Recently, I was able to get in contact with Ubisoft on some questions about Assassin’s Creed. These questions came directly from you! Read below and enjoy.
Travis Greene: What inspired you to use the Renaissance as a reference?
Sebastien Puel, producer: When we created the Assassin’s Creed franchise, we knew we wanted to talk about pivotal periods in History. Moments where everything changes that define the world in which we live. That is exactly the case for the Third Crusade: this period defined the balance of power between Civilization and Religion for the centuries to come.
So when we started Assassin’s Creed 2, we asked ourselves the same question. What is an even more exciting defining moment in History? The answer was pretty easy to find: in a few years and in a very precise place, a handful of geniuses radically changed EVERYTHING; they invented a modern vision of the world, where men were at the center rather than God. They invented a new way of representing the world (the invention of perspective), they changed politics, architecture, created the art of modern war and diplomacy – they even invented the banking system as we know it! One man even invented planes, helicopters and tanks! Those men were Machiavelli, Leonardo Da Vinci and the Medici to name a few. The place is Italy. The time is the end of the 15th century and it is called Renaissance, literally a Rebirth.
This is History as we learn it. But those were also cruel times, ruled by war, treason and murder! Of course we found it very interesting to depict this darker side of the Renaissance in an Assassin’s Creed game and cast a new light on those astonishing events.
With the game set 300 years later since its prequel, how were you able to relate the two games?
Assassin’s Creed 2 is the sequel to Assassin’s Creed. The events in the present start right where the first game left off but the Animus will plunge you into a very different & fresh historical period. Overall we are building on the strengths of the first episode, its unique sense of freedom and immersion and adding a lot more depth, variety and scope to the core gameplay.
Storywise, Ezio is a descendant of Altair and the connection between the two games will be revealed through an encoded book very much like the one Leonardo Da Vinci is famous for writing.
What were some of your most difficult challenges in the making of the game?
What I’m particularly proud of is the new game architecture allowing much more diverse gameplay and missions in our engine. We also have enhanced NPC navigation showcasing parkour-like acrobatics that will spice up the chases and escape missions in the game.
Now, for the visuals, the Assassin’s Creed game engine – Anvil – got some awesome new technical features that let us create a world with an even better visual treatment.
We have many new technicalities we added in the engine that affect the graphics in the game and improve the overall visual treatment:
• Night and day cycle
• New load distance for more detailed open-world environment from greater distances
• The same internal vegetation technology used in Far Cry 2
• Several rendering improvements to support improved lighting, reflection and more special effects.
• New cloth system used extensively for characters
Beyond the technical achievements, the very location we chose poised us to make a visually outstanding game. Cities like Florence and Venice are amongst the most stunning landscapes in the world and all the technology we developed just served this purpose, made you feel this beauty. We are not only recreating the architecture but also everything that makes Italy so unique during the 15th century – from the special lighting of Venice to the colorful carnival disguises. Every minor detail was important for the artists and they are very excited for players to get their hands on the game and explore such a stunning city.
What made you think of the currency idea, and being able to purchase items in the game? Are you thinking about adding new weapons and gadgets, if so, what kind?
During this time in history is basically when the formal banking system as we even know it today was established by the Medici family, who are in the game. So it was a nice combination of a great added gameplay element that allowed us to give players more creative freedom in how they could approach the game and outfit Ezio but also tied nicely into the context of the game during this time in history. There are some great new weapons and gadgets that you’re able to purchase, as well as benefits to having Leonardo da Vinci as your best friend – he makes a mean single-shot firearm!
Since the two new DLCs have been announced, are there any more to be released?
Nothing beyond the two DLCs that have been announced is planned for now. Although we did announce a new Assassin’s Creed title will come out this year and feature a multiplayer component. But that’s all I’m able to share with you at this point in time.
Will there be a way to connect the two assassins (Ezio and Altair) in a future game or DLC?
There’s a direct connection in Assassin’s Creed II itself, so you’ll find it and be able to experience playing as Altair again. In addition, the handheld platforms allow us to tell a different part of the Assassin’s Creed story and adventure. In fact, in the PSP title, Assassin’s Creed: Bloodlines, you play as Altair!
I really enjoyed the gameplay; how were you able to bring realism into the game?
For Assassin’s Creed II, there were various new types of gameplay to break and vary the flow of the game and add intense “WOW” moments, one of them involves the flying machine that Leonardo Da Vinci conceptualized and developed. Ezio will be able to use it to fly around the city to reach hard-to-infiltrate locations quickly and with the effect of surprise. Travelling with the flying machine will require precision and timing.
In addition, there are graphical improvements, AI improvements, and a ton of new animations that we feel, combined with the new crowd dynamic, really helps Assassin’s Creed II feel like an actual living and breathing world with people who impact your experience – both NPC and story-line driven characters.
Everyone knows that the first game had repetitive problems (go here, find out information, assassinate), what motivated you to create Ezio and the whole assassination family?
One of the great things about working on a video game is that we are challenged with looking at things beyond just game play – not that that isn’t important of course – but we knew that from the script, the era and the setting, we needed there to be more of an emotional “connection” with Ezio. Remember, in Assassin’s Creed, Altair begins the game a Master Assassin, so he doesn’t need to go through the challenge and discovery of becoming an assassin. In addition, Altair was more of a lone assassin whose motivation was often given to him. Ezio, on the other hand, is an Italian nobleman and due to a horrific turn of events, is given the choice and opportunity to learn and become an assassin. His motivations are revenge, justice and, eventually, discovering a much larger conspiracy that even he could have dreamed of. In addition, this concept that there’s an assassination family really helps extend and open up the brand to go in all sorts of exciting new directions – so who knows where it will go next.
The game basically ended in a message from another species. Will Assassin’s Creed III pick up from there, if so will you continue with Ezio to answer his questions?
We were doing pretty good up until this point but I’m going to have to just say, you never know what might happen in the future.
Since the online multiplayer has been announced, how will you implement this, and what made you decide to get online? Will there be a title update to go along with Assassin’s Creed II?
We’re not quite at liberty to discuss anything beyond Assassin’s Creed II at this point in time.
Assassin’s Creed, Assassin’s Creed II are both available on the Xbox 360 and Playstation 3. Assassin’s Creed: Bloodlines is available on the Playstation Portable.
