Oh Ezio....

I am starting to do a better job at making my Xbox 360 more than just a glorified, fancy DVD player. I went out last Friday to the local Game stop and purchased Assassin's Creed II. As usual I did my research prior to buying (the game had been out for about 3 months) and I can say that I am not disappointed. The game is really cool and I got it at a bargain price ($29.99). Before I begin a pseudo-review, I will state that I have only played for about 6 hours, barely scratching the surface of the game.

The basic story is you play a present aged man who has ancestry in Italy during the time of the Templars. Well a new company has created a way to go into a machine and have you sync up to memories of your ancestors. You play as them, and then go through their life to uncover the rivalry between the Templars and the assassins. It is a pretty cool concept, though can be rather confusing. The main theme is easy to follow (your father was wrongly hanged and you are out to avenge his death), but a lot of the dialogue is in Italian and they all have medieval Italian names. If I come across another Francesco, I'm going to throw the controller through a window.

First thing that will grab you is the visuals. And not just how vivid they are, but how well the landscapes and colors flow together. The cities you inhabit are open-air and fantastic, you run and pounce and fly through the cities with ease. I really haven't enjoyed an open world environment this much since my first foray into the genre with Grand Theft Auto: Vice City.

Controls can be wonky at times, but are real easy to pick up and not too difficult to get used to. Voice acting is solid, and soundtrack is really good. One of my favorite parts in any game is the ambient noise of your environment. This game has it covered in droves. Other civilians hold conversations, birds caw, wind blows, and guards discuss troublemakers.

And lastly, there is the violence, which is over the top, but still enjoyable. Maybe I'm strange, but it never gets old to leap from a rooftop, land between two guards, and then knife them both in the neck through and through.

It is a game I am just getting into, but so far I am blown away. Much more fun and user friendly than it's predecessor. It gets the Zach vote of confidence.