After making a public commitment to answering criticisms of AC1, Ubisoft Montreal decided to focus on story for its sequel, and this would require both a new setting, and a new protagonist. The introduction of a new protagonist in the franchise’s first sequel was an unusual move after the commercial success that was Assassin’s Creed. What follows is a curated collection of articles, essays and selected quotes, featuring the best of critical writings on this landmark Ubisoft title. AC critics have been particularly fruitful in bringing forth new concepts to describe the maturation of player experience and video games as “expressive media”. Bloggers, journalists, game designers and game studies scholars of all creeds have brought welcome nuance to reviewer-speak. Since 2009, the AC franchise has on the whole gathered an impressive pedigree of critical writings. Templar intrigue in 15th century Florence and Venice, it seems, may have bewitched a few.Ī decade has now passed since AC2’s release. In the year or so following AC2’s release, millions continued to play and enjoy the game, but few people wrote seriously about their experience playing Ubisoft’s shiny new toy. It was, to some degree, par for the course, since highly-anticipated AAA games typically generate a flurry of writerly activity in the industry press and in mass media in the aftermath of a release.

In late 2009, Ubisoft’s second entry into its fastest-selling new IP, Assassin’s Creed II (AC2), garnered immediate praise from ( mostly) all quarters. But four times… is this a hatching Templar conspiracy? Or were people back in 2009 just sharing notes to ease the burden of writing reviews before the Holidays?

Read this reviewer statement once, it rings out like a truism twice, it’s a borrowed line three times, a running gag. “ Assassin’s Creed II makes its predecessor look like a tech demo…” A history scholar with game design training at Montreal’s INIS, Gilles is also co-editor at Play the Past. Critical Distance is proud to present this Critical Compilation of Ubisoft’s Assassin Creed II, curated by Gilles Roy.

Assassins creed 2