Assassin’s Creed 3 review (Xbox 360)

ACIII could be dubbed the video game equivalent of “The Truman Show”.

Now, fans of the series should find little difficulty in drawing the obvious similarity: Desmond, the modern-day protagonist, continues to fight the centuries-old war between the Assassins and the Templars through the memories of various ancestors in entirely fabricated worlds. Living vicariously through each ancient assassin, Desmond’s reality is effectively nothing but digital props on a high-tech stage.

But as undoubtedly impressive as ACIII is (thanks to a new setting, massive game world and incredible Anvil Next engine), the comparison goes a step further as the game breaks the fourth wall, casting you out into a world that, by its sheer over-ambition, somewhat dilutes the sense of immersion and purpose found in previous outings. While there’s still a lot of fun to be had at the core of the experience, there’s a pervasive feeling of artificiality that lets down an otherwise well-polished package, and an awkward niggle that constantly makes you feel like you’re playing the whole thing through a cellophane wrapper.

Set in and around the American Revolution and helmed by Connor Kenway, a newly trained assassin of Native American descent, ACIII prepares you for what’s to come by languidly setting up its story with an obscenely long prologue – a move that turns out to be a cheap bit of misdirection with little punch or purpose. It’s then another few hours before you’ll even catch a glimpse of those assassin robes you’ve been so patiently waiting for, and it’s only really once you’ve put in the amount of time required to complete most other games that you’ll feel like you’re playing an Assassin’s Creed title.

It’s this lack of focus that permeates much of ACIII. An apt example is the addition of hunting which Connor learns as a young man early-game. Stalking a variety of animals as you clamber through the treetops is initially quite immersive and exciting, however, once you and your character grow past this, there’s little reason to hunt further as there’s no real reward offered other than superfluous cash. The same can be said for collecting feathers, doing delivery missions, unlocking new weapons and getting bogged down in the remarkably dull crafting system. Besides personal preference, there’s no real motivation to engage in these activities.

The game’s ADD continues through a ridiculous abundance of cutscenes, many of which interject rudely during play; while even combat and parkour have also been overly simplified to the point of feeling like quick-time events. There are strong Uncharted undertones through all of these, with set pieces like sinking ships allowing you to escape them with little more than holding upwards on the thumbstick, and huge brawls where countering and killing are so easy that you’ll be surprised to take even a single hit. Not to knock the cinematic awesomeness of Uncharted here, but it’s not easy to convincingly stab people in the face when you feel like someone’s holding your hand tightly along the way.

Even the story is a bit of a mixed bag. Its execution suffers from linearity, awful clichés and some terrible voice performances, but its simplicity and allure of being the conclusion to a lengthy series is just enough to get you to the end. Bad pacing means that important narrative elements are often mumbled by Connor soliloquy-style, while useless plot points are spread out into tiring cutscenes, but, as with much of ACIII, you’ll usually find yourself forgiving enough to keep playing thanks to the decent bits that the game does get right.

Despite its Truman-esque vibe and the disappointing lack of coherence, ACIII still has plenty of high points that manage to outweigh the areas of tiresome mediocrity. There are the naval missions where you believably captain and enter combat with a large ship; these missions are surprisingly enjoyable and well-crafted, and I had no qualms about failing and replaying some of them. There’s also the brief but exciting Peg Leg missions where you hunt pieces of a scattered treasure map; these offer a treat for schlepping around the world picking up otherwise useless collectibles, and it’s a pity that a lot of the game’s other tacked-on elements don’t reward you as handsomely.

And the actual assassin bits? You know, the backbone of the series with the stabbing and whatnot? It’s there, somewhere, but it’s often obscured under Ubisoft’s insistence to incessantly attempt to wow you with new sideshows and cheap parkour tricks. Some of this showmanship is justified, especially when it comes to the gorgeous Anvil Next game engine and visual splendour rarely seen on consoles (the new weather effects and character animations are just superb), but as ACIII tends to lean towards spectacle rather than playability, you’ll likely find that most players will find the overly glossy veneer just a little too polished.

It’s difficult to compartmentalise a game with such a broad scope, especially when so many of its parts vary so drastically between the thrilling and the downright tedious, but despite ACIII’s many, many faults, there’s enough entertainment value here to make wrapping up Desmond’s story worthwhile. Although I ended up neglecting most of the additional fluff that added nothing worthwhile to the whole experience, at the heart of the game there’s still an adventure that forgiving fans of the series (and patient newcomers) should explore.