User blog comment:SpaceKat/assassin's creed in general/@comment-24.210.189.225-20120411020915

I really... REALLY don't get all the hate for ACR. Yes, it was a familiar formula, but you know what? It's a freaking good formula. And the story is vastly better than that of ACB. In a few places, it really did propose some interesting questions about the morality of the Assassins vs. the Templars, at least in the Ezio story.

Here's how I rate them.

AC1- 7/10. Incredible locations and great core gameplay, but it was immensely repetitive after a while, and I found Altair to be a bland, somewhat irritating character with his odd American accent.

AC2- 10/10. Refined gameplay, a magnificent story, and one of my favorite gaming protagonists ever. A triumph in every way over the original. As a bonus, the portrayal of Altair as a wise philosopher salvaged the character for me and made him more interesting.

ACB- 8/10. It's AC2 with better gameplay, but the story is easily the weakest of the franchise.

ACR- 8/10. Representing the gameplay refinements of ACB and the political story intricacies of AC2, Revelations strikes an admirable balance. Seeing our hero Ezio in his final years was a surprisingly emotional experience for me. The scene where Ezio finds Altair's body and transmits his final message to Desmond is arguably the most powerful scene of the franchise. Granted, the new gameplay mechanics (hookblade, bombs, and Desmond's Journey) were gimmicky and unneeded, but they are optional in most instances and don't distract from the experience. However, it loses points for the grossly mishandled potential of the Altair missions.