15.11.2017

Assassin's Creed Rogue has an interesting take on the AC world where instead of playing as an Assassin you're instead put in to the shoes of someone who is not only a Templar but who also used to be an Assassin himself. You play as Shay Patrick Cormac, an Assassin-turned-Templar who goes from being an obedient observer of the Creed to someone who goes to war with the very organisation that he used to cherish. As far as the premise goes it's fantastic, and as a long time Assassin's Creed fan it's something I've wanted for years.To its credit, Rogue does pull most of that off well. The story itself is well written and it's fascinating to watch Shay's journey go all the way from being a young Assassin all the way to becoming a grizzled veteran Templar.It does stutter once in a while, like the reason for Shay's defection itself being laughable, and that when you carry out assassinations your enemies enjoy giving away their plan for some reason, but it is generally good on the whole.The modern day part of the story is here too, but just like Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag you're playing a nameless faceless Abstergo employee who walks around with his tablet and interacts with a few things here and there. This plot *is* interesting, but it really could've done with giving us a proper role instead.In terms of how everything looks and sounds it's generally very well done. If you've played Black Flag then it's essentially the same here where you get nice visuals, good voice acting, good music, and good sound effects. The world is generally well built and does a good job of putting you in to that kind of atmosphere and time frame, and one thing of particular note is that if you find certain islands then you can find the adorable Great Auks, who are unfortunately extinct nowadays. As far as cities go Colonial America is still lacking however, and like with Black Flag and Assassin's Creed III they still haven't found a way to make those places feel interesting instead of all looking the same as each other.Gameplay wise there's a noticeable improvement too as some of the older issues have been fixed or removed and some new things have been added to make it more interesting, although it isn't without fault. For starters the story missions themselves are much better, especially as the tedious tailing missions have been removed, and they end up being much more fun to play as there's a lot more variety in what you have to do, though regrettably the optional objectives still remain, which are irritating and lecture you on how to play the game instead of giving the freedom to play however you want.There are far too many collectibles too. If you find an island and climb up to a tower to 'syncronise' the local area then it pops up things to find and do, but there are just too many things to collect, most of which aren't really all that interesting, and it ends up making the map cluttered with rubbish. One particular thing to collect are 'animus fragments', of which there are 200 to collect, and that's just one particular type of collectible.Combat on the other hand isn't much changed from Black Flag but has a few tweaks which make it a little better. You get the usual weapons like pistols, darts, swords and so on but the main different things are the grenade launchers. These can shoot different grenades like shrapnel grenades (to kill), sleep grenades (to knock out), or beserk grenades (to make the enemies go mad and fight each other) but with the difference being that you can hit several people at once in a radius and get them all. It's quite fun to use if the correct situation presents itself, though a lot of the time it doesn't really come in handy since it's rare for a lot of guards to be in one area together in the first place.Speaking of weapons, the same has happened with the ship. Mortars, cannons etc are still there, but now you also get the puckle gun, which lets out fast but weak shots that, unlike Black Flag, you can freely aim with. These can be great to use in the correct situations too but again they suffer from only being of limited use and having their main relevance limited to certain parts of a ship battle.The ship battles themselves are very fun, and play out identically to Black Flag, where they worked well anyway. The only problem is that they've once again not worked out the resource gathering very well, as it takes too little time to gain cash and yet too much time to gather resources, which creates an odd disconnect in terms of buying ship upgrades and upgrading equipment. Ideally these two should've been better balanced and money should've been made a little harder to earn whereas resources should've been a little easier to gain.The general seafaring is well done too. Sea shanties return so sometimes it's fun to just sail around while hearing your crewmen sing. The two different places you get to sail are 'River Valley' and the 'North Atlantic', but only the latter is any good as the former is small and claustrophobic with needing you to make sharp turns very frequently, which gets boring quickly.Land based traversal on the other hand is still poorly done. As I've mentioned before the cities feel lifeless, but the small settlements aren't any better as often times they're very linearly designed and don't really allow you to go out and explore as much as you'd want, and too many times just put you on one specific path to take, which is quite dull. The flip side is that being a Templar who deserted the Assassin's means that the Assassin's themselves are constantly after you throughout the game, and if a potential hunter of yours is nearby you hear whispers and can activate eagle vision to find them and get them before they can get you, All of a sudden the gameplay is flipped on its head and now you have to avoid assassinations by hiding in bushes and on top of buildings, and the tension and vulnerability that builds is fantastic.As a whole the actual minute-to-minute gameplay feels like two steps forward, one step back.It should be noted that the game also suffers from glitches. One time I was killed by a guard in the middle of a cutscene, a few times the textures messed up, and one item I was looking for went missing from the map until I stumbled on to it. Microtransactions are also present, and that's just unsavoury for a game you have to buy in the first place.Overall this a good game but with notable faults. The story is good with some hiccups, the presentation is very well done, and the gameplay is improved but with some issues. If you've played Black Flag then this is basically an improved version of that, and if you haven't and think Rogue looks interesting then I'd still recommend you play it.

