Video Game Review: “Assassin’s Creed II”

Leonardo da Vinci was a pretty interesting guy, inventing an automobile prototype way ahead of its time and whatnot. But imagine how much cooler da Vinci would have been if he’d developed gadgets and weaponry for a master assassin. Now imagine you were in control of this assassin, could make him run across rooftops and deal out hearty servings of stealthy, bloody justice. Now play “Assassin’s Creed II” and watch this most awesome of imaginations come to life.

The first “Assassin’s Creed” introduced us to Desmond Miles, a man living in the present who’d been kidnapped by a group of sinister scientists and plugged into the Animus, a machine that sent Miles back in time to revisit his ancestor’s memories in the 12th century. His ancestors, it turned out, were assassins, while the scientists were descendant from the Knights Templar, the assassins’ mortal enemies.

“Assassin’s Creed” took the exotic flavor and parkour-inspired gameplay of the “Prince of Persia” series, also developed by Ubisoft, and updated it for the next-generation consoles, earning both critical and commercial success. Too bad it now looks simple and obsolete compared to its sequel.

This time around, Miles is reliving the memories of one Ezio Auditore da Firenze, an Italian nobleman in the 15th century who becomes an assassin after his father is murdered. The basic idea is still the same, to scale buildings and stab bad guys, but the details have gotten more complex and thus more compelling.

“Assassin’s Creed II” is even less linear than its predecessor ““ it emulates the “Grand Theft Auto” style of play, so there is always at least one main mission available, but there are also plenty of side tasks. Ezio can deliver important documents, for instance, or assassinate a corrupt merchant. These aren’t necessary to complete the game, but the game is so vast and diverse that it would be a shame to hurry past them.

Part of that diversity comes from da Vinci, who befriends Ezio and provides him with increasingly advanced tools throughout the game. That means there are plenty of new ways to kill people, and that “Assassin’s Creed II” doesn’t grow tedious like the first installment did.

Much of the fun comes simply from running around Renaissance Italy, beautifully rendered with grand cathedrals, cobbled streets and grassy meadows. Many of the buildings and characters have been tagged with historical background information, allowing players to immerse themselves in the game’s virtual world if they so desire. It seems like a minor improvement, but “Assassin’s Creed II” is a much more enthralling game because of it. When you’re feeling assertive you can run through some assassination missions, and when you’re feeling more pensive you can slow things down and just wander the streets and rooftops of 15th-century Florence.

There are, of course, some minor drawbacks. Although the in-game graphics have been improved since the first installment, the cut scenes, strangely, have not. The combat could use more variation, though it too has been improved. And every once in a while, Ezio will jump not quite in the direction you want him to, so instead of grabbing onto a ledge, he plummets 50 feet to his death. It’s frustrating, but it’s a risk I’m willing to take. After all, when he does grab onto that ledge, you feel like the coolest person in all of Renaissance Italy.