Assassin's Creed 2 - Updated 08/12 - Updated

[Shadow]

One of the games I wait with great interest, along with The Witcher 2.

[RuYi]

Leaked AC2 Screens: Link
The video has some information about the game, if you just want to see the screenshots, here are the most of them:

[Brago]

Thats pretty cool, da vinci will create his creations for you... 2 hidden blades, I like this guy more then altair already... obviously theres swimming and idk about the weapon thing much... I wanna be an assassin! rawr...

Offtopic

Did you see that Doing Da Vinci thing on discovery they are trying to make his creations... like the teepee looking thing with like 20 cannons surrounding it... it looks awsome.

[DumboDii]

ME WANTS !!!

[RuYi]

Here are the scans, definitely not supposed to be wandering around the internet already, as the Game Informer issue was scheduled for the 16th:

[Miguez]

..awesome.

I still want to buy RE5 before.

[Brago]

WINTER 2009 WOOT

[Shadow]

Looks awesome. Hope that blood will flow at least as much as in the first game... I got this strange thirst for blood..

[Melez]

People working on it are all young, just look at them. Amazing.
Everything sounds good.

[DumboDii]

Im feeling like making sig out of that pic lol.

[RuYi]

Just finished uploading the video of the 4th Memory Fragment, GMZ (FLY).
I validated the 5th and last, but it doesn't show anything yet.

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[DumboDii]

Gonna buy Assassin's creed 1 today

[RuYi]

Several videogame sites and magazines have been reporting that they have received a strange postcard from Italy. No message was written on them.

Here is the postcard:

Spoiler!

Note the sign on the right, saying "Buon Compleanno Da Vinci", meaning Happy Birthday Da Vinci. His birthday is indeed, the 15th of April.

Also, check the window, recognise it? :3

[Brago]

:> irl asssasins creed :p


seems like maybe the first assasin will be on the boat... or its the intro

[RuYi]

We'll probably get more information at the E3, I'm hoping for a video.

Anyways, I just unlocked the 5th and final Memory Fragment of the website.
Kind of rushed the editing, I was playing RE5. It shows the model of Ezio, AC2's main character.
If you turn the symbol 90 degrees, you can see the model from more sides.
I just uploaded it, so maybe it won't work right away.

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[DumboDii]

Nice find ! KIU !

It's nice that they made this whole releasing process so mysterious.

[0l3n]

Nice find ! KIU !

It's nice that they made this whole releasing process so mysterious.

Indeed, It made me all hyped up!

[RuYi]

As promised, Ubisoft provided us with a new teaser trailer for Assassin's Creed 2.
Don't get too excited, no gameplay is shown yet.
Assassin's Creed 2 Teaser Video

Also, some concept art showed up:







It's stunning, I love concept art.

[Melez]

Stunned indeed, those are painted beautifully. I love those.

[DumboDii]

I noticed one mistake they've make while playing Assassin's Creed 1. Assassins doesn't use any long range weapons like bows (not sure if throwing knives count) becouse it would not be honorable to kill your target from long range which doesn't require that much skills. And even in Assassin's Creed 1 trailer Altair uses crossbow. Not a big mistake though. It just popped into my eyes since I once read a little about assassins.

[RuYi]

Stunned indeed, those are painted beautifully. I love those.

I know right. Oh I so hope we get to kill someone on a bal masqué! Imagine everyone wearing masks and dancing, and suddenly panic takes over as someone is killed. Guards trying to find the murderer in a maelstrom of colours and masks.
*beams and thinks of the Phantom of the Opera bal masqué scene*

[DumboDii]

Stunned indeed, those are painted beautifully. I love those.

I know right. Oh I so hope we get to kill someone on a bal masqué! Imagine everyone wearing masks and dancing, and suddenly panic takes over as someone is killed. Guards trying to find the murderer in a maelstrom of colours and masks.
*beams and thinks of the Phantom of the Opera bal masqué scene*

That indeed would be freaking amazing.

BTW could you find bigger version of those? I'd like to have last one as a desktop wallpaper.

