Ubisoft's golden child, the Assassin's Creed franchise has been around for quite a while now. It's a series that invariably manages to surprise the best of us with each title. Although, frankly speaking, it has also lost much of its charm post Brotherhood and Ezio Auditore still remains to be the most charming protagonist of the lot, there's always a certain amount of curiosity and positive buzz around every new Assassin's Creed game. The developers have been churning out a new title every year since the series' inception, but none of the games under the banner seem to be forced down your throats just for tradition's sake. Just to give you an example, we can't say the same about the Call of Duty games!
Speaking of Assassin's Creed Rogue, it's no rocket science to conclude that the title is Ubisoft's one last attempt to squeeze out some extra cash from last-generation consoles while the whole world goes gaga over its next-gen exclusive Unity. However, as is customary, Rogue manages to pack in a few surprises of its own: the most important being, turning one of the biggest fantasies of long-term fans into reality by giving them a chance to see what the world looks like when the tables are turned. Rogue gives you a chance to play as a Knights Templar and go about hunting down Assassins, for "what an Assassin truly wants isn't freedom but order", so says the protagonist in the story.
Although the prospects of playing a Knights Templar sound ways tempting, be that as it may, Rogue is a farewell of sorts for the old-gen platform. Is it a worthy farewell though? We find out in our review.
Story and plot
Assassin's Creed Rogue follows the story of Shay Patrick Cormac, an Assassin turned Templar who is out to seek vengeance from his own former mentor, and the entire Broherhood, for that matter.
Why, you ask? Well, without giving out many spoilers here, let's just say that our hero (some might call him an anti-hero though) seems totally out of place and an odd man out every time he goes out and finishes a job for the Brotherhood. Each time he kills an odd Templar, he is filled with grief and remorse which makes him question whether or not he is on the right side of the table and if he has the right to kill someone in cold blood. Of course, Shay is young and raging with hormones, but that really doesn't explain the motives behind why he starts giving his profession a second thought so early in his career! He is seen as this moody and spoiled brat of a character initially, who is always trying to pick up fights and reasons to hate/question his fellow mates and their deeds.
It simply takes a couple of Templar assassinations (of the already sick and dying lot) and a failed attempt to retrieve a Piece of Eden from Lisbon (the heist goes awry and the Assassin lot ends up wiping out the entire city) that Shay realizes his true calling in life.
Shay joins the ranks of Templar of the Colonial and pledges to stop the Assassins from getting their hands on another Piece of Eden at any cost.
Sadly, character development goes for a toss amid all the fiasco as one event paces into
another, with the main protagonist sifting through the story dogged by a not-so-convincing Irish accent. It's really hard to sympathise with Shay, particularly when more often than not he has no clue what he is doing with his life. As an Assassin turned Templar, he still feels guilty of killing his former men at arms, and we clearly have no picture of what is right and what is wrong throughout the story. But then again, both the sides have their share of shady moments, and the pace with which things are happening here, you won't have much time to sit back and brood over it.
Assassin's Creed Rogue is set in the mid-18th century (between 1752 and 1761) during the Seven Years' War and acts as a continuing link between Assassin's Creed 3 and Black Flag (and also forms the prologue to Unity).
While the main story seems straight out of some Bollywood masala potpourri, the game's modern-day storyline is downright stupid (and that is has some of the most obnoxious characters to tag along is like adding salt to the wound). A virus has found its way through the Abstergo servers triggering a lock down, meaning you're stuck within the confines of the building and instead of hacking into computers; you're forced to repair them via mini-puzzle games.
With that said, the Abstergo Entertainment headquarters this time round prove to be a hidden Mecca of information spanning across the length and breadth of the Assassin's Creed universe. Datapads and notes scattered across the building give you deep insight into the universe and serve as a guiding light for those who, for some reason, have failed to understand the happenings in the AC universe.
While this information details everything that is going on within Rogue itself, the fact that it touches the previous games as well (in the form of Assassin profiles and timelines) is a welcome move to helping understand this universe, which honestly speaking could be a huge one at that (if you've played them all, that is). Basically, if you've played Rogue, you won't need any additional tutorials to understand the AC universe. Ubisoft has managed to stack Abstergo with all the relevant information that one might need. Also, it has dropped in few Easter eggs here and there with references to other Ubisoft games as well, if you observe carefully.
Gameplay and graphics
Assassin's Creed Rogue essentially mixes the wilderness of Assassin's Creed 3 with the sea faring nature of Black Flag. As a player you get to explore three major areas -- the frozen North Atlantic, the Appalachian River Valley and New York. Basically, the one large map setting of Black Flag (of the Caribbean) has been broken down into three smaller map segments in its direct sequel.
Let's just say that the land aspect of the game could be easily forgotten in case you're familiar with the franchise, offering nothing spectacularly to what we haven't already seen in Black Flag. There's a saying, why fix something that isn't broken for starters and Ubisoft has taken the saying very seriously, so it seems. Most of the locales seem to be recycled straight out of Black Flag, but the end result is like a half-cooked meal. Somewhere down the line you do end up saying, "Hey, this looks familiar".
