VGA 2009: Assassin's Creed 2 developers on DLC, third game

by Kevin Kelly on Dec 17th 2009 10:15PM

This past Saturday brought us the Spike TV Video Game Awards and – before experiencing the litany of world exclusives that awaited us inside – we spent some time outside cruising the red carpet and talking (briefly!) to many of the game developers and talent. We squeezed them for information as fast as we could while simultaneously wishing them holiday cheer and good tidings. Yes, it was as awkward as it sounds. Here's what we learned from Jean-François Boivin, Production Manager on Assassin's Creed 2.

So you have already announced two DLC packs. Will there be packs after that? How are you filling in Chapters 12 and 13? Is there a Chapter 15?

You guys will find out soon enough ... there's nothing really announced yet as to anything that would support the next two DLCs. It will all make sense. [Ed. note: here's that announcement, and we're springing out of our seats]

What has surprised you since launch?

One of the things that is really cool is that right now, the numbers show us that 40% of the people are actually finishing the game. What that tells us is that people are really submerging themselves into the world of Assassin's Creed.

Where would you want to set Assassin's Creed 3?

That's something we don't even know yet ourselves. Right now we're just taking a break after shipping this game. But we're thinking about where this license can go, and we're working on concepts in the next few months.

Tags: assassins-creed, assassins-creed-2, interview, Jean-Franois-Boivin, Microsoft, red-carpet, spike-vga-2009, Ubisoft, vga-2009, Xbox-360

Reader Comments (84)

40 percent of players completing the game? And that's impressive?

Wow...I'm so disappointed that a 40 percent completion rate is good. I thought 65+ for sure.

But the multiplayer is what makes Assassins Creed II so great.

it's a good thing in an open world game. it means people are really taking their time with exploring the world.

The point of his comment was that not maany people are finishing because they don't want to because the world is so immersive. Make sense?

See, to me it sounds like he's saying they're immersing themselves by beating it.

40% completion rate I would actually expect to be rather high in games that aren't 5 hour bullet ridden explosion fests - even those wouldn't be too high.

I forgot these stats. Depressing in the low numbers.

http://www.gamasutra.com/php-bin/news_index.php?story=25818

Being that I have no effing clue what the global completion rate in games, I can just be happy that he's happy. However, if I were to take stock of ALL of my games that I ever bought, I doubt I've beaten 40% of them.

I mean, sure, I've beaten a lot, but there's more that I haven't beaten. I've beaten the original Zelda and Twilight Princess, but I never finished my GBA port of Link to the Past or Wind Waker. I've beaten Thief 1 and 3, but not 2. I haven't beaten a SINGLE Grand Theft Auto game (3, Vice, San An, and 4) because they all really impress me initially (each one more than the last...), but then I just get sick of them before I win it....except for 4, which I hated almost immediately.

I could go on for...a lot...but 40% sounds not bad to me. I was trying to show the game off at work today during a little holiday party, and some people were interested, but others couldn't be bothered by what was an uninteresting story and the plodding initial action of the prologue areas.

saying there is a 40 percent completion rate is RETARDED... where do they get these numbers from, did everyone who bought the game fill out some kind of survery im not aware of ??!?

@chillski There's a "beat the game" achievement/trophy. It should be fairly simple for them to track that. Even if they can't get the data from MS/Sony, the game periodically announces matching Ubisoft "Uplay" achievements that are reported back to their servers, and the endgame achievement was definitely one of the duplicated ones.

The enlightenment in France? I mean who wouldn't want to assassinate John Locke!

Well, actually John Locke was murdered in the 21st century by Benjamin Linus. However, he came back to life, sort of.

It looks as though Jacob's arch nemesis took the form of John Locke to get close to Jacob in order to kill him.

The enlightenment would be cool but I think China during the Opium Wars would be great. The Some of the British could be Templars.

Mid-nineteenth century Chinese architecture would be a nice leap from MIddle Eastern and Italian architecture.

Okay, it'll take place in Season 5!!!!!!

I'm really hoping the next game will be either in Feudal Japan, or depression era New York.

What about during a war?

I can actually see feudal Japan. Samurai Assassin maybe?

My money's on the american revolution. If you did some of those side puzzle glyphs in 2, they featured Washington with a piece of eden as well as other founding fathers. It's the most logical step forward from the 1500s, huge famous conflict, lots of legendary people that they could twist into the storyline like they did with 2.

Early plans said Feudal Japan, King Arthur era in the Middle Ages, or World War II (with a female assassin...), though the scriptwriter says he refuses to allow a WWII story.

i'm liking the sound of depression-era NYC. that would be kickass. although scaling tons of really tall buildings could get annoying... then again, the view from the top of the empire state building would be amazing.

That actually sounds like a good idea for GTA V. Prohibition-era.

I'm worried it'll jump right to Desmond's time. Too much in the story pointed to it, there seems to be too little time before something big happens for them to have time to go through another big memory or two. If I'm wrong, then I'd really like a 1900s Russian Revolution setting that was suggested in the podcast, or like others have said, 1930s new york.

I hope it turns out to be more than a trilogy, because id really like to explore a lot more history than just two time periods. If they do do more than 3, i hope they continue with the +300 years at a time. Think of it, AC1 was in 1191, AC2 started in what? 1476? 300 years after that would plop us right in American or French Revolution times.

I thought that the WWII idea would've been fantastic. I was thinking that they could put in the Hitler Death conspiracy, and have it so that an assassin actually killed him. Also, a female assassin would be really cool. Feudal Japan would be awesome as well. You know what, we should have it set during WWI, since when have we had a game set in that time period?

Sorry, just throwing out ideas here.

I'm liking the Russian Revolution setting, but a WWI/WWII setting could work. The guy says "too many games have been in WWII for us to do it as well. As long as I'm at Ubisoft, ACIII won't be WWII."

