By all things holy upon this planet, the most is Assassin’s Creed II. I had thought that I wouldn’t be able to play this game for a long time, but lo & behold, I received it through Boomerang. At first my humble In-box displayed to me the usual letter, but telling me that it was Bayonetta being shipped to me. Not an hour later, I received another letter from Boomerang saying that the wrong e-mail had been sent to me & that I was in fact getting Assassin’s Creed II instead. I didn’t know whether to cry or cheer, so, on the suggestion of a friend, I shed one tear for the delay in playing Bayonetta, & then cheered most heartily for getting Assassin’s Creed II.

I was not disappointed at any time in this game. From the moment I got it, shoved it in my 360, replacing Assassin’s Creed I in fact, I played the hell out of it. Several days later & 43 hours of total time I gained 1000/1000 & finished the game. I actually beat the game with three achievements left & 98% completion, but that was easily fixed. I must say that through-out the game, I was not concerned with the achievements for the most part. The story was so captivating, the graphics so impressive, that I lost myself almost completely during my play time.

There was never a time I was irritated, bored, or annoyed at the game. Not any collections, not any questing, not any storyline. When I finished it, I put down the controller with a sense of sadness. A terrible aching inside me that I was done with Ezio’s adventure, though I know there will be DLC to glorify the game further, & I know there are still DS games to revel in… it was like coming down from some amazing euphoria. I enjoyed Ezio’s story so much, but I will not say more or less than Altaïr’s because Ezio is a different kind of assassin. A different person, a different personality. He is changed & acts in his own fashion. My heart will always belong to Altaïr first & foremost, though, as he was the first, but Ezio’s story is incredibly awesome. Doubly so that he is Italian & so shares some of my heritage.

Being in Venezia was breathtaking. It’s amazing to see how little it’s changed since the 1400′s to be honest. Because I’ve been to Venezia, I was able to mostly run around the city without the map! Running through the squares & waterfronts, recognizing all these things. It brought a tear to my eye, seriously. They did such a fantastic job in this game. I cannot give it enough praise & yet any praise I give to it is lacking in wonderment & fascination.

So upon finishing the game & achievements, I still had a few things to do for completion, but I decided to take a break from it & let myself settle in with the idea of Ezio’s tale being done for now. It made me really really want to play Assassin’s Creed I again… so I did. I still have a couple achievements to do on it; namely the Templars & some Flags. Originally, when I was playing this last, I went through the Kingdom & got all the flags, each one… except one. I went through every location four times, & still I didn’t find that one. It angered me so much that I rage-quit for months. Now, I return. A new game of Assassin’s Creed I & I am at Acre for the first time, enjoying my time with Altaïr again as always. Sigh, my hero.