Review: Assassin's Creed Chronicles: India

In my review of Assassin’s Creed Chronicles: China, the first of Ubisoft’s planned trilogy, I said the groundwork was successfully laid for what could be some pretty awesome gaming. Sadly, Chronicles‘ second instalment, India, manages to similarly fall far short of what it could have been.

It all comes down to this: Assassin’s Creed Chronicles is in the midst of an identity crisis.

India has moments of greatness. A 2.5D, multi-plane side-scroller, you’re placed in control of Indian Assassin, Arbaaz Mir. Set in 1841 during a war between the Sikh Empire and the East India Company, Mir is tasked to retrieve the latest Precursor MacGuff– um, artefact, and keep it out of Templar hands. Over ten memory sequences, you’ll use camouflage and disguises, but ultimately, you’ll need to hone and rely upon your wits to accomplish the task at hand.

A handful of introductory missions establish that you’re to move slowly and methodically through environments. Mir is armed with sound and smoke bombs, whistles and new chakram blades that distract enemies and open up new, stealthy paths.

If the entire game was like this, India would be stellar. Unfortunately, that mindset gets thrown from the window almost as soon as it settles in. Once you’re well and truly in the swing of things, you’re suddenly ordered to abandon all stealth and run through a level as fast as you can, plunging your chakrams into any body that’s within reach.

More disappointing is the the introduction of a sniper rifle near the end of the game. Its added for no real reason that I can think of, I should add — and certainly not for one that developer Climax Studios bothers to justify. The result of these contradicting genre elements makes for a hodge-podge of gameplay, and India ultimately suffers from its inconsistency.

Slow and methodical stealth is where the game shines, which is funny, ‘cause I rather liked the run ‘n gun aspects of China. Quite frankly, the game’s sloppy and slow control scheme can’t keep up with all it wants you to do. There are times where you’re asked to scamper up buildings as they crumble around you or make quick kills keeping out of aggressors’ eyelines, and delayed inputs really make that difficult. I was constantly inputting commands that essentially were translated to the opposite of my desired effect, almost like the control scheme that Assassin’s Creed proper has abandoned in favour of one that actually gets the job done. India‘s checkpoint system is as chaotic as its core, sometimes offering up sensible places to reload and other times taking you back ten or fifteen minutes.

As in China, the entire package is disjointed and can quite easily leave you frustrated. Playing India in tandem with Assassin’s Creed: Syndicate, it’s hard not to make comparisons. I know gameplay is quite different, but in the end, you’re an Assassin — you’ve been trained for years on end to become a master at everything you do. In Syndicate, I’m able to try something using stealth, but know that I can rely on my combat skills to emerge victorious after a botched move. In India, engaging in combat means you’re doomed, plain and simple. Mir is another of Chronicles’ Assassins who’s essentially asked to do his job with one hand tied behind his back.

This whole notion of the game’s identity crisis doesn’t end there; oh, no. I can’t recall a time when I was playing India where I wasn’t thinking that this format – or, rather, a more focused version of it — would have made amazing Prince of Persia game.

And now I want a Prince of Persia game, damnit.

At any rate, it’s not all doom and gloom – the game looks amazing, and is a treat to take in. Compared to China, India is crisp, clear and far more stylised. It runs the risk of becoming a bit samey, but for around $15 AUD, India can still be a great little game that you pick up and play over the course of a couple weeks. A three day marathon, as in my case, will probably leave a bitter taste in your mouth.

Climax, you’ve got one more attempt to get this format right – I’d advise a bit more consistency with the upcoming Assassin’s Creed Chronicles: Russia.

Assassin’s Creed Chronicles: India was reviewed using a promotional code on Xbox One, as provided by the publisher.