19.11.2014

I sort of have mixed feelings on this game. I liked it, but also was left feeling a bit dissapointed. After waiting a whole year for the game, I completed it in just under a day. This really annoyed me as it felt more like a DLC than a full game. It only had about 6 sequences, where as other Creed games have 12/13. I didn't rush it either, I did some side missions etc. I didn't even get to fully upgrade my ship as the game finished. I don't want to write a huge paragraph but I have so much to say.The whole story of Assassin turned Templar really got me excited, but for some reason it just didn't quite "hit" the spot for me. Shay was a cool character to play as,

7.1.2015

AC: Rogue is a very good game. There are a few pros and cons of the game but overall, I would say it is a very enjoyable game and not what you would expect from a last gen game.Pros:- Very good story. Shows the process and timeline of your main character from his transition from an Assassin to a Templar.- Although it seems like a rip off of the AC:Black Flag engine and mechanics, they have implemented many new features and weapons.- You play as a Assassin turn Templar which makes it for a very different experience.- You basically fight against other NPC assassins who utilises all the tricks and strategies you would have used in other games. Makes for a new and different experience.- There are many easy to get achievements,

11.10.2016

For me this has been one of the better games in the series certainly an improvement on Liberation and Revelation although not as good AC2 and perhaps Black Flag for which this game followed and will inevitably draw comparisons to due to its pirating and game play style.Set during the Seven Years War ( a precursor to the First World War in that it involved many countries fighting each other) You play an Irish Assassin Shay who goes Rogue. Unfortunately the trailers don't do the game justice as the implication is you are a traitor to the Assassins but the reality is there is a much deeper storyline here which for me is the main selling part of the game.Couple that with loads of islands and towns

22.10.2015

It's not very often where one of the most shunned games in a series turns out to be one of the best; Rogue was released for PS3 and XBOX 360 the same day as Unity; this doesn't seem like a wise move to many people, releasing an old-gem game on the same day as a new-gem game, let alone from the same series. But this still seems to be one of the best Assassin's Creed games. While it is true that the game borrows many things from both III and IV: Black Flag, this is not a bad thing; the menus feel familiar to me, the graphics are still spectacular (for a PS3 game,) and the combat is fun; I even think there are mild improvements to the combat, stealth, graphics,

31.12.2014

Being a fan of the Assassin's Creed series since the first game I took the plunge with Rogue, resisting the temptation to dive straight in to AC Unity on the PS4. Indeed I was a little apprehensive having heard Rogue was no more than a pumped up add on pack that would have been more at home as a cheap download to compliment AC III or Black Flag, but I can safely say it holds its own in its own right.The first thing I noticed about Rogue was the improvement in graphics over Black Flag, it just looks that bit smoother. Secondly, the free running seems to have been tweaked marginally and feels a bit more responsive to your inputs, it's still not perfect but it's an improvement.

19.11.2014

At only 6 sequences this has to be the shortest game, story wise, in the series so far. However, the story is superb, and if you want to 100% it you'll have to put some serious hours into this game.Although quite short in comparison with other games from the series, Rogue's story is one of the best of the series, filling in gaps from AC 3 & 4 while creating some of it's own. The game is set after '4: Black Flag' and before 3, with many characters from both games making appearances, some for one cutscene, others appearing throughout the game. The present day story is also good if your a hardcore fan of the series. Your back at abstergo entertainment, only this time you're working for Otso Berg,

22.3.2018

Moving back from playing AC Origins to Rogue was, if you'll excuse the pun, quite a leap of faith. It's like putting on a pair of comfortable, but not that exciting, slippers. Or it would be, were it not for the fact that Rogue was actually a different take on the AC story line in and of itself. Sure, the game mechanics will (mostly) be immediately recognisable to anyone who has played any of the games in the franchise (preceding Origins of course) and in particular Black Flag. This is no bad thing as Black Flag was one of the best episodes in the series, and Rogue certainly builds upon that with a distinctly similar seafaring start. Where things are different is in the role you take: your character Shay is an assassin yep,

