JAKE CURNOW PRESENTS
Assassins Creed Syndicate
Playstation 4 Version
Enter the world of Jacob and Evie Frye; twin assassins operating during the 1868 industrial revolution in the interesting land of London. The difference in personality between these all new Assassin's Creed stars is immediately demonstrated at the beginning of the game, yet both of them share the same youthfulness and allegiance to the Assassin's Brotherhood.
Assassins Creed Syndicate starts out with a bang, immediately showing new game play additions and combat mechanics. As previously hinted at, however, players don't get to play as just one Assassin this time around; they get to play as two. With the mere click of a button, players can enter the menu screen and swap between Jacob and Evie Frye as playable characters. Theoretically speaking, Jacob Frye is supposed to be more of a brawler than his stealth-oriented counterpart, Evie Frye, yet the Syndicate skill tree system and core game play mechanics beg to differ.
As players progress through Syndicate's overly political struggle between the Assassins Creed and Knight's Templar, both Jacob and Evie Frye are able acquire a plethora of new skills. Each of the two characters play very similar, with both of them having the ability to perform actions such as lock picking, mid-combat executions, and gang member recruitment. Although both of the two have unique outfits and items, the truth of the matter is that both Jacob and Evie only have three un-lockable skills exclusive to their character, all six of which players will find on the skill tree during the progression of the game.
Both Jacob and Evie can take on the majority of Syndicate's side missions, of which there are plenty to offer, but each of the two still have their own unique missions during the core of Syndicates campaign... One of Evie's top priorities is the location of the mysterious Piece of Eden: an ancient Precursor Civilization artifact heavily talked about and fought over throughout the entire lineage of the Assassin's Creed saga. Jacob, on the other hand, seems to be more interested in tracking down members of the Knights Templar and forming his own personal gang: The Rooks. At first glance, players may get the impression that the majority of Evie's missions involve Indiana Jones-like activity of stealing artifacts from secret underground caverns, but the reality of her missions comes across as far less exciting. Jacob, to the contrary, got dealt a better hand in terms of his exclusive campaign missions... Keep in mind, however, that either of these two characters can be used for the vast majority of excellent side missions and general exploration.
At the time of this review, Assassins Creed Syndicate is the newest three-dimensional franchise title available on the market, only having been surpassed (in terms of release dates) by two of the remaining titles in the Assassin's Creed Chronicles Trilogy, both of which are classified as "2.5D". With that said, the evolution of the Assassins Creed story can no better be exemplified than in Syndicate's overly political atmosphere and lack of a complex modern day story. The modern day struggle between the Templars and the Assassins certainly continues in Syndicate, even with the inclusion of Desmond Miles' former associates, yet these modern day sequences have been reduced to nothing more than an occasional CGI sequence without players having the ability to interact with the environment in virtually any way. As a nod to fans of the long running saga, however, developers have still done a fair job of at least keeping the modern day story alive -- potentially leaving room for evolution in future Assassins Creed titles.
Players, once again, are a nameless entity operating under the orders of a modern day individual known as Bishop. In prior Assassins Creed titles, following the Desmond Miles saga, players were usually a nameless individual working with the Animus system under the direction of the Knights Templar, but this time around players are working for the modern day Assassins. For readers in need of a refresher on Assassins Creed lore, the game play segments before the modern era are being replayed through an advanced DNA reading system called the Animus -- of which obviously includes the Jacob and Evie Frye's memory sequences.
With the modern day story now hanging by a thread, nearly all of Assassins Creed Syndicate takes place in the London 1800's starring Jacob and Evie Frye. For series fans looking for something more modern, however, there happens to be a third (and secret) protagonist during the World War I era. That said, the atmosphere of Syndicate mostly involves the extinction of the Assassins Order in Victorian London with Jacob and Evie Frye looking to turn the tables against the Templars in control of London. Complimenting the story-related battle of territory is a literal battle of territory built into the overall mechanics of Assassins Creed Syndicate. As players enter London for the first time, they will notice that the city is under full control of rival gangs, all of which can be directly challenged for territory by completing various side quests. As Jacob and Evie Frye near full control of a certain territory, they have the option to compete in a Gang War to finish the job.
