Assassin's Creed Syndicate is a return to form for Ubisoft. Not only is it able to inject new life into the series but it brings the franchise back to where it started; not in terms of story and setting but in terms of structure. Sure, there's new and improved mechanics but Assassin's Creed Syndicate is a solely single-player game. This allowed Ubisoft to focus all of its efforts on creating an well polished experience without having to worry about extra bells and whistles that were only ever met with varying degrees of disinterest.
Syndicate (not the last-gen Starbreeze game) is a more focused, polished, and cohesive experience than any of the previous entries in the franchise since Brotherhood. The story makes sense, the characters are interesting, collectibles are manageable, and the side-content is actually enjoyable. Personally, I haven't enjoyed an Assassin's Creed game since Brotherhood (yes, I've played them all), so I wasn't expecting much when sitting down to play this for the first time. The first couple of missions throw you right into the actions and include some big set-piece moments that the franchise isn't usually known for. This combined for an experience which immediately grabbed my attention and interest and refused to let go even when I was finished with the game.
The story, while entertaining, is not particularly interesting or deep. The dual protagonists (more on that in a bit) get into trouble at the start and decide to follow in their deceased father's footsteps which leads them to London. Upon arrival they go separate ways in trying to reach the same goal: take back London from the Templars. That's it in terms of story. That thread alone leads you through nine sequences in which all you're doing is killing the henchmen of the guy at the top: Crawford Starrick. The motivations of Jacob and Evie Frye (the playable characters) are simply to take back London. That's fine with me but in doing so, you only see glimpses at a deeper, more nuanced character that never quite develops past the early stages. Jacob and Evie are wholly the same characters at the end of the game as they were when they began, minus thinking differently about their father. On the other hand, the ideology and desires of the antagonists are much more fleshed out. As in all of Assassin's Creed games, killing one of the main targets gets you a cutscene where the newly deceased has a dialogue with you about their grand scheme and how what they're doing is right and you're the bad guy. The way that Syndicate delivers these and what Starrick's true intentions are led me to stop and consider if what I'm doing is truly the right thing. Jacob and Evie never once stop and consider this which is disappointing because that could've added a much needed layer of depth to a story that is otherwise linear and one-sided.
All of the story is set to the backdrop of 1800s Victorian London which, personally, is one of the most interesting time periods in our history. Being set in this time opened up opportunities for Ubisoft to insert historical characters that many of us are familiar with such as Alexander (Alec) Graham Bell, Charles Darwin, Queen Victoria, Charles Dickens, and even Karl Marx. No Assassin's Creed game would be complete without shoehorning historical characters into the plot but thankfully in Syndicate, these historical figures are either secondary or completely optional. Alexander Graham Bell is the only character that you see more than once in the main story and he's only in it briefly at the beginning. In my opinion, this bettered the overall experience of the game. I didn't feel like my character was interjected into history but instead I felt like history was interjected into fiction of the game which makes for a more enjoyable and less cringe-worthy overall story (looking at you Assassin's Creed III).
The setting and characters wouldn't be nearly as engaging and enjoyable if they looked terrible, which is not something to worry about since Syndicate is the best looking Assassin's Creed game by a large margin. I thought Unity looked alright (after patches of course) but it doesn't even hold a candle to this game. The visuals are absolutely gorgeous, bringing to life the city of London and showing off the extreme beauty that came with Victorian Era England. Every building, NPC, and pool of water on the street are clearly defined and you can see all the minor details of everything in the world. As for the animations and voice-over, the game excels in that regard as well. The actors bring emotion to the words that they speak, adding weight to every word which only helps to enhance the experience that you receive. While the animations don't look fluid or hyper-realistic, they are believable enough and smooth.
Jacob and Evie Frye are characters that I desperately wanted to know more about at the end of the campaign, because in their own right, they're interesting characters but the story did little to flesh them out. Beyond that, they play nearly identical to one another. They're both master assassins and they share the same set of skills to upgrade. Each of them has three skills that only they can unlock but those are nothing special and don't do anything to differentiate the two. Switching between characters is as easy as opening the menu and pressing a button. Your character is switched on the spot so you don't have to worry about getting them back to where you were like in Grand Theft Auto V. Some story missions require one or the other character but as I said, they don't play very differently which led me to just using stealth on both characters. There nothing wrong with that, but I don't see the point in having two separate characters if they're basically the same.
