’t like an anti-hero? In a franchise as big as this, creating a bit of grey area can only be a good thing. In a war as old as this, there’s bound to be some dirty business on both teams, it takes two to tango, as they say. So, grab a flint lock and something pointy, and let’s go find out what these Assassin’s are really up to.
Assassin’s Creed: Rogue is available now for the PC, Xbox 360, PS3 (Strategy guide also available)
And for a limited time, buy both Assassin’s Creed: Rogue and Assassin’s Creed: Unity as a packaged deal