Assassins Creed fans looking for absolute consistency following Unity, the sagas prior entry, should be warned. Although the climbing mechanics are similar to Unity's, with the exception of an all new zip-line ability, the combat mechanics of Syndicate have had some radical changes compared with previous series entries. This time around, the combat feels more like a toned down version of the Batman Arkham games, yet with less fluidity and depth. The new mechanics certainly aren't bad, since I would recommend players to give them a chance, but there is certainly room for improvement should the system stay the course in future Assassins Creed titles.
In addition to the combat system adjustments and previously mentioned skill tree, players also have the option of using Jacob and Evie's gang on the streets of London to aid them in random battles, or to capture territory. Even further: Jacob and Evie's gang has a skill tree of its own, offering players a wide range of different abilities to upgrade.
Stealth abilities have also changed in Assassins Creed Syndicate, for better or for worse. This time around, Jacob and Evie Frye are able to literally change their posture and sneaking mechanics with the press of a button. Outside of sneaking, both of the characters perform a slow walk during low-profile mode, yet once the assassins start to sneak, they are able to perform a variety of stealth related actions. Although this particular feature isn't a bad thing, the Frye's ability to enter into corner cover and perform assassinations from said cover just isn't as crisp as it is in other stealth-action titles, such as Splinter Cell Blacklist or Metal Gear Solid V The Phantom Pain. Generally speaking, the stealth elements of Assassins Creed Syndicate operate smooth and effectively, yet many players may run into minor frustrations with the cover system when trying to operate under pressure.
These days it's an expectation of elite gaming developers to deliver excellent graphics on video games made for cutting edge home consoles, and Assassins Creed Syndicate irrefutably delivers in this area. Scaling the titanic structures of the Victorian London era high above ground level has never looked better. With chimneys billowing smoke in the background and fleets of ships occupying the harbor, the Assassins Creed developers were able to re-create the 1868 London era with a level of mastery that very few others can do. Playing through the Assassin's Creed saga is like a roller coaster ride of ups and downs; high points and low ones... A lot of the mechanics and story elements have changed since the inception of the series, but one thing that is continually progressing is the ability of the developers to bring a sensitive era in history to life like no other.
Free-roaming the London rooftops and city exploration certainly has an excellent level of entertainment value. Throughout the progression of the series, it always seemed like developers could do a better job at improving the climbing mechanics, yet Assassins Creed Syndicate is ultimately no different from previous series entries. Jacob and Evie Frye are given a brand new device allowing them to zip line through the city among the roof tops, yet this all new mechanic, which is often very helpful, still comes across as clunky and primitive. Players may occasionally find that when they're trying to aim the device at a specific location, it simply does not fire exactly where they want it to.
Following in the footsteps of Unity's climbing system is the option for Jacob and Evie Frye to hold the "x" button to climb upward, and the "o" button to climb down. This system definitely has its uses, such as preventing the player from accidentally jumping off of huge buildings and desynchronizing, the system also has its frustrations. For example: where players may find it easy to transition from one rooftop to the next while holding "x" in prior titles, performing this simple action in Syndicate can very often make Jacob or Evie pause and stumble at the edge of a roof top, which creates needless frustration.
Despite the fact the Assassins Creed saga continues to improve its legacy, I can't help but feel Syndicate is a glorified shell of previous franchise titles. Syndicate features some of the best game play, voice acting, and graphical qualities that modern developers have to offer, yet Syndicate's overly-political atmosphere dovetailed with the inclusion of a nameless modern day Animus user tends to remove the mysteriousness and thought-provoking narrative from the Desmond saga. The decline of the Assassins Creed story, combined with overly tedious mission design and a lackluster ending make Syndicate a story certainly worth telling, but which could have been far better if the series were able to simply stick with its roots.
Overall rating
8.2/10