With the Playstation 5 now on sale, leave it to me to just be getting into the previous platform; I missed the PS3 completely and now I can’t lay my hands on one. I regret letting go of my Playstation 2, as that console has the biggest library ever. I loved that I could play original Playstation games on it and I did so often, but the fact is, the PS2 had great games that I’d love to be able to play again.
Now that I have a refurb PS4, I’ve sampled a few games, and for the most part been disappointed. A game that made me want the console in the first place, Call of Duty: World War Two was at first exciting. The graphics were there, the gameplay seemed good with the controls, and then it happened: a timed button-mashing move to hit a German soldier with a helmet or die and repeat until I got it exactly right. I hate that. Shooters should be shooters. I’m old school. I’m not hardcore. I never minded the puzzle elements in Half-Life, a PC port well done on the PS2, a great game. And I loved the RPG elements in Deus-Ex: The Conspiracy, graphics below par but engrossing in its gameplay and story, not to mention the way a player’s choices affected not just the ending but various events during the game. I may be casual gamer but I do appreciate the good stuff.
I made it past levels I didnt think I would beat in COD: WW2, like timed levels when I had to drive a jeep with clunky controls, a Sherman tank up against a Tiger, and other levels, like a spy level that required some stealth, which always makes me nervous.
Then I hit a level I couldnt beat. No matter what I did, how i approached it it, the level was lopsided and strategy was out of the question. I had to put it back in the box and I want to forget the entire game.
On a chance I came across a YouTube video where someone was playing Assassin’s Creed: Origins. The graphics alone blew me away. As an ancient Egypt buff, I knew I had to have this game. Wait! A game that gives the origin of the Assassins, with pyramids and Cleopatra?
First, I had never played an AC game before and they weren’t on my radar. So I decided I would start with this one because it tells the story of the first assassin.
The main character, who the player takes control of, is Bayek, a man who has been away from his home for a year following the death of his son, which has turned him into a vicious, efficient killer.
Bayek searches for his wife, who also quests for vengeance. It turned out, though, that justice and vengeance blur, that their enemy really consists of more than one person, and that all of Egypt and Ptolemy himself are to be contended with. He hates Ptolemy and longs for the old ways under the real pharaohs of old, when reverence to the gods and to the ruler made the world make sense.
During the first levels, I found out that leveling up depended on side quests, a first for me. Completing one gets you XP and Drachmas. Also ability points which, RPG style, you apply to a chart at will. There are three ability sections. There’s Hunter, where skills with the bow are gained, Seer, where the use of tools like firebombs are available, and Warrior, where melee combat skills are added, like a double weapon attack with two swords.
The RPG elements don’t end there. You also need to upgrade weapons because fighting at level 16 with a level 2 sword isn’t fun. And sometimes killing and looting an enemy yields a rare or legendary weapon that can also be leveled up and should be. A long handled weapon like the Shark Fin is great for use when mounted on horse or camel and will set enemies on fire. One of the shields poisons enemies on contact. It is immersive and addictive, giving layers to a great game that might otherwise have been lukewarm.
The environment is crazy. It’s a huge game, and it’s possible that you can cross into a section when you’re level 20 but the map shows that the enemies there are 35-40. Even if you can make the crossing, you don’t want to. One arrow will kill you.
The main story takes a back seat to the side quests, but I found I dreaded them without cause; you’ll never finish the game without using the side quests to learn the controls, fortify Bayek, and enjoy exploring a massive gameplay area that is beautifully rendered, from the first level on ward.
Travel can be done by horse and camel or chariot, or just plain running and swimming. Maybe the coolest mode, though, it by boat. That surprised me.
1I’m currently at level 22 with very little of the total game complete. And I’m enjoying every minute I play. I have my favorite games, but if this one holds up such quality to the end, then Assassin’s Creed: Origins will take over the top spot.
Memoirs of an American Asshole 