The Time-Defying Assassin's Creed II

Assassin’s Creed II was released by Ubisoft in November of 2009 and became an instant classic that redefined the standards of video game sequels. The original Assassin’s Creed game was already a fan-favorite and a huge success when it launched in 2007, but many can point to its sequel as being the major turning point of the early days of the franchise. When a usual sequel to a game comes out, fans expect much of the same with minor improvements and story changes, but Assassin’s Creed II showed the industry that a sequel can take the series a step further on its own in such a short period of time. The game released two years after the original, and the bar that the sequel set is still a tactic that is often used as inspiration for video games hoping to cash in on a solid continuation.

The reason why Assassin’s Creed II changed the industry forever, and the way we still look at sequels, is that Ubisoft did not try and simply build off the first game and create something expectedly familiar, but they evaluated the game as so much more. The amount of improvements we saw in Assassin’s Creed II is unheard of in a typical sequel you’d see today. It took everything fans loved about the first game and multiplied it to the point where it felt like a whole new experience. The truth is that a direct sequel, especially one released in the late 2000’s, is usually not so well rounded and simply a whole new league of improvements. It’s unheard of for a sequel to do what Assassin’s Creed II followed after the first game. A typical sequel is generally not supposed to be so vastly improved so quickly, it used to and still usually does take several years and several sequels to reach a level where people consider it a massive upgrade to its predecessor. Assassin’s Creed II was basically a game that defied the normal reality and showed the gaming industry that a direct sequel could indeed be an instant significant upgrade over the original.

Before the game came out in late 2009, there had never been a true example of a sequel being such a fast improvement in such a short period of time. The industry norm was to take a few years and a few games to reach its potential. Assassin’s Creed II ended that narrative and became very likely the first direct sequel to show that a game could have such a vast improvement in just one single game later, something the gaming world had deemed impossible for decades. Assassin’s Creed II is still widely regarded by many as the best game in the entire series, and that is seriously impressive for a game from so many years ago and from a franchise that is so popular and still an industry giant to this day. Most games from the mid to late 2000’s are regarded as retro classics, but usually considered very dated. As of late in the gaming world, remakes and remasters have taken control and become a new staple of the modern industry. The fact that Assassin’s Creed II is still without a full on remake with modern graphics and the use of technology we did not have all those years ago, shows the world what an incredible game it was that was far ahead of its time. Many fans and gamers alike often admit that the game holds up so well even today. Video games from even less than a decade ago are currently receiving full on remakes, and those were games developed years past the limited technology we had years ago.

Assassin’s Creed II set a standard and proved to many that a sequel could become an instant classic so quickly, and the belief that it took several years at the minimum to reach a similar standard was debunked. The game focused on what the first game did correctly, but took those exact fan-favorite aspects and completely overhauled the criticism some had for various parts of the first game. The repetitive missions and limited open world were often features of the first game that many disliked, but Assassin’s Creed II changed that all. The story was memorable and the characters were even more loved. The game started a trilogy of games featuring the beloved protagonist, Ezio Auditore da Firenze. Not a single main protagonist in the franchise before or after the self-titled “Ezio Trilogy” has gotten even a second game, let alone a total of three. Fans adored the cast and the story directions Ubisoft followed. The open world was improved by allowing the ability to visit different parts of the time period set in the Italian Renaissance, allowing gamers to explore multiple regions such as Florence, Venice, and a brief trip to Rome at the end of the game. Many also loved the combat the game featured that allowed the ability to equip and use a wide variety of different weapons and tools for the first time that could be used to take on enemies. The first game was much more compact and the sequel managed to keep the aspects fans love and simply make it so much better. Often today, games that have a sequel get fan criticism for removing certain features gamers loved in a first game and changing it entirely for the sequel, Ubisoft instead listened to their fans and knew the ones that loved the first game back in 2007 would love to see a lot of returning elements, but a fresh take on the game especially since it was set in such a famous era in history.

Although there are certainly a few things Assassin’s Creed II could have improved upon that are seen as out of date in today's standards, it was far ahead of its time in what we knew to expect all the way back in 2009. Many gaming developers even to this date often look back on the work Ubisoft did with Assassin’s Creed II and use it as an example of how to craft a sequel that can be an instant improvement that doesn't take the old belief that many years and many games were necessary for vast improvement. As important and legendary as the original 2007 Assassin’s Creed game was, many fans of the series point to the sequel as the true turning point of the franchise, and a huge reason the franchise is still around today and stronger than ever. 

Assassin’s Creed II launched on the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 consoles, but it received a remaster collection for the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One consoles back in 2016. The remasters did not receive any significant graphical or gameplay improvements, which is proof that Ubisoft is rightfully very proud of their work and does not feel it is a dire necessity to come out with a full on remake that rebuilds the entire game from the ground up. The original game still plays very well on the old consoles, and still remains to many as the best part of the entire franchise. The game had two sequels that were 2010’s Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood and 2011’s Assassin’s Creed Revelations. None of that would have happened without the impact Assassin’s Creed II created. Since the inception of video games, almost all developers had a belief that reaching vast improvement took a lot of time, but the creators at Ubisoft rewrote history and changed the game forever. It differentiated the way many developers and fans see in sequels and remains a staple of the industry and a game that can for the rest of time be looked at as an example or inspiration for how to follow the blueprint Ubisoft created and how to replicate the era-defying results it created. The work Ubisoft started changed things forever, and proved the idea that sequels needed years of work to be an improvement was indeed false.