In a review of Assassin’s Creed III , we have suggested that Ubisoft clearly should pay more attention to the maritime theme, because a few travel Connor on board the “L’Aquila” was very impressive. And now, a year later, is Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag, entirely devoted to the sea.

Location – the West Indies, and the focus of the very much loved by the public pirates of the Caribbean Sea, bloodthirsty revelers who love rum and female affection, plundering merchant ships get away from the gunfire ships of His Majesty and the leading pre-lost war for freedom.

The protagonist of the game – Kenuey Edward James, an Englishman, who comes from a poor family, he does not look like Altair, Ezio and Connor. Ed is not is a model to follow, he drinks a lot, seek wealth and looking for an easy life. These searches in 1712, led by a young British fleet of His Majesty. Kenuey served in privateers. However, his luck did not smile because the War of the Spanish Succession ends next year, with the signing of the peace treaty of Utrecht, which has put on privateering cross. And what do I do to hunt hundreds of ringing reais and, most importantly, armed to the teeth with the guys? Well, do not look the same from the shore of the passing potbellied and clumsy merchant ships?

Edward, like many others, is beginning a free life, Saint George gives way to the mast of the Jolly Roger in the pockets of the brotherhood of the sea begins to flow zolotishko, and on the island of New Providence in the town of Nassau appears proud and independent pirate republic.

In local taverns you will meet old acquaintances from the tales of pirates: Edward Teach, just let go of his menacing black beard, Ben Hornigolda, Calico Jack, Bart Roberts, and a couple of piracy ladies prefer men’s clothes – Anne Bonny and Mary Read. On the neighboring islands await Kenuey British forts and buried treasure, and in the sea – innumerable English and Spanish gunboats, frigates and sloops.

But what about the Assassins and Templars? Oh, they are, but the fact that Edward’s little interest in their eternal showdown, because first of all he is thinking only of how tightly to stuff your wallet and only because of what he occasionally crossed it with one, then the other – is a mysterious observatory, built Forerunners. The Order is looking for this building, because with the help of the Templars can build their ideal society, fraternity wants to stop them, well, Edward … Ed kept apart, and hopes it can help to earn some money. And a lot has to happen in order to pirate realized that to stay away he will not succeed, and finally made his choice.

Where did the pirates come from, you ask? Who now continues the work of Desmond and generally how things are after a very definite ending the previous part? The game gives you the answers to these questions, periodically bringing us back to the present, where we learn that Abstergo has decided to test himself in a somewhat unfamiliar role and started making computer games, enlisting, among other things, support for Ubisoft. And the company is killing two birds with one stone, as the materials for the game derives from the genetic memory of the person, at the same time continuing to search for useful information to the Knights Templar.

So the main character on this side of reality is a kind of analyst Abstergo Entertainment, sitting in his box at the Montreal office of the company, which explores the memory of seventeen object for the information useful for the development of a new game under the working title “Pirates of the Nightmare.” And he is not having a clue about the Templars and the Assassins, gradually and quite unwillingly gets caught up in a conflict occurs with characters from previous installments and in the process finds out what eventually happened to Desmond.

And yet unnamed analyst sneaking through the corridors of Abstergo Entertainment, hacking computers and gather incriminating files, Edward travel through the Caribbean Sea, each time approaching a little closer to the ancient observatory. A plow in Assassin’s Creed IV is that the world is simply huge. Previously, the developers have stated that it will take about half an hour to cross the Caribbean from end to end. Check the veracity of their statements was not possible because the number of events on the map rolls over.

Keep you out of a course of Kingston, for example, in Havana, determined to go through the story, when the quartermaster notes left on board the great white shark. Well then miss out on this rare occasion to harpoon? Especially given the fact that it can get reagents to create armor and weapons. And now, to board the trophies you see on the horizon, red sails hunter pirates, but your faithful “Jackdaw” is not repaired after an unequal battle with the trio of Spanish brigs. What to do? The answer comes by itself – away overcast sky cut a flash of lightning, then there is a storm and the opportunity to break away from the pursuer. And there, if you’re lucky, you fucking ship gets into a tornado or damaged killer waves, which means you can take it on board the ship. At the same time, and money / goods razzhivemsya and “Galka” mend. And here you are on the go all the sails to meet the storm, and the team at full throat singing shanti (traditional British sea songs, approx. Ed.). After another fifteen minutes you will find yourself on an island, for solving the mystery of the Mayan obelisk, though, remember that there is clearly tied up in search of the treasure, which learned about the location of the innkeeper at the Great Inagua.

