Assassin’s Creed Liberation is something different in the series. You can say it’s more of the same, since the game is built on the same engine as Assassin’s Creed III (that includes the good and the bad sides of this), yet Liberation is somehow different. First of all, Assassin’s Creed Liberation is way smaller game than any other in Assassin’s Creed series, but besides that it feels more like an action-adventure game than an open world. Don’t misunderstand me, you still have the open world to roam in, just the main mission has the spirit of Lara Croft’s adventures. Maybe because the game is a port from a console.
Assassin’s Creed Liberation protagonist Aveline is quite a unique character in the series. Being able to change between different personas is a really interesting (and welcome) entry. Aveline can change into a slave, a lady or roam around as an assassin. Each of these personas have different characteristics. For example being a lady means no climbing (well, we should agree that fancy dress is not the best option if you want to run on the rooftops), but lady persona gains notoriety slower and is able to charm certain gentlemens. Assassin’s persona is always notorious to a certain level and you can’t get it go lower than that. And it totally makes sense, anyone who’s running around armed to teeth should draw attention and suspicion. Something that other AC games lack. I really fancy this personas thing since it allows you to have different strategies to approach your target (for example charm him/her and lure them around the corner to kill).
The map of Assassin’s Creed Liberation is not big. When you compare it to the other Assassin’s Creed game’s maps, it’s rather small. You only have three areas to be in - New Orleans, The Bayou (by the way, alligators suck), and Chichen Itza. However, small map triggers a wish to collect everything, since the amounts of collectables and places where they might be are not overwhelming.
The storyline seems promising at first. However later it develops into something rather dull and monotonous. The intrigue that lingers around in the first half of Assassin’s Creed Liberation, is gone in the second half, repetitive missions make sure of that (or more like repetitive reasons to kill someone, felt like I was doing the same job over and over again). Playing the story of Assassin’s Creed Liberation felt a bit like finding that cookie box with a sewing kit inside.
To sum up, the game is an interesting entry to the Assassin’s Creed series. It’s definitely different from the rest. Personas options add some interesting diversity to the game. The storyline, while certainly cannot be referred to as the best, is still quite alright and intriguing. So if you are looking for a new experience within a familiar game, you should really try Assassin’s Creed Liberation.
