The gameplay trailers and screenshots of Assassin’s Creed II that have been released to date have quite clearly shown the level of detail that the game features. Even so, they don’t even begin to do the beautifully rendered streets and canals of Venice justice. Each scene has been lovingly re-created with an amazing reproduction of the Italian city to bring a sense of authenticity to the game.

Set in 15th century Italy, the game tells the tale of how the lead character Ezio becomes an Assassin in order to avenge the tragedy that befalls his family, after which he is branded a criminal and seeks to reclaim his family’s honour. While we didn’t get to have any hands-on time with Assassin’s Creed II, we did get to spend some quality time with the game, watching a demo and discovering Venice and a couple of the new features of the game along the way.

Cast your eyes to the left and right after Ezio climbs to the top of a tall building in Venice to take in the vastness of the recreated city, complete with Gondola’s calmly navigating the canals and Italian residents strolling through the city carrying out their day to day chores. However, this peace is soon shattered when Ezio sneaks into a square, silently poisons a solider or pays a few thieves to rob the soldiers, both creating handy diversions so he can carry out his tasks without being hassled by pesky law enforcement officials.

After Ezio touches a soldier, or anyone in the crowd, with his poison blade, that person will continue to carry out his tasks until he begins to lose his balance and eventually falls into beserk mode. By the time the other guards come to investigate the disturbance, Ezio can be long gone. He can also toss a couple of coins on the floor to create a crowd that enables him to sneak past unnoticed.

Although this existence as an Assassin is far from his former life as the son of a noble, Ezio soon learns that he can use the help of mercenaries, thieves and courtesans in his missions. As mentioned above, sending in a few thieves to beat up a group of soldiers allows him to slip past unnoticed and what better way to create a diversion than to hire a couple of courtesans to seduce the enemy or to stroll undetected through the crowds with the ladies of the night.

If you jump off the side of a Venetian street you will notice that Ezio can now swim, in fact he can even swim fast and dive under the water for a few seconds to avoid the unwelcome glance of a patrolling soldier. When he emerges from the water you will notice that he is wet and water drips off his clothes, adding another layer of realism to the game. This new swimming skill makes it easy to navigate your way around Venice should you choose to avoid the soldiers patrolling the city streets. You can also make your way around over the rooftops, but keep a wary eye out for hired archers intent on sending a well-placed arrow through your heart.

Since some accused the first Assassin’s Creed of becoming a tad repetitive, the developers have added a few new features to ensure the sequel does not fall into the same trap. For starters you can now purchase poison vials from traders located around the city, somewhat reminiscent of Resident Evil 5 and Wolfenstein. This new economic system also allows you to purchase weapons and armour. Incidentally you will also be able to purchase new outfits for Ezio, thereby allowing him to blend in better with different surroundings. The game once again features the Eagle vision, but this time it can be utilised while moving, making it easier for Ezio to take out the glowing targets.

The hay bales are another thing that have returned, and jumping out of them with hay falling off Ezio as he makes his escape is no less appealing. You will also notice a notoriety meter (also seen in Protoype) in the top left corner of the screen, as Ezio becomes more infamous the meter will fill up and more guards will be on the lookout for him, making it harder for him to get around Venice unnoticed. This will mean more ‘Wanted’ posters will be posted around the city, making more people aware of him. However, should you decide to pull a ‘Wanted’ poster down, the notoriety meter will decrease slightly – nifty! You will also want to take note of Ezio’s health bar in the top left corner of the screen, depicted by a DNA-like structure that decreases when Ezio takes damage. To replenish his health you will need to visit doctors located around the city.

The game also includes different secondary missions, enabling players to explore the city and when Ezio can scale buildings and vault rooftops, why wouldn’t you want to explore. Ezio can execute stealth kills, a skill that may take a little time for you to master but well worth it in the end. Of course he also has the double blades now so he can execute a double kill quite easily.

Bottom line, it looks as if Ezio’s self-assured swagger is well deserved. Assassin’s Creed II is definitely a title worth keeping an eye on and I for one can’t wait to step into this Assassin’s shoes when the game hits shelves for the PS3, Xbox 360 and PC on the 17th of November across the US and a few days later on the 20th of November across Europe.

To quench your Assassin’s Creed II thirst before then, head over to our previous coverage for more information, screenshots and trailers of the game.

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