The game constantly takes you away from the main storyline, entertaining a treasure hunt, the study of shipwrecks, it clashes with the royal guard, the search for materials to improve the ship, killing or contracts here this island, suddenly appeared on the horizon. What are the secrets he’s hiding? And even for the study is not open every piece of land, uncharted, let instead of huge locations from the previous games are pretty limited space, it does not make the study less exciting.

The combat system has not changed much – all the enemies are the same idiots who, despite their numerical superiority, prefer to watch Edward dealing with a couple of mates. At first it seems that they have become smarter and learned to run to the alarm bells, summoning to the aid of his comrades, but it is only an illusion. The radius of the enemy was still confined to a few meters, most enemies are deaf as traffic jams, do not present any particular risk in the melee and generally forget about the player after a minute or two after a confrontation and return to their seats.

The only lasting innovation – the brass tube with two types of darts. Some instantly put an enemy, others injected it into berserk, causing their attack. Excellent tool for discreet passage of jobs, among other things. You can simply put to sleep custody and quietly sneak into the fort, for example, or simply kill the desired character set on the fact of his own guards. However, the same tube is used in the Assassin’s Creed III: Liberation for the PS Vita, which, by the way, at the beginning of 2014 to re-release in HD for older platforms.

Pseudo-city living is traditional for the series look just wonderful, especially pleased with the population of pro-pirate towns. Women in the market, grabs the gun at attacking Edward British soldiers remain in memory for a long time. And with the visual side of Assassin’s Creed IV will give odds to anyone. However, to describe the incredible beauty is useless, you need to see. Most of all, perhaps, like the changing weather conditions – a sudden storm or incident the morning mist rising slowly in the bay, simply unforgettable.

Like the feel of the sea battle. Control of the ship was better than Assassin’s Creed III, although it is all the same arcade. However, this is his charm, tea does not play in the simulator. And so it should be a fun and epic, and not believable. And just to have fun and epic games are good, in fact, Assassin’s Creed IV – this is probably the best game about pirates today.

Not to mention that the game has changed a composer. This time it’s Brian Tyler who has long music for Hollywood blockbusters. I must say that the task he handled excellently, the soundtrack is to be commended.

As for the multiplayer, the presence of which has always been quite controversial, and it has remained virtually unchanged. Traditionally, several new modes, but in general, most of them habitually reduced to mask the scheme in the crowd, find and kill a given target and at the same time try not to die himself. Periodically with the need to capture points or carry back and forth artifacts flags.

Apparently, the mobile companion app – a new feature, soon we will meet them everywhere. There is an application and Assassin’s Creed IV. In addition to studying maps of open areas and reading texts found, the application provides access to a new mini-game “Fleet Kenuey” which has come to replace the management of squads of assassins. Now you can send merchant ships to different ports, thus earning money and opening collectibles. Naturally, the routes are periodically blocked by enemy ships, so they need to be cleaned from time to time. Fights are rather primitive, but at first amused. However, the most useful feature companion app – it’s the texts found shanti. Open up and sing along with the team!

In Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag developers have managed to please everyone. Fans of the history of confrontation and asasinov Templars got another piece of the global puzzle, and the rest – just a great game with a pirate theme and a huge world open to explore. And what more do you need than a tailwind? Full speed ahead, yarrrrr!

The review is based on the version of Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag for the PlayStation 3, all the screenshots used in this paper – the official.

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Usually prequels do in the case where the story and characters develop in a constructive way is not possible, in other words – not a good life. So for the most part prequels secondary, it’s true. And in the case of Batman: Arkham Origins situation was alarming at all – instead of doing a prequel Rocksteady new studio, present a serious rotation voice actors and indeed the whole story with Batman in the beginning of his “career” looked like a big gamble.

Nice to see that Warner Bros. Games Montreal coped with the task – not to fall face in the dirt after a great Batman: Arkham City. Surpass creation Rocksteady Canadian developers have failed, but the bar managed to more or less hold. The plot is simple – in the two years that Bruce wears a suit bat-impostor hero managed to pull the plug on almost all the mafia families that previously ruled Gotham. However, the overall crime situation that fact had little effect, because the holy place is never empty and the place of the retired criminals immediately replaced by new, more dangerous and totally unpredictable. Which, of course, want to see Batman’s dead. Police also have not said the Dark Knight a good guy, so life is not too comfortable last.

Beginner Batman in Warner Bros. Games Montreal has definitely proved successful and we are not talking about the suit, more like a rank and file member of a special division of the usual equipment, complete with a funny mask and cloak. Bruce himself still does not constitute a experienced and steadfast fighter against crime, he is quick-tempered, it is relatively easy to put out of balance, it breaks down at Alfred, and in general his battle for the streets of Gotham City is more like a banal personal vendetta. 