24.3.2018

As a big fan of the series I had to buy this as I had stopped buying PS3 games when this one came out. I have no idea how this stacks up graphically to the PS3 version, other than what I have seen on youtube, but comparing it to the Ezio remasters, this looks so much better (but of course PS3 games got better and better graphically during its lifespan).The most obvious thing to say is that gameplay wise, this replicates so much of the Black flag gameplay style, its almost a direct sequel.This is not a bad thing of course, as Black flag is one of my favourite AC games.After playing Origins last year, its both a great feeling of nostalgia going back to the old control method etc,

10.5.2016

Very similar to Black Flag, but told from the perspective of an Irishman who turns against The Assassins order after becoming disillusioned at it's methods. Decent all around i'm a fan of the series, with the exception of Assassins Creed 3 which was rubbish in terms of story. This kept me occupied for a couple of weeks. I think with this one though it's stretching out the U.S/New World setting a bit thin all aimed at the American market, (puzzling why the 17thC Europe was missed out and the 18th for Europe as all the major events of History at this time centered on Europe) also with the game finished I think the controlling of ships is done with now with this one the novelty was wearing off.

24.12.2014

This is by far one of the best AC games since, dare I say, Assassin's Creed Brotherhood. At first I was dubious as to whether to get this game; its trailers and first reveal of gameplay footage did no favours to it as in my eyes it seemed like a carbon copy of Black Flag, but I was wrong to think so.Set between Black Flag and ACIII, you play as Shay Cormac, an assassin gone 'rogue'. You meet new and old friends (If you're new to the AC games, I do not recommend starting with this one), and are put in an epic plot that sees twists and turns that'll make you feel a mixture of emotions. Although styles of gameplay may seem very similar to its predecessors,

7.4.2018

You just can't get enough of the Assassins Creed. I played this game on the PS3 originally and still wanted to buy it on the PS4, since in my opinion it was one of the best in the series. This time you play the Templar (having betraying the Assassins after a bit of a falling out) and as you build the trust with fellow Templar agents your world opens up to new possibilities and more of the world to explore. The game feels just like AC Black Flag and I loved that game, so I would strongly recommend buying this if you liked pirating and adventuring in a massive open world. Plenty of side quests, and shamefully I never completed all of them on the PS3 version since I already spent 40+ hours adventuring around and so felt I had got enough out of it.

17.2.2015

AC Rogue is definitely worth the money, it has a pretty decent story of an assassin changing allegiance to the Templars. It shows a different side to the assassins as it does the templars. It was interesting to see the assassins trying to take control of an artifact, to use its power, and to see the Templars trying to stop them. I got the impression that the Templars were actually doing something good, instead of being the bad guys!The gameplay is pretty much identical to AC Black Flag, so if you was a fan of Black Flag you'll definitely enjoy this one. Graphically its pretty impressive, for me having to come back to my PS3 after playing Black Flag on my PS4 was going to be interesting,

19.1.2015

Well I have to say rogue puts shame to unity where game play is concerned, it's nice to see they kept the original combat and kill combo formula is which made assassins creed such a great franchise. I was sceptical and even contemplated not buying it after unity because in my eyes unity just disappointed me the kill combo being removed caused to much chaos with combat and getting slaughtered in seconds. But rogue has improved much on that and I was impressed. Its similar to black flag but it's not a bad thing. If I was too say which one out of the two too buy it would be rogue for sure. I'm hoping unisoft will go back to the older formula of combat. Unity is too much of a mess in my eyes.

16.11.2014

Generically Rogue is a copy of Black Flag I won't deny it. The game play is majorly the same with minor tweaks here and there. Almost all side activities are the same also. The story itself however is a much needed link as it bridges the way from Black Flag to Rogue to Unity to AC3 - all in one game. Characters who seemed unimportant in the previous games have a new light shed upon them giving them purpose and the ability to strike chords within the gamer and it also opens the path for the story of the PS4 release of Unity. Back in the modern age you are once again in the offices of Abstergo Entertainment, fixing their computers which in return reveals templar data on major characters in the game series.

Assassin's Creed: Rogue - Reviews

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