I actually died. I haven't died in an Assassin's Creed game since... since Assassin's Creed 2. Sure, I've failed missions before -- I've failed to keep my assassin far enough away to stop from being noticed while staying close enough to listen in, and I've failed to chase a person down during a heavily scripted chase sequence -- but I don't think I've straight up died in years. But after playing Assassin's Creed Unity for a few hours, I found myself dying quite often.

The combat system in Assassin's Creed had definitely reached the point of being a joke for many. Even when they tried to increase the complexity by adding muskets into the mix for Assassin's Creed 3, you were too often able to win every fight by countering and striking. If the musketeers did try to shoot you, you'd simply grab the nearest combatant and hold them in the way, and then you'd return to countering and striking your way to victory.



Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag introduced massive Galleons full of treasures, designed to be some of the most challenging enemies in the game. And before I'd even finished the first ship-based mission I'd taken one down by sailing a little ahead of it, jumping from my ship across to theirs and then defeating everyone on board using hand-to-hand combat. It wasn't a challenge because even when a second enemy attacked me, all I needed to do was counter them and hurt them.

In Assassin's Creed Unity, it seems like that's not the case. Enemies don't wait for you to be ready to dodge their gunfire. They don't let you gather yourself before they strike at you. You can be winding up for a combo and find a sword swinging at your back from multiple directions. You've committed to the attack, so you don't get the opportunity to counter. It's brilliant. Better still, enemies will pull out their pistols and shoot at you without wind up, without giving you the opportunity to grab a human shield.

The amount of times I got shot in the back while running away is staggering. The only time I've ever used an escape device before AC Unity was when a mission demanded I do so, and they seemed so pointless I can't even recall if that ever happened. Now, a smoke bomb is your only decent chance for getting away (unless you happened to pick a fight near three corners you can run around).



It's bloody brilliant. Suddenly it's important that you strike only when the opportunity is right. From the very first time I saw Assassin's Creed, the idea was supposed revolve around a hidden blade, around the player escaping in the confusion. Getting to your target is actually possible now too, as the game features a dedicated Stealth option to allow you to sneak. It's almost impossible to believe a game about assassinating people didn't include this feature in the first place, but now that it's there I felt entirely in control. Some seven years and seven games after it launched, Assassin's Creed will finally allow (require, even) players the opportunity to be... stealthy assassins.

There's more to Assassin's Creed Unity than just compelling combat and stealth though. Set in 18th Century France, Unity encourages players to explore a Paris gripped by the early stages of the French Revolution. What's really impressive is the sheer amount of activity on the streets. At every junction there's a group of angry revolutionaries, milling around someone on a soapbox. And we're not talking about 10 or 20 French people -- dozens of AI characters are occupying tight spaces, all moving around at once. The epic crowds we were always promised are finally front and centre, there for you to get lost in after you commit your malicious deed.

They have character too. You'll see disheveled men drag a noble-looking character away, you'll see heads separated from bodies. Effigies burn as drunks fight one another in the street. The blue coated Guards chase a thief down the street, and you get to decide who you help. Paris feels alive in a way that no other Assassin's Creed game has felt before.



It's interesting that it took this long for the team at Ubisoft to get a full understanding of what makes an open-world game special -- a wide open space for players to climb around isn't enough to keep everyone interested. Players need reasons to explore that space, and dynamic events with large crowds are just one trick up Unity's blade-hiding sleeve.

There are more side-quests in Assassin's Creed Unity. My favourite of these involved investigating murders for the local constabulary. I was initially quite afraid when I entered the police station and a well-meaning prisoner complained loudly about the murders going unsolved around the city. After all, for every murder committed as part of a side quest, I'd committed five just because they had a weapon and they looked at me funny.

Nevertheless, I was tasked with investigating the murder of some priests. After traipsing across the city -- committing more murders along the way -- I eventually made it to the priory and got down to the business of solving the murder. The game now includes interiors without any loading, allowing you to sneak through buildings whenever you come across them. As you climb up walls around the city you'll see open windows, and instead of vaulting through them quickly (as you did in Assassin's Creed 3) you can now take your time and check out what's inside.



The ability to use Eagle Vision to find clues cheapened the experience a little, but it was helpful in finding the specific people I could talk to -- you can't talk to everyone in the game world. Eventually I worked out that one of the monks who was still alive had gone delightfully mad, and I fingered him for the crime (not like that, pervert). I got my pay, and went on my way. It was fantastic, if brief, and it gave me a great excuse to travel to parts of Paris I hadn't visited before.

Assassin's Creed Unity isn't all improvements, I'm afraid. There were a number of chests I found that appeared to be locked out, requiring players to interact with some sort of second-screen app that wasn't available. This is a huge mistake in my opinion, and I hope Ubisoft realises their error before the game releases. A good second screen app should only ever enhance the experience, and locking chests behind an app interface specifically detracts from the game itself. I know I'd prefer to just not get whatever is in the chests than to download an app for them.



Outside of that issue, Unity might also have reduced visuals compared to the utterly gorgeous Black Flag. It was hard to tell, as preview builds are often hamstrung in various ways and there appeared to be a visual difference between machines (at the preview event multiple games were running on TVs sitting next to one another). I personally think a reduction in visuals is a worthy trade-off for the sheer density of Parisian life on display, but if you're someone who needs Revolutionary France to look its very best it might be worth holding back on your hype.

Apart from those two things, I haven't been this excited for an Assassin's Creed game since... since the first one. The combat feels great, the stealth game works well and the team at Ubisoft has done a fantastic job at bringing 18th Century Paris to life. As long as the stuff outside the Animus isn't too cringe-inducing, this might be the first Assassin's Creed I'll finish in a long time.