Is the yearly nature of Assassin’s Creed causing damage to the franchise beyond compare or is Syndicate’s single-player focus a step in the right direction? A bit of both, if reviews are to go by.
General consensus has it that it’s a step in the right direction and the best AC in a long time, but it’s still far removed from glory days of Assassin’s Creed II and Brotherhood.
GameInformer, God is a Geek and GameSpot were pretty enamoured by it – handing out 9/10s – while VideoGamer and the Telegraph were less impressed, ultimately hoping that Ubisoft thinks long and hard about giving the series a break.
Hopefully this review round-up will make any potential purchasing decision easier:
9.0 – GameInformer: “With a cool setting, memorable characters, and a wealth of content, Assassin’s Creed Syndicate has all of the hallmarks of a great Assassin’s Creed entry – but it also surprised me by challenging what I previously thought a great entry should be”
9.0 – God is a Geek: “Ubisoft has tinkered around behind the hood and gotten this series back on the right track. Long may it continue, as Syndicate is the best Assassin’s Creed game in a long, long time”
9/10 – GameSpot: “The game is a triumphant return to form for a franchise, and presents a beautifully structured tale with heart and soul to spare”
9/10 – Entertainment Focus: “While Ubisoft haven’t fixed everything they certainly seem to have learnt a lot since Unity”
8.5 – Polygon: “Syndicate doesn’t get everything right. It doesn’t solve all of the series’ problems, and at this point, I’m not sure if any one game could. However, it’s the first step in a uniformly positive direction that the franchise has taken in years”
8.2 – IGN: “Syndicate pushes its thick lore into the background and delivers the most fun and focussed Assassin’s game in a while”
4/5 – GamesRadar: “No, it isn’t perfect, but with such a beautiful world, a genuinely likeable cast of characters, and many improvements to both stealth and combat this feels like a step in the right direction for Assassin’s Creed”
4/5 – Digital Spy: “Assassin’s Creed Syndicate is an acrobatic lunge in the right direction for the series. It’s a more stable offering than Unity ever was with engaging protagonists, a monster of a city to get lost in, and some shrewd tweaks to the time-tested formula”
75/100 – GamesBeat: “Syndicate is a good, solid game, one of the better in the series recently when it comes to its mechanics, with some nice surprises”
7/10 – TheSixthAxis: “It likely won’t convert people who dislike the series, but it won’t lose any who are still interested in it, either”
6/10 – PushSquare: “Vastly improved performance and all around impressive presentation mean that London’s most definitely not burning – but there may be a little panic in the offices at Ubisoft”
5/10 – VideoGamer: “Syndicate is a compulsive game, and in places a fine one. When it is good, when the AI is behaving and it’s running well, it’s very good. But Syndicate is so adept at self-sabotage that it’s nearly impossible to enjoy this world missions, this game. It constantly rips you out of the experience, whether that be from frustration at the mechanics or outright bugginess”
2/5 – The Telegraph: “Ubisoft’s yearly development cycle is really beginning to leave its mark on the series. Assassin’s Creed has been good. It is a series that can be great, but unfortunately Syndicate is a misstep”
Eurogamer meanwhile gave it their recommendation. “Syndicate moves Assassin’s Creed forward with a solid new adventure, a beautiful London playground and a renewed sense of fun†was their verdict.