It is not very often a game surprises me these days. Generally, I can tell if I’ll like a game based on the game play videos and trailers.  I was expecting to enjoy the campaign in Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood since it is a direct continuation of Assassin’s Creed 2 which I really enjoyed.  While the campaign is a lot of fun and a great way to continue the story it is the multiplayer that caught me off guard.  The verses modes in AC:B are AMAZING!  I’m having some of the most fun I’ve had in years playing with the guys from AGE.

The multiplayer is sort of like hide-n-seek for adults with lots of stabbing.  Each map is filled with NPC characters who are the same skins as the players.  You have to mix hiding and blending in with crowds with trying to escape people chains you. There is a constant tension as you play because you never know who around you is about to stab you in the back.  There are three main multiplayer modes in AC:B.  The ‘Wanted’ mode is an 8 person free for all where you always have one person you are trying to hunt down. The better you’re doing the more people you have hunting you. This mode is good for beginners because if they are not playing well then no one is hunting for them.  The ‘Manhunt’ mode is my favorite.  It has 2 teams of 4 with one team hiding and the other hunting.  Ten, half way through the roles switch.  The hiding team gets points for staying alive and hidden and the hunters get points for their kills. I think what I like about Manhunt is you don’t have to focus on killing and being killed.  It is just one or the other. The third mode is ‘Alliance’ which has 3 teams of two.  Each team has one that they are hunting and another team hunting them making a triangle of targets.  Again, half way through the targets switch.  Part of what makes the multiplayer so great is that no tow matches are the same. Plus, the pace is much slower than shooters I normally play.  There is a lot of strategy involved and when you get a really great kill on someone you are rewarded with a ton of experience points.

The single player campaign is really nicely done.  It directly continues the story of Ezio/Desmond from AC2.  There are a few new mechanics like a crossbow, poisoned darts and the ability to throw heavy weapons. All of these little additions make for a fun playing experience, but what I really like is when you start to build your own Brotherhood of Assassins. As you recruit them they start out as lowly apprentices but you can then send them out on missions to get them experience. Eventually this gets them levels up to full fledged assassins. As soon as you have them recruited you can call your brotherhood members to help you.  If you get into a fight or get spotted and need a guard taken out quickly just tap the left bumper and from around the nearest corner an assassin comes running in to help.  Once you have three groups of assassins you can also have them do an “arrow storm” which kills off all the enemies in an area. There is a recharge time for having the brotherhood come help you but it is not overly long.  In many of the missions having an extra person help is really useful.  I really hope this is leading into having full co-op play in Assassin’s Creed 3 because having a team help me was a lot of fun and made for some fun strategies.

If you have not played the campaign in AC2 you really should before playing Brotherhood, but you can skip AC1 and still follow along with the story.  AC2 dis a great job filling in the back story for new players.  AC:B does not do that.  It instead assume you are ready to continue the AC2 story. The story itself in AC:B ends with a cliffhanger that clearly sets things up for the next game.  I plan to be playing the multiplayer for quite a while but I’m already looking forward to AC3 for the single player (and hopefully co-op) portion.