- New Weapons -
The Renaissance is when war started to change. It’s when we start to see mercenaries and professional soldiers for hire appear throughout Europe and especially in Italy. Different city-states in Italy hired them, and even the Vatican got into it in by the end of the 15th century. In that context, the weapon of choice remained the sword, but the soldiers started to use pikes and firearms more frequently because they were more efficient.
We tried to depict that in Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood. For one, you’ll see more Seekers in Rome. They’re the ones carrying the long weapons (pikes, halberds, etc).
Remember the mercenaries you could hire in Assassin’s Creed 2? Well, they’re back. However, the Borgias, and therefore the Papal state, also hired some help: The Swiss Guards. These guys were the most fearsome mercenaries of their time and they are in the game. They can use matchlock firearms in one hand with a sword in the other hand, making them deadly opponents. They protect areas of high interest for the Borgias, so watch out for them in places like Castello St-Angelo. The Borgias have also given some new equipment to their archers, such as arquebuses, an early muzzle-loaded firearm.
Ezio also gets some major upgrades. We chose these weapons because they were either fan-favorites or additions that just made sense in our game. The integration of ranged weapons inside the fight system also shows that we are trying to reflect the greater availability of firearms during this era.
- The Crossbow: I think this was something fans wanted for a long time. In the first trailer for Assassin’s Creed, Altair was shown with a crossbow and we never had time to implement it properly. Well it’s now in the game! The crossbow is really useful for dispatching enemies that are far away, without attracting too much attention. We also implemented a new “upper-body” animation system that allows the player to aim with crossbow, while being able to move Ezio at the same time. You can also use the Crossbow in fights, but it’s a bit harder to avoid being hit by enemies when you use it.
- Heavy Weapons: Heavy weapons were around in Assassin’s Creed 2, but the player wasn’t allowed to carry one around. Well we decided to fix that, and give the ability for the players to buy and equip heavy weapons. There are now 6 new heavy weapons in the game, and that includes axes. What’s even better is that there’s a new attack in which you can throw heavy weapon, it’s useful for dispatching of enemies that try to run away.
- Dagger of Brutus: This is a legendary weapon in our game. I won’t tell you how to get it, but I can tell you what it does. It’s the dagger used by Marcus Junius Brutus to kill Julius Caesar. So quite understandably, once Ezio gains possession of that famed weapon, any Roman citizen will be quite freaked out to see it in action. Enemies will flee faster if you use that special weapon, so it gives a different twist to the fight once you have it.
- Dual Wielding: Ok I agree this isn’t exactly a new weapon, but there is a new way to use weapons. Ezio can now wield a sword or a blunt weapon and use the gun in his hidden blade at the same time. Same thing when he uses a small weapon, like a dagger – he can throw knives. What it does is that it allows Ezio to do new moves in fights such as gun counter kills or dagger and knives executions. It also means that the gun and the throwing knives are now fully integrated into the fight system. We’ll address the dual wield system in a later entry!
These new weapons really change the way you fight and create a new style of play. We hope you enjoy them!
- New Gadgets -
In Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood we wanted to create new gadgets that were helpful to the player, or improve upon ones we’ve already used. Gadgets in the game are used to “spice” up some of our core mechanics. That’s why when we create a gadget it must be related to one of the main three gameplay pillars: social stealth, fight, and free running. For example, in Assassin’s Creed 2, the poison blade was clearly related to social stealth – it created larger diversion and drew a crowd. The smoke bombs were useful to get out of tricky situations in fights, and so on.
For our new gadgets, we followed the same philosophy and tried to create at least one new gadget for each gameplay pillar. We have two new gadgets built by Leonardo, and two others that can be found in normal shops. They are:
- The poison darts: They are an improvement over the poison blade – they allow you to poison enemies without having to get close. It’s actually quite useful to create diversion, while keeping away from your target. Leonardo will offer to build this for Ezio.
- Fast poison: Fast poison makes enemies go directly into berserk mode. This is a more precise way to create a diversion, because you don’t have to wait a few seconds before the poisoned NPC starts slashing wildly around him. Doctors will sell these upgrades.
- Heavy sheath: The sheath allows you to buy and equip heavy weapons as your standard weapon. This is a super cool gadget to have, because it opens up Ezio to 6 new weapons. But, if you’re carrying a heavy weapon you cannot carry a one-handed weapon at the same time. This gadget can be bought in a tailor shop.
- The parachute: This helps the player to better control his fall and allows for some cool new moves. You can even do an air assassination from the parachute (and it’s GREAT!!!). Leonardo will give you the parachute in the game.
A few extra words on the parachute: while it may seem weird for Ezio to use a parachute, it is based on one of Leonardo’s drawings. While not being 100% historically accurate, the parachute had so much potential, we decided to keep it anyway. It’s really cool to climb one of Rome’s taller buildings and glide down toward the ground. It also opens up additional strategies such as gliding over guard posts, air assassinating from unexpected places, and more.
Of course, old favorites are still in the game: the smoke bomb will be back, as are the dual hidden blades, the hidden gun, the poison blade, and so on.
- Exotic Gameplay -
Q: What is exotic gameplay?
A: What we call exotic gameplay is a sequence in the game that differs significantly from the rest and is usually a unique moment. An example of exotic gameplay that fans of Assassin’s Creed 2 will recall is Leonardo’s Flying Machine.
Q: Why have exotic gameplay in a game like Assassin’s Creed?
A: When you play a game like Assassin’s Creed that has more than 20 hours of content, it is beneficial to have segments where you do something completely different. These moments change the pace of the game and are used to give the player a really intense experience.
Q: What are the different ways a mission can be exotic?
A: Each exotic mission will take you to a different location in Italy and also be different from a visual perspective. The audio mix is also slightly more intense and more present to emphasize that you are doing something different. The exotic missions will therefore provide variety to all your senses.
Q: How did the exotic gameplay segments come to focus on Leonardo’s War Machines?
A: We wanted the exotic gameplay segments to be intense, packed with action and we wanted them to allow the player to feel powerful. Teaming-up with Leonardo’s genius creativity seemed like a perfect match for our intentions. In many ways, Leonardo was almost 4 to 5 centuries ahead of his time. The concept of a Tank seems very obvious to us living in the 21st century, but to actually come up with the idea when nothing comparable exists is nothing short of pure genius. Leonardo was also a popular character in AC2 and we wanted to give him a role of importance.
Q: What are the main challenges of designing and producing exotic gameplay segments?
A: When designing a War Machine for an exotic segment, we always have to keep in mind that it will be in the hands of players for a maximum of 5 to 10 minutes. Our first goal is to have a machine that players can have an instant feel for how it works. The goal here is to have a machine that is intuitive and is fun within the first few seconds of getting in it. We must also walk a fine line so that the player does not feel that he is in a completely different game.