[RuYi]

These were the largest I could find. I'll let you know should I happen to stumble across wallpaper sized versions of these.

[Melez]

Stunned indeed, those are painted beautifully. I love those.

I know right. Oh I so hope we get to kill someone on a bal masqué! Imagine everyone wearing masks and dancing, and suddenly panic takes over as someone is killed. Guards trying to find the murderer in a maelstrom of colours and masks.
*beams and thinks of the Phantom of the Opera bal masqué scene*

Good thought.

[rumpleKillskin]

I need to read, nvm..
*dont hurt me*

bump?

[xkylex14]

Wow, this looks so awesome, I can't wait....

[RuYi]

Assassin's Creed II exclusive sneak peek
The Q&A with Assassin's Creed II Producer Sébastien Puel.

Spoiler!

With the new melee moves and the ability to temporarily wield heavier weapons, it sounds like Assassin's Creed II will be more action/fighting focused than the original. Is that so?
Assassin’s Creed promised liberty and immersion in a lively-breathing world. I think everyone agrees that the main innovation or breakthrough feature for the first Assassin’s Creed was that the player could evolve freely in a fully interactive sandbox world. Assassin’s Creed lets you play the game like you want to.

We have many more missions in Assassin’s Creed II that will have you done much more varied stuff. Some are more action oriented while other will have you to blend and approach your targets carefully. We are not aiming to make a more action-focused game but we are aiming to give the player more opportunity to how he plays the game.

Throughout history and in different time settings, including the Italian Renaissance where our game is set, every fight is to the death so you need to be vicious, brutal and strike at the right time. You’re a master assassin and your duty is to kill in any imaginable way. Therefore, we wanted our hero to be able to use all sorts of cool weapons in any unimaginable way. A good assassin needs to be low profile as much as possible until THE moment where he strikes his target. He needs to avoid conflict but sometime it is inevitable.

We are aiming to both improve the direct combat sequences as well as the indirect combat with tons of new cool assassination moves (ledge throw, hay stack kills...) If you can think about it, you can do it. Such is our motto for Assassin’s Creed II.

It also sounds as though Ezio might not always be wearing the distinctive white cloak of the assassin, especially if he is blending into locations where such clothing would stand out. Is that safe to say?
The game is set more than 200 years after the original one. Therefore, the clothing and style of the assassins has evolved and adapted to the current time so that they look and blend like the rest of the crowd.

There are similarities and differences between Altair and Ezio’s clothing. The hood and its pointy end that reminds us of the eagle’s beak is probably the most common element. Altair’s clothing could be compared to a monk’s robe. Now Ezio’s clothing is much more refined and has more details and garments of the finest silk as you would expect a young Italian noble to wear in the Renaissance time.

Being a great master assassin, Ezio is at first sight a man with a lot of charisma and presence. Ezio is warmer and is a free soul opposed to the colder warrior that Altair was in the first game. Altair always answered to orders given by his master even if he sometimes questioned justification and purpose of these orders. Ezio sets his own objectives and mostly answers only to his own will being driven by vengeance...

Will Ezio the Nobleman and Ezio the Assassin be anything like Bruce Wayne and his alter ego Batman? Is being an assassin his “secret identity” in some way?
I would rather compare Ezio’s fate to the Count of Monte Cristo as him and his family are betrayed by some of the powerful people of Italy. Ezio is at first on a quest for vengeance to make the responsible pay for this treason. He will discover that there is a much bigger conspiracy behind all of this that threatens the world itself.

Besides the twin blades, can you hint at some of the other new tools or gadgets at Ezio’s disposal? Will he have the option of using projectile weapons as well?
I can assure you that Leonardo will provide you with other various cools weapons and equipment. Ezio will have projectile weapons as did Altair in the first game. You will get to discover more in the coming months.

The addition of Da Vinci’s flying machine seems like a pretty cool move. Will Ezio be able to use it at will, or only under certain circumstances?
Some missions will require the use of the flying machine and Ezio will be able to reach some specific locations quickly. You will get to see and learn more on this special gameplay in the coming months.

