I'm still awestruck by the scope and scale of the Assassin's Creed series. From the 1100's Third Crusade to the late 1700's French Revolution, it's been one heck of a ride. No, seriously, for just a minute, set aside any personal misgivings you may have over this particular entry or that particular entry in the series. Assassin's Creed has singlehandedly put more cities, countries, time periods, historical characters, and conspiracy theories on the map than anything this side of Sid Meier's Civilization—and certainly anything in the action game genre.
So it's come to this: London, mid- to late-1800s. In Assassin's Creed Syndicate, you're a man named Jacob Frye ("Frye," incidentally, meaning "free (born)" in the Old English). And we're back to the ol' game of Risk, taking on seven gang bosses for control of London's seven boroughs. With Queen Victoria on the throne, it's considered an era of peace, prosperity, refined sensibilities, and national self-confidence for Great Britain. They've just led the way in the Industrial Revolution, for heaven's sake. But I'm guessing the Templars and Assassins will throw a monkey wrench into those gears.
If you've played an Assassin's Creed before, then you know what to expect. With slight internal innovations, this is still that same series you've either come to love or dismiss offhand since 2007. But there's some magic still here. And if Assassin's Creed III was half-jokingly called "AC: Americans Clapping," well, England, I do believe Syndicate will be your opportunity to applaud yourselves.
Here is a gameplay walkthrough of one take-over-the-borough mission, which also introduces carriage travel, ziplining, and straight-up gang wars in the streets.
Assassin's Creed Syndicate (formerly Victory) is coming to PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Windows PC this year on October 23, 2015.
