Assassin's Creed II

It’s not too often that we see companies in this medium take chances on new properties, so it came as a surprise when Assassin's Creed came out in 2007 with record sales. While it was original in many ways, it was frustrating in many more. So, I approached the sequel with trepidation only to be completely surprised with the amount of detail, depth, and thought that Ubisoft instilled into the game this time around.

First off, the setting of Renaissance-era Italy has to be one of the most inspired and well-realized virtual worlds of its generation Even better is how the game takes you on a history lesson, giving you detailed backgrounds on real world locations and historic people you will meet throughout the game.

The biggest complaint of the original was the lack of variety in missions and locations, which isn’t a problem here. Whether you are chasing a group of Templars on horseback through the Tuscany hillside or walking the rooftops of Venice at night, AC2 manages to weave an exciting story with many great distractions should you ever get bored. The game manages to be an accomplishment that stands above being a simple refinement of its predecessor.