However, beginner or not, and gangster entourage Batman pretty pissed off, and that’s something the night before Christmas, Black Mask announced a reward of 50 million dollars to anyone who would bring him the morning of his head avenger. Decent money, so from those who was not lights – all flocked to Gotham supervillains who respect themselves, and it is with this motley fraternity (as well as the corrupt police) and have to deal with Mr. Wayne, occasionally distracted by the usual routine of a superhero – robbers, murderers and a variety of crazy city holidays are not taken. 

Where to turn to, because Gotham has expanded its borders. Now the players are available in two areas, divided into 4 districts, for ease of movement between them in the game even came fast moving system. In this city looks much the same as before, the first time do think that he moved straight from the second part of the trilogy, it’s probably a good thing. Games scheme remains unchanged – there is a storyline that takes place in the self-enclosed locations and have an optional assignment with which Bruce faces flying over the city. 

The plot of the game is fine, it’s probably the best there is in Batman: Arkham Origins, there are many unexpected (well, okay, it was expected, but we all pretend that shocked) turns and memorable scenes. Meeting Joker and Harley, for example, generally one of the most powerful moments in the series. At the same time, set slightly … bad. No, decorated for Christmas Gotham very atmospheric, but the main events that occur, if not in the next drainage, so at some factory. Or the police station, which is virtually indistinguishable from the courtroom. Or in the morgue, which looks like a weapon. And all of this together, with the exception of a couple of really cool locations for a monotonous and featureless. Even worse than the levels in Arkham Asylum, and to achieve this effect you had to try. Fights with bosses are remembered more, but none of the opponents of a serious threat to the hero is not. Private Group bandits, armed with firearms, defeat harder than any of the main bad guys. 

With all the additional tasks exactly the opposite. Nice, beautiful, atmospheric city is, and interesting side missions on the fingers of one hand can be counted. Here Evdvard Nigma collected a pile of dirt on everyone and scattered it around town – Gather together, or tomorrow morning everything will fall into the news. Here Anarchy set bombs / Bain set the tank with the chemical / Penguin scattered boxes of weapons / someone else ponastavil something. Come on, Man Bat, act. And while you will fly from the box to the bomb and back – intervened, probably in the disassembly of gangsters and corrupt police officers among themselves, there they are on the streets of beating each other. How to intervene? Well, jump off the roof and was broken both conflicting parties, bring them a little bit of justice and goodness. 

In this light, it is best to look like detective mission, but they also make it clear why such a situation in Gotham crime. The police did not bother to collect evidence and to investigate anything at all. Catches Bruce talks on police radio – murder at the intersection here and there, sent to the address, and then the body covered, and the clues are scattered liberally around one of the representatives of the authorities, all busy holidays. You have to include the detective vision, which allows to reconstruct what happened is not worse than in the CSI (and sometimes just ridiculous), examine the crime scene and search for suspects. 

By the way of equipment, in Batman: Arkham Origins moved all your favorite gadgets and added a few new ones, and the range of all kinds of equipment Bet replenished not only with an increase in the level of Batman, but after beating one of the major enemies – Bruce does not hesitate to shoot with beaten to unconsciousness carcass opponent useful in the household stuff.

Despite the fact that some journalists say about tainted combat system, undertake to say that it has not changed. So far, in battle you can use as only two buttons – punch and counterpunch and diversify the melee combos and using gadgets. Anyway, the gameplay is done without any noticeable changes, which can be written as a project in the pros, because nothing is broken, and a disadvantage, because it’s all we’ve seen before. 

The only notable difference from the previous games – is the presence of multiplayer, which were responsible for Splash Damage. True, he looks much more interesting in words than in deeds. Judge for yourself, what could be cooler mode in which the gang Joker and Bane fighting for supremacy on the map, while Bemten and Robin try to stop them? Moreover, each side has its own strengths and weaknesses, skills and sets of uniforms, and occasionally appear on the map supervillains. Genius … but only multiplayer in Batman: Arkham Origins almost does not work. There are four cards, one game mode, difficulties in finding mates, people flying out during the creation of the lobby, and as a result, one to one, Batman and the Joker thug three mercenary Bane, for example. Potentially very interesting mode that requires serious improvement.

The rest of the Batman: Arkham Origins this is the Batman we know and love, just a little bit worse. Slightly weaker than the scenery, much less the events, characters, secrets and fan-hour service on the old games and game mechanics with a minimum of innovation. This time we forgive, but the next part is clearly needed to cook something new.

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