All in all, while Black Flag appeared to be polished enough, Rogue seems to end up being pitched like a brother from another mother (of course, both the games have been developed by different studios, but that's not what we mean).
Rogue does try to maintain its individual identity here and there: the iced Arctic caves and mountain-lined valleys, the raging blizzards do seem like a sight to behold. Sadly, these instances are far too low and too far spaced to actually enjoy in the longer run.
Of course, New York seems fancy enough with its wooden houses and all and did we mention Sleepy Hollow: yes, the fabled village on the east bank of the Hudson River ripe with pumpkins and fireworks. Now as glorious as these might look and feel, sadly there's not much solid happening here in terms of gameplay, save a few of the core story missions and some forgettable side quests. So, at the end of the day you don't get to actually explore them to your heart's content.
Speaking of exploration, Shay is quite easy to handle on the PS3, but then this is not a new game right? Developers have been working on refining the player mechanics for quite a while now and apart from a few hiccups here and there, handling is as refined as we saw in Black Flag, if not better. However, that's not the point here. Developers at Ubisoft have been known to pack in something extra in subsequent iterations of the series; however, Rogue seems to be an exception. Shay has all his mechanics taken straight out of Edward Kenway's bag of tricks.
As far as Shay's arsenal is concerned, you now have an air rifle (for silent takedowns) and a grenade launcher (available only one per mission) at your disposal in addition to the usual stack.
For a game that lives and breathes assassination, there are not too many assassinations in Rogue to brag about. However, life gets a whole lot tensed when you're up against the Assassins who unlike your past enemies are faster, smarter and cheekier. You must keep your eyes open at all times in anticipation of someone from the Brotherhood sneaking out on you from a bush or way up top. With that said, boss fights in Rogue are rather pale and disappointing, they are all so easy to kill that there's no fun to it at all.
Familiar faces return from past games and the game drops in a few historical characters that the series is known for; however, most of these characters (especially the new ones) are badly constructed and/or poorly voiced.
Also, achieving full synchronisation in missions is not mandatory anymore; therefore players can try out new ways to go about their business, which is good. However, players cannot access certain areas of the map unless they have completed a mission associated with the same.
Seafaring missions return with a vengeance in Rogue. Although much of these are still greatly inspired from Black Flag, it is the ships and battles on the high seas that keep Rogue from sinking.
Of course, the frozen North Atlantic is no match for the lush beaches and crystal clear waters of the Caribbean we saw in Black Flag. But sailing across the Atlantic is no less fun and is as engaging if not better. Unlike Kenway's Jackdaw, Shay's Morrigan is sleeker, meaning it can easily sail through inland America. Also, the Morrigan is battle-ready from the word go, meaning you're ready for battle upfront. You can, of course, upgrade your ship as the game progresses.
Sailing on the open sea amid sounds of shanties is thrilling and satisfying. Naval battles are tight and require a certain amount of planning to go about particularly when you have too many enemies surrounding you. The Morrigan gives you a little more arsenal for added combat via puckle guns and the ability to release oil slicks, which can then be ignited. Also, unlike Black Flag, enemies can now board your ship and underwater diving is strictly prohibited (for the obvious reasons).
But then again, the number of these engaging naval battles is so low, that by the end of it all you're left asking for more. More often than not you won't fancy the need to upgrade your ship (apart from adding an icebreaker that quite frankly speaking is a must on the open sea).
The core story lasts for 8-10 hours at the max. Therefore both land as well as naval missions seem shrunken and far less satisfactory than what we expected. Also, there's no multiplayer round the corner this time round.
The side missions do extend the game time depending on how and what grabs your interest. These range from collecting items to upgrading buildings that the franchise is already known for. In addition, you can liberate gang bases, kill narwhals and infiltrate forts as well.
The PS3 version of Rogue looks alright as far as graphics are concerned. The graphics are at par to what we usually associate with last-gen consoles. However, as mentioned earlier, some of the characters are badly constructed with unpleasantly odd voicing.
Should you buy it?
While some might call it a glorified DLC of Black Flag (quite rightfully so), others might refer to it as an extended teaser trailer for Unity (spoiler alert). Still others might call it a handy tutorial of sorts to understanding the AC universe. Whatever you might call it; it's certain that Rogue cannot be ignored.
Long-term fans of the series would play it for the obvious reasons: a nearly engaging story and the ever-familiar naval combat (that still holds promise). Of course, it still is a half-baked attempt of a title, but you can't ignore the fact that it's very thick with information filling in many of the gaps between Assassin's Creed 3 and Black Flag, and quite unabashedly at that. Yes, a rehashed Black Flag has its own charm.
Game reviewed on Sony PlayStation 3
Available on
PS4/Xbox One: Not available
PC: Rs. 1,799 (Out now)
PS3/ Xbox 360: Rs. 2,999 (Out now)
Read more at: http://indiatoday.intoday.in/technology/story/assassins-creed-rogue-review-a-rehashed-black-flag-still-has-its-own-charm/1/404779.html
