Assassin’s Creed: Revelations will be out in just a few hours, and with the review embargo lifting, impressions of the game are starting to roll in. And while some of the scores aren’t really all that impressive, and some new additions are being panned, the reviews are, overall, very good. Here’s a round up of all those that have been posted till now:
3D Juegos- 9.3/10
“Revelations closes the Assassin’s Creed journey with a familiar looking videogame, but with a new iteration so epic and amazing as you might expect. It’s a worthy end for the first volume of the series.”
Vandal Online- 9.2/10
“Those who didn’t like previous game won’t enlist in the Assassin guild, but it is must-have for fans of the series as it reveals some secrets of the story. Shorter than the previous games, but with a better story, it consolidates the multiplayer mode adding extra variety.”
Multiplayer.it- 9.2/10
“Revelations does whatever it promises: it puts an end to the trilogy who made Assassin’s Creed so successful on the market. Several new additions for the gameplay and wonderfully-crafted secondary missions add the right amount of contents to this sequel.”
NZGamer- 9.1/10
“This game has taken the best points from the first three titles, and improved upon them yet again. It comes highly recommended: it looks great, it sounds great, it plays great. It’s great.”
Game Revolution- 9.1/10
“Nearly everyone who’s kept up with Assassin’s Creed thus far will feel like the latest falls a little short of catipulting Ezio and company past the previous outing. These yearly releases are truly a double-edged hidden blade. If the overarching plot kept moving forward at its previous pace, I’d be faulting it for leaving so many gamers behind. In this case, it’ll disappoint the most dedicated fans by retreading a lot of ground to keep everyone up to speed.”
The Sixth Axis- 9/10
“It’s a compelling experience that takes what you’d expect from Assassin’s Creed, refines it and then adds some stellar new features. And when it all ends, you’ll experience the closure of old plot threads and the paving of new ones. Until that story is explored in the next game, you’ve still got the rest of Revelations to get on with – side quests, multiplayer, renovations, recruiting Assassins and much more.”
Gameblog.fr- 9/10
“ACR has its shortcomings, but they’re nothing compared to the pleasure this title delivers. Large, more polished and varied, quite pretty and offering an adventure and a story more enticing than ever, the solo play doesn’t disappoint, even though it’s still based on the same tricks and elements established a few episodes ago. It may be time to alter the formula. Ben even so, the multiplayer has been refined, all the while becoming more accessible. Overall, it’s an action-adventure must-have.”
Eurogamer Italy- 9/10
“Revelations is quite similar to Brotherhood, but there are a lot of minor additions that make it an excellent game. On the other hand, Ubisoft can’t go on for long updating this glorious franchise every year with such improvements.”
Strategy Informer- 9/10
“With the release of Revelations, Ubisoft have finally turned their initial concept into a truly unmissable game. Pulling the narrative together alongside some vital gameplay additions, this is the best, most complete Assassin’s Creed title to date.”
PlayStation Lifestyle- 9/10
“Revelations is a fantastic game, and is more than worth your money, but a repetitive mission structure and the fact that the game is still following Ezio is rather disappointing. Overall, the positives far outweigh the negatives, with the game an improvement over Brotherhood in almost every way, making it one of this holiday’s must-haves.”
Official PlayStation Magazine UK- 9/10
“As a conclusion for Ezio’s chapter, Revelations proves an utterly brilliant swansong.”
Game Trailers- 8.8/10
“The engine is a bit long in the tooth and some of the content isn’t entirely worth exploring, but if you’re looking for an unforgettable top shelf action/adventure, heed the creed.”
Game Informer- 8.8/10
“A number of new features have been attempted to make Revelations feel new and different from its predecessors. In that quest for broader variety and a unique identity from the earlier games, Revelations makes some missteps that are hard to ignore. However, the game offers more of what has been great about the franchise, and that should be enough to bring most fans to the table, even if it a poor starting point for new players.”
