Probably the best AssCreed game I've played so far (and I haven't played all of them, only the first two and the newest ones that all the AssCreed purists hate). I bought this after enjoying Odyssey and hearing everyone compare it to Origins. I love mythology and figured that if there was more semi-fantasy nonsense set in a beautiful and historically authentic world, then this would be right up my alley!
And it was, mostly. But honestly, my main reason for enjoying this game as much as I did is Bayek. He's probably the best AssCreed protag Ubisoft will ever write (I haven't played the Ezio trilogy, Ezio bros do not interact), and if written by more skilled writers, he would've become as iconic as Ezio as the sort-of founder of the Assassins. And he's also hot. So there's that. His quest and story are actually compelling for most of the game's runtime. Everything sort of falls apart at the end, though. And it also stumbles whenever Aya is around.
Here's the thing: I think Aya should've been the main character, logically, but I'm glad they went for Bayek. It's a weird position to be in because it's obvious the devs would've preferred Aya to be the main chararacter, she's arguably the more important one in the grand scheme of things, but they were forced to sideline her lest the gamer bros shit their diapers for having to play as a woman. We saw the same shit happening with Odyssey and Valhalla, where apparently Kassandra and f!Eivor are "canon", yet all the marketing is about Alexios and m!Eivor. Ubisoft trying to have their gamer bro cake and eat the twitter woke money too. (And it worked, evidently. Ugh.) But I can't for the life of me actually ... like Aya? She's deeply bland as a generic "strong female character" archetype whose characterization doesn't seem to evolve or move anywhere. Bayek has layers, he has internal conflicts and traumas to figure out and explore as the game moves on. Aya is just ... there. I think they were trying to go for a story where the two of them had conflicting approaches to their common goal, where Aya is the more methodical one who wants to get to the bottom of things and Bayek is the one driven by grief and emotion. The writers could've delved deeper into that, made the contrast more intense; maybe Aya seems to be more methodical and restrained, but she's actually the more ruthless and bloodthirsty of the two, planning out intricate revenge plots that strike deeper at the heart of the Order and has more collateral damage, while Bayek seems like the more emotional and angry one but actually shows sympathy and mercy for his enemies? That way, we'd see that Aya is still deeply affected by and grieving her only son's death, and that inflicting pain upon the world is the only way she can express that.
Instead, Aya comes off as not really giving a fuck that her son got got, and this is more like ... a job to her? Or a hobby? While Bayek seems more focused on the mission and has a personal connection to it despite being framed as the more reckless one. Instead of us seeing how Aya is playing 5D chess and Bayek is barely keeping up, her cavorting with Cleopatra and other bigwigs just mostly comes off as her doing fuck-all while Bayek has to do everything himself. (Again, probably sidelining at work. Proof that sensitive gamer bros are a detriment to the storytelling potential of video games. Games are only art if you let them be, fellas.)
Idk man. It doesn't help that Aya is voiced by a British woman doing an absolutely inscrutable accent. I love you Alix but what the fuck was that. Not even sure I should blame you or the people who cast and directed you.
Soo yeah. This game's kind of a mess, but I wrote this big rant about it which means there was enough potential there for me to become invested. Which should say something.
Oh and the gameplay is fine I guess. Love me some Ancient Egypt. Good tunes also. Basically if you've played any other Ubisoft game and at least one RPG then you know what's in this here sausage. Bland but filling. Not quite as bloated as Odyssey or Valhalla, but still a somewhat grindy time investment. Worth it for my malewife Bayek though <3
And it was, mostly. But honestly, my main reason for enjoying this game as much as I did is Bayek. He's probably the best AssCreed protag Ubisoft will ever write (I haven't played the Ezio trilogy, Ezio bros do not interact), and if written by more skilled writers, he would've become as iconic as Ezio as the sort-of founder of the Assassins. And he's also hot. So there's that. His quest and story are actually compelling for most of the game's runtime. Everything sort of falls apart at the end, though. And it also stumbles whenever Aya is around.
Here's the thing: I think Aya should've been the main character, logically, but I'm glad they went for Bayek. It's a weird position to be in because it's obvious the devs would've preferred Aya to be the main chararacter, she's arguably the more important one in the grand scheme of things, but they were forced to sideline her lest the gamer bros shit their diapers for having to play as a woman. We saw the same shit happening with Odyssey and Valhalla, where apparently Kassandra and f!Eivor are "canon", yet all the marketing is about Alexios and m!Eivor. Ubisoft trying to have their gamer bro cake and eat the twitter woke money too. (And it worked, evidently. Ugh.) But I can't for the life of me actually ... like Aya? She's deeply bland as a generic "strong female character" archetype whose characterization doesn't seem to evolve or move anywhere. Bayek has layers, he has internal conflicts and traumas to figure out and explore as the game moves on. Aya is just ... there. I think they were trying to go for a story where the two of them had conflicting approaches to their common goal, where Aya is the more methodical one who wants to get to the bottom of things and Bayek is the one driven by grief and emotion. The writers could've delved deeper into that, made the contrast more intense; maybe Aya seems to be more methodical and restrained, but she's actually the more ruthless and bloodthirsty of the two, planning out intricate revenge plots that strike deeper at the heart of the Order and has more collateral damage, while Bayek seems like the more emotional and angry one but actually shows sympathy and mercy for his enemies? That way, we'd see that Aya is still deeply affected by and grieving her only son's death, and that inflicting pain upon the world is the only way she can express that.
Instead, Aya comes off as not really giving a fuck that her son got got, and this is more like ... a job to her? Or a hobby? While Bayek seems more focused on the mission and has a personal connection to it despite being framed as the more reckless one. Instead of us seeing how Aya is playing 5D chess and Bayek is barely keeping up, her cavorting with Cleopatra and other bigwigs just mostly comes off as her doing fuck-all while Bayek has to do everything himself. (Again, probably sidelining at work. Proof that sensitive gamer bros are a detriment to the storytelling potential of video games. Games are only art if you let them be, fellas.)
Idk man. It doesn't help that Aya is voiced by a British woman doing an absolutely inscrutable accent. I love you Alix but what the fuck was that. Not even sure I should blame you or the people who cast and directed you.
Soo yeah. This game's kind of a mess, but I wrote this big rant about it which means there was enough potential there for me to become invested. Which should say something.
Oh and the gameplay is fine I guess. Love me some Ancient Egypt. Good tunes also. Basically if you've played any other Ubisoft game and at least one RPG then you know what's in this here sausage. Bland but filling. Not quite as bloated as Odyssey or Valhalla, but still a somewhat grindy time investment. Worth it for my malewife Bayek though <3