It's almost certainly going to be in the present.

yeah it probably will be, which sucks because i cant stand stupid Desmond. I really dig uber all encompassing conspiracy theories like the present timeline does, but i feel like it's just too damn soon and there's so much more to do!

i agree with the russia plan too. that would also be amazing.

I know they want to mend historical fact in their work of fiction and I think early formation of the united states with a conspiracy around the freemasons (maybe a templar connection) ... I guess you are looking at the reformation (dissolution of Roman Empire and creation of true nation states) or age of revolution (french revolution, 30 years war, spanish succession, 7 years war & american independence) for the next game. http://worldhistoryplus.com/1400-1799.html gives some ideas to hose like myself not well versed on exact periods of time in history. I know they introduced a pseudo gun in AC2 but I'd really hate a game that revolved around them ... in that respect I would want to stay away from early American history and go to when where we are on the precipice of the usage of firearms.

first game was during the crusades
second game was during the renaissance
third will be something equally significant in history ...

I just don't want Desmond to get his own game. I won't bother buying it if it isn't a period piece. I'm not interested in Desmond I'm interested in his ancestors. Desmond is a douche but Altair and Ezio are not. That is all. If it's modern day / future Demond in AC3 I'll pass on it completely.

Revolutionary Russia would be cool.

The French revolution would also be cool.

The Bakumatsu in Japan would be my choice, though. There were all sorts of faction shifts, loads of assassinations in public and in secret, and a legendary force of elite swordsmen (the Shinsengumi) who would make excellent villains. Japan in the 1850s also has the advantage of being a relatively modern time frame with very few firearms. An excess of guns, I think, would require some significant changes in the gameplay formula for Assassin's Creed.

A thoroughly modern, Desmond-only game would be sort of disappointing to me. Much of the fun the Assassin's Creed series comes from the recreation of historical periods. I'd like to see that aspect maintained.

Johnny5,

I have a harder time picturing an AC game in the American revolutionary period for a few reasons. For one, I don't recall there being too many mysterious deaths (that could be chalked up to assassinations) of critical figures to affect the outcome. For another, much of the significant action happened out in the countryside, and AC is definitely set up to be an urban game. The last point is that America in the 1770s, to my knowledge, did not have too much in the way of interesting architecture. Certainly not along the lines of the holy land or Renaissance Italy. It might be a bit of a let-down after those terrific settings.

Did you guys ever think Ubisoft could go all out, and have it where Desmond partakes in one more setting (an earlier time) and then jumps right into modern day assassin gameplay?

I mean, that'd be pretty cool. Especially if he gets some practice with firearms in the Animus (*wink Ubi).

@ComicShaman Yeah, which is why that timeframe is great, because even if the AMERICAN revolution wouldn't work well, the French revolution is still right there with lots of death, political intrigue and famous architecture, and an excuse to swear in foreign languages

I think China during the Opium Wars would be great. The Some of the British could be Templars.

I'm hoping for the Meiji restoration period. it will pass another 300 year interval, and at a time of change and and potentional turmoil, if not outright open conflict. A great time for spies and those seeking to upset the current balance of power.

Oh fuck yes the American Revolution. They could have Benjamin Franklin like DaVinci. And it would make sense as to why they randomly threw a gun in this game. Anyone wanna conceptualize what a 1500's American Assassin would look like?

Though I think french revolution would be fun too. Maxamillion Robspeirre would be a hilarious character to put in a game.

@ Devin

A 1500's American assassin would be spanish, french, british or native.

I think settlements of this period would be too sparse for assassins creed 3.

40% completion? Come on casual gamers, you pushed the game to several million already...fucking play it. They had to have known it wasn't going to be a 3 hour FPS that they'd have to go through, then play endless amounts of team deathmatch for the next year.

Pretty easy game to beat as well just going through the main quest. I think I had maybe 24 hours of playtime with very little side quests at all. I'm going back and still playing it but your right that it doesn't take all that much to beat the damn game.

In other words, stop having lives? Not everyone sits on their ass and plays a game to completion in a week. And anyways, I paid $60 for this damn game, I'm going to do everything there is to do in it and soak it all in even if it takes me two months. I'm looking forward to winter break when I can finally enjoy a few solid days of gaming and finish up a few of the games I've been playing for the last two months (AssCreed 2 among them) and maybe start a few new ones before I have to start pacing myself again... And it's not like publishers are going to make that easy early next year.

Single player definitely comes first, but between the option of playing an hour of a single player game ever other day or spending an hour with friends playing online multiplayer I'll always chose the later. Single Player games, especially those that rely on the story, are Lazy Saturday/Sunday/Holiday games.

40% of people completing the game doesn't surprise me. It was a great game.

Umm.... so only 40% of your customers actually want to finish your game... and that's good?

I hear COD 4 had an astoundingly low rate of people who finished the single player game. So 40% isn't bad.

Well yeah, but face it, many people see a Call of Duty title and think only of the multiplayer. The SP campaign doesn't even cross their minds.

There's a link on my comments up above, for completion rates of the campaign.

Define "finish". If only 40% finished the story mode, then that is iffy. But if only 40% finished EVERYTHING, that's okay.

I hope Ubisoft will be kind to include this DLC in the PC version for free, since we have to wait several months to get the game. : )

I doubt 40% have finished everything. All the feathers, side missions and glyphs isn't going to approach 40% of users. I'd say less than 5% will get 100% completion. They're probably referencing the story which took me about 24 hours to finish.

Hopefully they can make the next one a "fun" game to play.Is an improvement over the first but that's not saying too much.

You haven't played it. You aren't fooling anyone...

FADE.

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VGA 2009: Assassin's Creed 2 developers on DLC, third game

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