Gameloft have released Assassin’s Creed: Altair’s Chronicles, a prequel spin off from the original game for home consoles, and a port of the DS game.
In it you play as Altair, a crusades era assassin on a quest for a Chalice. In the original game you played in a futuristic device called the Animus which recalled the ancestral memories of a 2012 bartender and took place in a sand box style 3D world. This prequel is more along the lines of Prince of Persia in game play and doesn’t really go into this story and assumes you have played the original. Instead, it concentrates on delivering hack n slash and platforming thrills without the story line frills.
The DS version received mixed reviews. IGN gave the game a 7/10 saying that it was a perfect example of “not that bad”. Most complaints were that the game was far too short. We’ve had a quick playthrough the first levels, and so far we are having fun with it. The controls work particularly well, using the same set up as Gameloft’s Hero of Sparta. Movement is controlled via a 360 degree analogue pad on the left of the screen. While action and swordplay use buttons on the right side, which appear as-and-when you need them. As with all games like this, the on-screen controls do mean that some of the game environment is blocked from view by your thumbs, but it’s something us iPhone gamers are getting used too.
The levels require you to get from point A to B, while navigating obstacles with your free-running abilities, fighting templars and collecting orbs for upgrades. The game features the same graphics and level design as the DS version, but everything is higher resolution and looks more in line with the PS2 and PSP. With it being a touch device the iPhone version also features the DS’s touch mini games, which are a nice addition and break from the main game. At certain points you may be required to pick pocket or interrogate people, when this happens you must complete a touch based mini game within a time limit to advance on. The pick pocket game plays a bit like Operation, requiring you to pick up the object you need and move it to the pock exit, without touching any other objects.
Music and sound is of high quality, as you would expect from Gameloft and the assets from the original console game’s creators Ubisoft. There is full voice over of your character and enemies, the music is suitably fitting, and the background ambient sound effects give the impression of a larger world beyond the polygon walls.
A quick search on Amazon shows the DS version is currently selling for around $13 more than the iPhone version, so while it may be high priced in terms of iPhone games, short or not, compared to the DS version you are getting a lot more bang for your buck. Assassin’s Creed: Altair’s Chronicles is out now for $7.99 (£5.99).
We’ll have a full review soon.
