Assassin’s Creed II

Assassin’s Creed II is about present-day descendants of the Templars and Assassins. In the game, modern day protagonist and Assassin Desmond Miles is rescued from captivity in Templar-run Abstergo, but must again relive the memories of an ancestor—this time Ezio Auditore of 15th century Florence. Throughout the game, Ezio attempts to thwart the efforts of the Borgias as they seek to acquire ancient technology.

One of the greatest appeals of these games, rather than the assassinations, is the exploration of historical cities. Assassin's Creed II allows the player the free-run through Florence, Venice, and the Italian countryside. As Assassins, you can climb buildings with ease and leap across rooftops. Players can spend hours exploring the realistic cities, which are all populated with shops and citizens. The cities also contain real-life landmarks. Have you ever wanted to stand atop Florence’s Duomo and look out over the city? Assassin’s Creed II lets you do just that.

In addition, each game has the player interacting with historical figures like Leonardo da Vinci or Lorenzo de Medici. An in-game encyclopedia keeps players informed about the historical aspects of the game, including characters, locations, and events.

The Assassin's Creed games save automatically at checkpoints throughout the game. This means that you can quit pretty much anytime, but also you can't go back and repeat sections. If you start a side mission, like a race, the game will save and you won't be able to move on until you win the race.

For an inexperienced gamer, some of the missions may require multiple attempts and perhaps even a walkthrough for help navigating trickier free-running areas. Otherwise, gameplay is at an intermediate level: not too difficult, but also not overly easy.

• Why do you think Ubisoft chose to tell this story as science fiction instead of straight historical fiction?
• Does the game do a good job of making you feel like you're in a real location?
• Do you think these games would appeal to someone who isn't interested in history? Does it make you want to learn more?
• Many of the powerful figures in these games are corrupt. Do you think it's true that power can make someone evil?
• What other historical periods do you want these games to explore? What cities do you think would be good locations?