There's been a lot of talk on the streets up GameSpot Avenue that a new Assassin's Creed game is coming up. Not much information has been released about it but rumors are swelling up and the hype's getting tense. Ubisoft's Assassin's Creed is a critically acclaimed franchise - primarily on the Sony PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, however there have been releases on other platforms as well. But many gamers have been chatting on GameSpot articles on what it'll be like - the engine, graphics, characters, storyline, music, and others.
I was recently sharing my ideas with another user on an Assassin's Creed III article here on GameSpot and I thought that it would be a good idea to flesh it out here on this blog entry. I've never played any of the AC games but I do know a lot about how they work. I don't look up spoilers though.
There's been a lot of speculation on what console it'll land on. PS3? 360? Maybe even a handheld (or two) - or dare I say - the PS4 and 720..? I'm guessing it'll land smack-dab in the middle of the Sony PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 library. I've no idea if any information has been announced regarding the platforms it will be on, but from what I've observed so far, it'll probably be on the PS3 and 360. Both consoles still have a long life ahead of them.
Anyways, it's time I got to the point.
If you haven't seen my recent comments on Assassin's Creed III articles, I recently stated on how I'd like to see the game turn out - my opinion of it, of course. You can't say it'll be fact - but here's hoping.
I've no idea if it'll still be Desmond using the Animus but then again I haven't played the games. It'll probably be different this time around.
For the story, I can see a female protagonist in World War II as a member of the French Resistance. The French Resistance was an French organization to repel the Nazi invaders during WWII after France surrendered to Germany. They were pretty successful - they were able to foil the Nazis' plans, along with some of the Gestapo forces.
The way I see it, you play as the female protagonist - she's a French Resistance member and she's out to assassinate some bad crooks. I'm guessing she'll control a lot like Altair and Ezio, but more realistically. She'll probably have some gadgets and weapons made by the Resistance to help her out - fancy some hidden blades, anyone? Maybe the hidden blades and the hidden pistol hidden in her sleeve (like what Ezio had) can be - I don't know - combined if they aren't already. Like - stabbing a guy then immediately shooting him afterwards for a sort of a combo.
She will probably be able to do arial takedowns and fancy fatality-like moves like Altair and Ezio - but she will also most likely have to use guns (this is war, after all) too. I'm not sure if Ubisoft will or won't make the shooting a core mechanic if they do use this idea, but from my point of view - they shouldn't. I think they should keep the guns, but not make it a core mechanic and turn the whole game into a third-person shooter.
If the guns do have a finisher attack it shouldn't be like a clunky quick-time event like in the video game The Bourne Conspiracy. I don't even think guns should even have a finisher at all - they could - but I'm not sure how that'll work. Or Ubisoft can just strip the weapons from her arsenal altogether - the Nazis/Gestapo, etc. will have them - but the protagonist won't - just to keep the core mechanic of assassinating flowing.
Ever seen the movie Army of Shadows (or arme des ombres in French)? It's a French movie about the French Resistance foiling the Nazis' plans during WWII - it's a great movie and I think one of the scenes could tie in perfectly with the WWII French Resistance vibe. Spoilers of the movie are ahead.
SPOILER ALERT FOR ARMY OF SHADOWS:
I haven't seen this movie in a long time but there's a scene in the movie that takes place during a very foggy night (I don't use that term lightly - in this part of the movie it's ridiculously hard to see what's going on) where the main character has to land somewhere in Germany to meet up with his fellow Resistance members. The thing is - he has to get there by plane and he has to parachute all the way down to get to the hideout.
He waits in the plane once it's up in the air and by the time he reaches the destination he must jump from the plane before the Nazi anti-aircraft guns shoot them down (to put it short, he must jump before the Nazis notice the plane. If performed successfully, the plane can turn back without being seen). So there's a lot of pressure on this guy - kinda like how there will be a lot of pressure on the player because he/she - like the main character in arme des ombres - has absolutely no experience in parachuting. That's pretty much it - a scene where the player must jump from a plane and parachute down to the ground on a foggy, dark morning just when the sun is about to rise.
END OF SPOILERS
If you read the details I gave on arme des ombres I guess you've got a good idea on how one of the gameplay scenes will be like. But I've got some kind of "story" made up for this Assassin's Creed III.
It could probably be like the revenge kind of story in ACII. When she was younger, she witnesses the horrors of war as she sees her country get attacked by Nazis - her parents are taken away from her and such. As the French Resistance member the player's main objective is to track down and assassinate a head Gestapo leader or something like that (I know it's like a generic storyline but hey - the game needs a plot right?).
She probably will use a variation of the whole get-up similar to what Altair and Ezio used. You know - the white hood and the totally awesome wicked clothing. I mean - it make sense - it's Assassin's Creed.
It'll probably stop here. I've so much information running in my head but I'd like to hear your thoughts on what Assassin's Creed III can be like. I hope I don't sound like a total dork because I don't really know jack about the franchise - so forgive me if I messed up somewhere.