For some reason, the Assassin’s Creed games have always just passed me by. There has either been something ‘better’ to play, I have no real interest in the subject matter, or opinion from others has pushed me away (made me blind to the series). However, strangely, after watching Wonder Woman for most likely the 17th time, I had a craving to play something set in Ancient Greece. This feeling stuck with me for a few days and I succumbed to purchasing Assassin’s Creed Odyssey.
Fast forward to having owned the game for two days (with 6 hours play time under my belt) and I must say I am completely and utterly blown away. I was forewarned by a handful of followers on Twitter to not feel too overwhelmed by the size of the map, and to ‘just enjoy’ the environment and I have done exactly that. The last couple of ‘big games’ I have started – Days Gone & Fallen Jedi, have left me super disappointed and I had given up on them after about 2 hours play time, but AC:O grabbed me by the hoodie and has dragged me right into it’s beautiful sun-soaked world. I just haven’t stopped playing, or thinking about it… It’s so good!
Right from the off, you are dumped into the rich and vibrant world (Kefalonia to be exact), and straight into the action as a couple of goons attack your serene seaside home. As with God of War, I had to change the controller setup – I just can’t use the R1/R2 triggers as attack buttons – but then instantly felt at home with the combat system. Goons downed (and spared), I headed into the Greek countryside. Since then, I have plundered ship wrecks for treasure, swam through beautiful underground caves hunting for legendary weapons, blitzed abandoned villages to save hostages, tracked down ferocious wildlife and set sail across the high seas to the next greek island. I have found the vast land and varied missions a joy to behold.
Having zero experience of the Assassin’s Creed series most likely helps in the fact I am finding this game so great. I have no past knowledge of what’s come before, good or bad, and can enjoy this just for what it is. I love the Ancient Greek setting, and the fact that legends such as Zeus, Poseidon and Cyclops have all been mentioned so far. I am super excited to see what’s coming as I venture further into the game.
An honourable mention must go to the photomode too. When a game is this beautiful, it deserves to be shared all over social media, & I’d hazard a guess that at least an hour of my 6 so far have been spent snapping pics. From the wonderfully detailed character model, to the stunning Greek vistas I don’t think it’s possible for games to look better.
I am sure I’m probably the only person to not have played an Assassin’s game before, but if you haven’t, I would highly recommend trying this out (it’s pretty good value at a few online retailers right now), and from what I’ve heard, there’s tonnes and tonnes of content.
What hugely successful game series has passed you by before? and as always, thanks for reading ∆\