As far as gameplay goes, Syndicate is the most fun and seamless the series has been. Running and climbing up a building is still not as smooth and free as it needs to be, however, it's better than previous entries. That being said, I did at times feel that I was locked to a wall and didn't have the option to move in a direction that seemed reachable. The combat in Unity was a travesty as I felt powerless in most battles. Thankfully all of that has changed in Syndicate which strikes a balance between being untouchable and a being as vulnerable as a child. The rhythm and flow of combat is important in this iteration as you need to pay attention to cues above the enemies' heads in order to know what you should do. If it's yellow and flashing, you counter. If it's grayed out, you break their block. Anything else you should attack. It's easy to get into and get a feel for but one wrong move can throw you off balance and you'll quickly find yourself having to heal. It's a balance that feels fun and rewarding without being overly difficulty to master.
The biggest new addition to the gameplay formula is the Rope Launcher which allows you to connect a rope from one place to another. The best comparison is the grapple from the Batman Arkham games but the one in Syndicate behave very differently. You can just fire your rope wherever you want to. You have to look around for ledges or spots that give you the button prompt to fire. This sounds fine except that it's very inconsistent. Sometimes you shoot to a really far away ledge and sometimes you can't get to a ledge that is at least half that distance. Also, you don't automatically zoom towards where you're getting to. You still have to hold forward to get to your spot. These are only minor inconveniences though as this makes traversing a whole lot easier and even makes you feel a little more free when roaming London whereas you feel stuck to walls when regularly climbing.
In the previous games, especially Unity, there were so many side-activities and collectibles to get that you honestly couldn't distinguish one thing from another on the map. That's been remedied here. There are better filters for the map but even the base one isn't nearly as crowded as it once was. The collectibles feel meaningful, filling in bits of back-story, unlocking new outfits and craftable weapons and gear. Side-missions are also more enjoyable as they're shorter and easier to complete thanks to the rework of combat. Follow missions are also almost completely gone from the game (there's one or two and they still suck) so there's that as well.
The Assassin's Creed franchise is as well known for its going back in time as it is with its modern and more recent history adventures. The "Present Day" sequences have usually been less inventive and dull than the rest of the game. Thankfully there are no playable "Present Day" moments in this game as they're all relegated to cutscenes which, even then, there's very little of it in the game. Unity had a couple missions where it thrusted you into the future. Not modern day but a more recent time such as the second world war. Syndicate does this as well but puts you in the shoes of Lydia Frye, the granddaughter of Jacob as she works with Winston Churchill to rid London of German spies during World War I. Playing through these segments was a ton of fun. They made me wish for a full-fledged entry in the series set during the time period. The Assassin's Creed mechanics lent itself well to a setting with airplanes, zeppelins, and machine guns creating a dark and more dangerous than ever world to play around in. It felt more real and alive than anything in the base game.
Assassin's Creed Syndicate revitalized my interest in the series and has made me look forward to what Ubisoft does next with it. It's unfortunate that the franchise may take a year off now that I'm wanting more but if it means that the next game will be that much more spectacular, I'm all for it. Assassin's Creed was dying off but Ubisoft was able to bring it back. While nothing wholly stood out as the "most amazing thing ever", this is the greatest Assassin's Creed game since the early ones so it's worth getting back into. This is one hundred percent worth your time.
Score: 9/10
Trophy Difficulty: Easy - There is no multiplayer or coop in the game so everything is achievable in single-player. All of the trophies are tied to getting all the collectibles, upgrading, crafting, and story related. There are a few odds and ends but nothing too hard.
Recommendations: If you like the Assassin's Creed series, play. this. game. If you're a fan of Victorian England, you will like this game. If you're a history buff, you'll enjoy this game. If you like stealth games, you'll like this game. If you've fallen away from the series, I recommend you give this game a shot.
Microstransactions: While there are options in the game for spending real world money, they aren’t shoved in your face and the game never comes right out and asks you to buy anything. The only thing you can get is xp boosts which are not needed by any means in order to reach the highest level.
*Note: This game was reviewed on the PS4 but is also available on the Xbox One and PC
This review was originally written for Real Dream Productions. You can read more HERE.