Assassin’s Creed: Bloodlines

Genre: Action Adventure
Platform(s): PSP
Allegiance: Griptonite Games and Ubisoft Montreal
Vintage: 2009
Rating: M

Intelligence Agency Report by: Shadow

Several months have passed since Altair was betrayed by the leader of the very order that he’s known for his entire life. He has become his own man, and in doing so, continues to do what he does best: destroy the Templar Order. Altair now begins to track the Templars down, bringing the fight to all of them in Cyprus. Priority one is Armand Bouchart, the Templar Grand Master.

Weapons Expert Report by: Shadow 

Story/Premise
Gameplay
Impact
Visual
Audio
6.00
4.00
1.00
5.00
6.00
Overall 5.50
(not an average)

Version Reviewed: PlayStation Portable

There unfortunately will not be much to say here given how the game went. Assassin’s Creed: Bloodlines was meant to help compliment Assassin’s Creed II in several ways, but it failed to get the job done. One of the unique features of this game was the ability to link the PSP and PS3 titles together and unlock some new things (I never did it as I beat AC II before I had even bought Bloodlines). Aside from that, it was “supposed” to reveal why Altair and Maria seemed to have a relationship, which never materialized in the game. That aside, we can move on to the technical parts of the review.

This game is all about nothing but Altair satisfying his curiosity, learning more about the mysterious “Apple of Eden,” and of course….killing Templars like it’s nobody’s business. Sounds boring and repetitive, right? Sounds like the first game, right? Right. That’s the unfortunate thing: the PSP game ended up just like the first in terms of being repetitive and predictable. I did at least like the way the story line moved because at least I was trying to figure it out as I went. Where Assassin’s Creed II gave you a very solid plot line, Bloodlines decided instead to flatline. The entire game is on rails, which means that you’re stuck doing things in order with no room to do anything extra. Understanding that this is a PSP game, meaning you can’t pack as much on a disk is important, but the rails get annoying. It also leads to very small maps that you can traverse in under a minute, sometimes under 30 seconds if you fly through it fast enough and in the right manner.

For a PSP game, the graphics are actually pretty good, but do get to be a bit of a bother at times. Also, glitches are common due to the lack of “room” that they have to work with for the camera and angles due to the PSP screen’s size. It can be frustrating when you need to free-run up a building while on a very narrow time limit, only to have the glitch get in your way on the ONE path that is the most effective.

The combat engine is the same style in the first game, but with some reduced abilities due to the nature of how the PSP works. Characters in this game are boring and overly generic, as well as in need of a few English lessons in some areas.

If you’re a fan of the series, you should still at least rent the game so that you can understand a bit more of the Assassin’s Creed story. Altair’s notes form the Codex that you see in AC II, though not to the level that it’s used in the game. It’s still interesting to play through and learn, but not every gamer will forgive the game’s shortcomings. If you have a PSP, either you can shell out the $20 for a new copy, or just rent the game for a few days (you won’t need it after).