Plot. In 1499, Ezio has defeated Rodrigo Borgia, a.k.a. Pope Alexander VI. Following his experience in the Vault, Ezio flees from Vatican City with his uncle Mario, and the two rode back to Monteriggioni on horseback. After explaining Mario what Minerva has told him, it was decided that the events that would occur in the future was not of their concern, after that, Ezio spends an intimate night with Caterina Sforza, when they are shocked by a cannonball, piercing through the room. It is then discovered, that the Borgia threat was far from over, as Cesare, laid siege to the city of Monteriggioni. Ezio attempts to repel the attack, but he is not successful, and Mario is killed by Cesare, and Caterina is captured. Ezio then ends up in Rome, where he is nursed back to health by a woman. Now, Ezio must once again fight against the Templar family, and prevent them from obtaining the Apple of Eden.
To obtain more money, items and weapons. Players must destroy the Borgia towers, in order to improve all of the businesses in the city of Rome. The more businesses are repaired, you obtain better discounts and lower the taxes as well. Also, players can obtain a final armor, the Armor of Brutus (a reference to Roman Empire politician, Marcus Junius Brutus). Like in previous games, players can play on mini-games, sub-missions, and so on. It also includes flashback missions, in which Ezio's former girlfriend, Cristina, appears. Players can also play in Multiplayer mode with friends, family, and even people from around the world, which is awesome.
The Subject 16 video, The Truth returns once again, and this time, you only find 10 glyphs in different areas around Rome.
Concept. Players must guide Ezio throughout several different missions, which involves eliminating Borgia influence, killing traitors, assassination targets, and so on. Players must also save Rome from the influence of the Templars, by burning their towers, and restoring the businesses in order to obtain even more powerful weapons, armor, and special items as well. In the modern days, Desmond can talk to either Lucy, Rebecca, and Shaun. Desmond can even check his e-mail as well. When Desmond is out of the hideout, he can find antiques left behind by the Auditore family.
1st Impressions. Like Creed II, the game has really impressed me with historical people of the time of the Renaissance such as DaVinci, Machiavelli, Caterina Sforza, and so on. Now, the flashback missions had me excited to see some of the characters of the previous game, though most of them are very sad. I was also happy to see that they included a map for flag and feather locations, which made it a lot easier to look for. This game is like a DaVinci Code type of video game, which is really good. The love scene between Ezio and Caterina, is very similar to the scene with Cristina in Creed II. I guess that since God of War, video games tended to have intimate scenes.
Voice Acting. Roger Craig Smith (Resident Evil 5) returns once again to voice Ezio Auditore. He originally played him in Assassin's Creed II. Nolan North (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Final Fantasy XII) voices Desmond Miles, while Lucy Stillman, is once again voiced by actress Kristen Bell (The Shield, Deadwood, Heroes). Quebec native, Manuel Tadros reprises his role as Rodrigo Borgia. Most of the voice actors of the previous games have voiced once again, and some other reprise their roles since Creed II. British comedian Danny Wallace also voices Shaun Hastings again.
Design. For a game like this, the features of landscapes, towns and cities resemble that of Italy's most famous places such as Cathedrals, the Coliseum, and so on. The game is rendered in three dimensional graphics, and it is more improved than Creed 1 and 2. The battle sequences were very well made, and the violence of the game is still the same high level as the previous games. Also, the sequences of the Animus are very well made, when entering, it's like plunging into a "Matrix-like" world.
Rantings. What I do not like about this game, is riding a horse, in which you get to gallop only in particular missions, which was a letdown. Another thing that I did not like is that Ezio only wore the armor of Altair in the beginning scene. The weapon I did not like to use, was the Apple, because the more time you used it, then Ezio would lose health. Another thing I hated was the Full Synchronization system, in which was in some ways bothersome. In some places developers thought "Hmm, beating Cathedrals is not hard enough, so let's add a time record breaking too!" Genius! Are you kidding me? Full Synchronization, involves that certain actions must be met, in order to sync it 100%
Good Aspects. I really liked that the game continued with Ezio's adventures, and the flashback missions were also a great addition to what happens during the events of Creed II, with Ezio's multiple encounters with Cristina. Adding new enemies was also very impressive, such as the barbarian-like worshipers of the wolf god, Romulus. The destruction sequences of the Borgia Towers were also very well made. Also, I liked the fact of recruiting assassins, which made the game a cakewalk in some missions. Though I did not like the Apple, the bright side of it, is that you could automatically recover energy.
Overall. This happens to be one of the best games of 2010, it has very high replay value, and players will enjoy hours of fun when playing in Multiplayer Mode against people worldwide. This is the best game of the Assassin's Creed saga, and I give this game a 10 out of 10