SpazioGames- 8.8/10
“Revelations is a sequel that won’t disappoint the fans of the saga, yet it lacks in polish. The difficulty level is still too low, AI and combat system don’t make every gameplay addition smooth to play. It still feels more like an expansion of the second chapter than an entirely new chapter.”
Mondo Xbox- 8.7/10
“A solid and vast game which however feels too similar to the previous one, with a not charming enough main environment, and the story becomes really interesting only in its latter part. Altair and Desmond’s storylines manage, however, to keep it interesting to the end, and the final revelations are definitely worth the journey.”
PALGN- 8.5/10
“Ties in the fates of the three protagonists very well, and makes some good improvements on the way. But the real revelation will be if the next proper sequel manages to improve rather than just polish an ideas pool running low.”
CVG- 8.5/10
“An abundance of recycled gameplay sours what is otherwise an entertaining, imaginative and memorable end to Ezio’s story.”
IGN- 8.5/10
“This is the best Assassin’s Creed yet, even if that victory is claimed by an inch and not a mile. If you’ve been following the lives of Altair and Ezio this long, you owe it to yourself to see their last adventure.”
1UP- 8.3/10
“While Revelations lacks that one supreme improvement or standout mechanic that defined AC2 and Brotherhood each, it’s still a damn fine sendoff for Altair and Ezio.”
Digital Spy- 8/10
“The time is definitely right to reboot the Assassin’s Creed franchise with new characters and settings, but Revelations marks a fitting finale to this magnificent franchise to date.”
Games.cz- 8/10
“A must-have for those fans of the series. For the others it is like getting to know the whole game concept that is additionally rewarding to those interested in history. Revelations does have a good story, several great ideas and a sufficient number of historical details letting you immerse yourself in the game database and other sources of information after finishing the main campaign.”
Guardian- 8/10
“Ezio Auditore is, simply put, the only reason one needs to pick up a copy of Assassin’s Creed: Revelations. While it doesn’t feel like the step forward for the franchise that its two predecessors did in their day, Revelations can confidently stand shoulder to shoulder with the better titles of 2011.”
Telegraph- 8/10
“There’s no denying that, as a piece of virtual tourism through the ages, the series has no equal. But today, with endless piles of side-quests, there’s also a sense of ennui creeping in, a lack of focus that no amount of micro-improvements can disguise. As such, Revelations is a strong, assured conclusion to Ezio’s storyline, but one that begs for a fresh start reboot in whatever comes next.”
GameSpot- 8/10
“On the bright side, the game usually sticks to what it does best. And what Revelations does best is to set you free in a magnificent city, where you skyrocket across the rooftops, letting the gorgeous sights and evocative music transport you to another life and another century.”
Joystiq- 8/10
“It’s an Assassin’s Creed game wearing blinders that focus it on covering ground it’s already traveled, albeit more effectively. While it’s always good to see iterative improvements, some bold new territory would have been a real revelation for the series. Instead, Revelations does almost everything its predecessors have done slightly better. Which, as it turns out, is enough just one more time.”
games(TM)- 8/10
“Assassin’s Creed Revelations, then, is a pick-and-mix of successes and failures. At its core, though, it’s just as accomplished a game as Brotherhood before it. All that’s required is to dig below the surface layer of frivolous pseudo-innovations to discover yet another classic Creed, and a top quality conclusion to an excellent story arc.”
Official Xbox Magazine UK- 8/10
“Bulk can work to a game’s disadvantage if there’s nothing drastically new on offer, however, and Revelations’ later stages are a bit of a slog. It’s just as well this is Ezio’s final hour, because enjoyable as the game undoubtedly is, the base mechanics were showing their age in Assassin’s Creed
Destructoid- 7.5/10
“As much as Assassin’s Creed: Revelations is a testament to the inevitable cost of trying to milk your franchise too much, too fast, it is still a fun game that gives you the single-player gameplay you’ve come to know and love, but sadly offers little more on that front.” 2. Recommended, then, providing you’re not expecting a massive overhaul.”
