E3 2015: Assassin's Creed: Syndicate Impressions

Another year, another Assassin's Creed title. Not to sound dour, in fact, quite the opposite, as Assassin's Creed: Syndicate looks like it will revitalize my interest in the series. This time around we're going to be exploring London during its Victorian Era, which means we're starting to get a little more modern around here. The industrial revolution is under way, the quality of life is improving for a number of people, but that doesn't mean everyone's happy with their station in life, especially when you're under the thumb of the Templars, the ever present malicious entity at war with the assassins. This time around you'll be playing as Jacob Frye as he attempts to wrest control of London away from the Templars, and the short demo gave us a glimpse at the new skills our assassin is capable of. 

Our demo ended almost as quickly as it began, on the backs of horse-drawn carriages. Jacob is able to commandeer vehicles and use them to give chase, and had to keep up with the Templar that was fleeing. This demo also served to give a great sense of how large the world is that you're going to be exploring, as quite a large distance was covered over the course of the mission. When it came time to fight, Jacob proved to be perfectly capable of handling himself as he used his cane sword to easily take down a crowd of enemies.

After slaying our mark, we were treated to a quick video showcasing Jacob's sister Evie, who makes Jacob look tame in comparison. Her brutal takedowns display her as a take no guff type of character, and it looks like Ubisoft is trying to make amends for their comments from last year. Where she fits in to the story wasn't exactly clear, but if Jacob is the face of the assassins, then Evie could be considered their blade, and is a more than capable assassin, and I'm sure we'll see more before Assassin's Creed: Syndicate launches this fall.