Will Leonardo Da Vinci be like gadget-master Q to Ezio’s James Bond?
Yes, it’s indeed a comparison we like to make when we mention the role of da Vinci in the game. Leonardo Da Vinci will also be much more than a gadget-master as he will act as a friend to Ezio and will help him find some answers to his questions.

Will the iconic Leap of Faith be returning in some form?
Yes, of course! You will also be able to dive into water from high locations such as rooftops. Playing in Venice is definitely a dream come true with all of Ezio’s cool free running abilities.

Did the team spend a lot of time in Italy researching locations?
Well, we took a couple of months after the first game to think of where exactly we were going with the second game and what our objectives were. Many of the team’s lead members went directly to Italy and visited each city assisted by a guide who explained them the story behind each building and their respective construction date. We also took a lot of picture as references. So early 2008, right after setting a proper path and our visit to Italy, we started to build our first sections of Venice during pre-production. Our Art team are doing an amazing job of creating Italy. It’s looking quite impressive. Mohamed Gambouz, our art director, is working closely with the world and character team so that they all have a cohesive view of the art direction.

The main challenge is really to recreate the city as much as they would have looked like in the 15th century. This requires lots of research. For example, there is little information on the Rialto Bridge in Venice as it looked like in the 15th century since it burnt down around the time our game is set. The only thing we knew is that it was made in wood. Therefore, we designed the bridge based on what it looks like today but in wood. We need to find ingenious and creative ways to design the cities with the information we have and create a real 15th century mood.

There was a little bit of controversy around the first game’s settings and their religious significance. Do you expect the sequel will be free of that kind of controversy?
Since we are in Italy, there will be less of a religious clash since there is only one predominant religion in Italy at this time. A major change between the Middle Ages and Renaissance is the detachment of men and religion. Men are now in the forefront rather than God. The Church is less influential but has still an important role in the game.

You will get to witness tension between the Church and the progressive men in the game. Also, the church in the Renaissance is known for its corruption. It was frequent that church member’s abused of the people’s innocence and trust towards the religion. A few Popes are also known for living a life of “extreme virtue” and were frequently seen with courtesans and wine in abundance.

Will Assassin’s Creed II have a similar structure to the first game in that we control Desmond in the modern day between chapters set in the past? How much time has elapsed (for Desmond) between the two games?
Assassin’s Creed II is a direct sequel of Assassin's Creed and therefore it will start moments after the end of the first game. The structure between the past and modern segments will be similar to the first game.

Some players complained the present-day segments were somewhat slow-paced or confusing compared to the events set in the past. Have you addressed this at all?
We don’t want to go into too much detail regarding the present in the game as this point but I can confirm that yes, there will be more action in the present segments of the game.

Will Kristen Bell, the dream girl of geeks, be returning for the sequel?
At this point, nothing has been officially announced in relation with a partnership with Kristen Bell for Assassin’s Creed II.

Last but not least, can you promise us a more definitive ending this time? Mysterious messages scrawled on the walls and floor don’t quite cut it...
I guess you will have to play the game to the end to discover this yourself! I think the ending of Assassin’s Creed was well done and left many questions for the fans to try to answer and left us room for creativity for the second game. I love to read all the reactions and hypothesis people made trying to decipher the symbols.

Since Assassin’s Creed alternates between time settings, the present and other pivotal moments in history, it’s really cool to look into all the hopes and expectations of what fans wanted the next setting to be. I think giving a clear and straightforward ending doesn’t always quite cut it either since it doesn’t leave room for imagination.

Too long, didn't read:

Spoiler!

The game will be awesome.

EDIT: Purchased a magazine with more information, I'll scan and translate it in a while.

[RuYi]

As promised, here are the scans from the magazine. It contained a 6 page article, but most of the information was already known, so I only scanned and translated the new things.

<3 CanoScan 3000

[DumboDii]

Great job once again. Keep them coming !!!

[Brago]

[color=#FF8000][size=150][/center]

EDIT: Purchased a magazine with more information, I'll scan and translate it in a while.

Look they are wearing masks RuYi