You could be forgiven for forgetting, in the wake of the tidal wave of information about Assassin’s Creed 4 crashing forth from Ubisoft as it vainly tried to stopper the leaks, that Assassin’s Creed 3’s significant story DLC is still ongoing. The second episode of The Tyranny of King Washington is out today. It still doesn’t seem fair to put a score on this DLC before it’s finished – episode 3 will be out next month – but after another few hours back in Ratonhnhaké:ton’s company, it’s still not really clear whether it’s going in the right direction.
The first episode was a decent enough set-up, but it was steeply priced for just a couple of hours, and as the first part of a three-episode series it perhaps inevitably felt narratively unsatisfying. With Episode 2, we have the same problem: it offers another two hours of new things to do in Assassin’s Creed 3’s world, another new spirit power and more narrative development, but still leaves many questions to be answered in Episode 3. It remains difficult to recommend jumping into a storyline that may or may not be worth it in the end.
Where episode 1 had us revisiting the snow-covered wilds of the frontier, Episode 2 brings Connor back to misty Boston. Only Connor is now much more in touch with his Native American upbringing, and he’s covered in war paint and furs, which makes it slightly more ridiculous that he instantly becomes invisible to potential aggressors by sitting down on a bench between two conversing gentlemen in tri-corn hats. Sadly, Episode 2 mostly moves away from the Native American concentration that made Episode 1 refreshing, and settles in more familiar urban territory.
We’re back with many of the prominent characters in Assassin’s Creed 3, including Ben Franklin – though naturally, as this is an alternate history timeline, they do not behave as you might expect. Ratonhnhaké:ton still seems as confused by this as he was in the first episode; he’s apparently struggling to grasp the concept of an alternate-history story. This still feels like a strange narrative decision, though as with many things in this DLC, an explanation is promised in Episode 3.
Boston itself is familiar and so are many of the things you’ll be doing in it. There is – spoiler warning – a prison escape, there’s a chase across the docks, and there’s an escort mission. Once again all of the cutscenes have been specially made and recorded for this DLC, but the action comparatively cut-and-pasted – until you start applying the new supernatural spirit-animal powers.
Where Connor communed with the wolf in the first episode, granting him the power of temporary invisibility and a wolf pack to do his bidding, here the hawk offers its blessing. After another herbal-tea-induced dream sequence right near the beginning of the episode, Ratonhnhaké:ton learns to fly. A touch of the right bumper lets you instantly transport to a high-up or faraway point.
As you might imagine, this completely changes the way you traverse the nascent Boston. Instead of climbing up windowsills and tottering across washing lines between buildings, you can zip around the rooftops at speed. It essentially removes the need to climb at all – and given that we’ve already done rather a lot of climbing over the course of the main game, it’s liberating. It also lets you flit Batman-like across the rafters above enemy heads before diving directly at them to knock them out, though sadly most of Boston isn’t built for this.
The most disappointing thing about The Tyranny of King Washington remains its reluctance to engage much with the potential of this alternate-history storyline, instead confining itself to Ratonhnhaké:ton. I would love to see more of young America as a despotic dictatorship. There are signs of unrest on the streets of Boston, but no more than there were during the Revolution. This DLC still – so far – shows next to nothing of how Washington’s coup has affected the country.
$9.99/£7.99/800 MSP is still a lot to ask for a few hours, even if The Tyranny of King Washington’s production values are high. Once again, it’s the novelty provided by the supernatural powers that redeems this episode. This suite of game-altering abilities redraws the boundaries of the Assassin’s Creed 3 world, and I’m looking forward to seeing how the final spirit animal changes things again . There’s a sense of intrigue building as Ratonhnhaké:ton finally approaches Washington’s seat of power, and I still care enough about the questions this DLC raises to want answers.
But until Episode 3 comes out next month, we won’t know whether it delivers enough of a narrative payoff to justify this expense. For now, The Tyranny of King Washington still isn’t a must-purchase addition to the Assassin’s Creed 3 storyline.
Keza MacDonald is in charge of IGN's games coverage in the UK and shamefully, she still cannot pronounce Ratonhnhaké:ton properly. You can follow her on IGN and Twitter.
Source : ign[dot]com
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