Cheat Code Central- 7.4/10
“The game lacks a coherent story, visual polish, and meaningful new gameplay elements. Though running around and stabbing people is still fun, Revelations has lost some of the spark that made its predecessors feel so amazing.”
AusGamers- 7/10
“If you’re a dedicated fan and want more of the series, you’ll have fun despite being disappointed at the lack of exposition. As for the casual players, there are unfortunately very few reasons to check this out.”
Wired- 7/10
“The elements added to Assassin’s Creed: Revelations do make it feel like a more different and occasionally surprising experience compared to Brotherhood, which felt like an expansion pack. But at its core, we’re still playing the same game for the third time.”
Machinima- 7/10
“Revelations very much feels to me like a team checking off items from a list. Ezio, Altair, and Desmond are here; there’s parkour; there’s combat; there’s a bad guy, eventually; there are puzzles; there’s a big beautiful world to explore. The problem is, they never seem to cohere into a single experience, and the kind of passion and quality that has made this series so good in the past is missing.”
Inc Gamers- 7/10
“Despite the faults though, Revelations remains an intriguing proposition because of gaming’s finest Italian hero after that plumber in dungarees. Seriously, if there was an Oscar for game characters Ezio would walk it more often than not. If you’re less entranced by Mr Auditore then Revelations is a more difficult sale.”
GamePro- 7/10
“At its core, this is the Assassin’s Creed we’ve grown to love in recent years, and it still serves as a pretty good time sink — plus, it’s a necessary bridge to next year’s already-announced follow-up. But obligation shouldn’t be the primary reason to play something, and sadly, that’s too often the case in this humdrum campaign.”
Metro GameCentral- 7/10
“There’s still plenty of the old Assassin’s Creed magic in parts, but this proves an unnecessary sequel and one with few genuinely welcome new ideas.”
Gamekult- 7/10
“More than any other episode of the series, Revelations shows the limits of its gameplay – it is high time to revise. Yet Constantinople is a beautiful playground, full of things to do. The story provides some surprises and takes us into a pleasant adventure. All this is in addition to supporting a fully fleshed out multiplayer…But in the end it left a bitter taste left in my mouth.”
Eurogamer Sweden- 7/10
“While Ezios final chapter is a fun romp through Istanbul, it could just have well been incorporated into Brotherhood with a bit of editing. The saving grace is the fleshed-out multiplayer modes and the interesting effects the bombs have on it. With a bit of luck the series will get back on track after the two latest interim-games, so fingers crossed that Assassin’s Creed III dares to evolve the series as much as the second game did.”
“Unlike the elegant lead, who’s grey-haired but unbowed by the end of the adventure, Assassin’s Creed has been quietly compromised by age.”
VideoGamer- 7/10
“So, for the first time, a new Assassin’s Creed game is worse than its predecessor, the first time the short development period has had a noticeable impact on the game’s quality. It’s a game of nearlies and might-have-beens: summed up by the hookblade, a supposedly key new feature which in practice merely extends Ezio’s reach slightly, and allows him to glide down the occasional zipline.”
Eurogamer- 7/10
“Where Brotherhood enhanced the thrill of being Ezio Auditore, Revelations distracts from it. Ezio may look old, but it’s the series itself that really shows its age.”
Level7.nu- 6/10
“Not bad if you’re looking for exactly what Brotherhood brought us and still a beautiful living world, but a lack of news, strained story and repetitive missions lowers the experience”
Gamer.no- 5/10
“Building on the foundation of Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood, Revelations had a fantastic opportunity. Sadly it is wasted on annoying mini games and uninspired escort missions.”
METACRITIC: Xbox 360- 79 (based on 36 critic reviews) | PS3- 80 (based on 20 critic reviews)
We’ll keep updating this page as more reviews hit the net. Keep checking back, and if we’ve missed any reviews, let us know in your comments. Our own review of AC: Revelations will be up soon, so keep checking back to read that as well. Stay tuned.