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Assassin's Creed: Altair's Chronicles

EMAIL PRINT ds

7.0 User Score:

Mixed or average reviews

Based on 30 critic reviews
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Based on 22 votes
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Game Info

Publisher: Ubisoft

Developer: Ubisoft Montreal

Genre(s): Action, Adventure

Players: 1

ESRB Rating: T (Teen)

Release Date: February 5, 2008

Summary

Assassin's Creed Altaïr's Chronicles is the direct prequel of the console title Assassin's Creed, where players discover more about the protagonist Altaïr and his deep history. The game features a fully realized 3D world in which players will travel and battle through four cities of the Crusade's Middle East, using acrobatic moves and exhilarating combo attacks that mix sword skills and high-flying kicks. [Ubisoft]

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GAMES: Assassin's Creed

Cheat Codes & Hints: Cheat Code Central

Also On The Web: Official Website

What The Critics Said

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

Nintendo Power

Strangely enough, Altair's Chronicles feels more stealth-centric than its console predecessor. [Mar 2008, p.87]

Gamer 2.0

Although some slight problems exist, Altair’s latest adventure is more of the same while offering new challenges and innovative segments.

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GameZone

Exhilarating. Exasperating. Joyous. Torturous. Assassin’s Creed: Altair’s Chronicles is a lot of things. Perfection isn’t one of them.

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GameDaily

It's okay, but hardly a killer effort for the franchise.

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IGN

It's not very long (probably about three hours give or take), and by the time you earn all the cool Assassin abilities, there aren't a whole lot of opportunities to use them...Even with the issues, I had a good time playing through Assassin's Creed multiple times.

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GameSpy

Altair's Chronicles occasional control speed, framerate, and camera issues make us think that this would have been a superior game in 2D, but no one's returning our calls about making classically-influenced 2D platformers for the DS.

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NintendoWorldReport

A fun platformer that ends up feeling more like Prince of Persia DS than Assassin’s Creed. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, as the DS could use more action games like this. Sadly, the adventure lasts about a weekend, and there are no real unlockables after beating the game aside from an extra difficulty mode.

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AtomicGamer

While we wished Altair had packed a stylus instead of a sword, we're delighted he's returned to us so soon. Still, don't play Assassin's Creed: Altair's Chronicles if you're looking to build on the console experience. You'll be disappointed if you do.

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Gamervision

Assassin’s Creed: Altaïrs’s Chronicles is one of the best Nintendo 64 games I have ever played. No, that is not a typo, it is just the feeling I had while playing the game. The game is about as suited for the Nintendo DS as a pair of boots is for a slug, and nearly every feature of the game that takes advantage of its “unique” abilities comes off as insanely heavy handed.

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Gameplayer

After ruthlessly playing the game without mercy, we’d say that it’s a worthy addition to the franchise. However, we think that it’s a shame that you’re not given greater rewards for skillful stealth kills as opposed to stumbling into fights and mashing your way to victory.

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Official Nintendo Magazine UK

Impressive in some places, but downright clumsy and unpolished in others. Proof that trying to squeez a 'big' console game onto the DS isn't always gonig to work. [Apr 2008, p.91]

Cheat Code Central

An average handheld experience. It has about eight hours of gameplay that is very conducive to the pick-up-and-play experience. Most mobile gamers looking for a portable experience will probably enjoy the fun hack n' slash gameplay along with the fun mini-games. But as a fan of the original console version, I just feel that this game lacked a little of the prowess of its predecessor.

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Kombo

Assassin's Creed: Altair's Chronicles has its share of issues, but in the end, it's actually a pretty good conversion; especially when you think of the scope of the console version having to be adapted to the DS hardware.

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Play.tm

Unless you are a gymnastic puzzles enthusiast with sharp reflexes it's hardly worth the bother, but it beats playing on your mobile whilst sitting in a waiting room.

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Pelit (Finland)

Quotation forthcoming. [May 2008]

Games Radar (in-house)

It's short, clocking in at around four to six hours long, but this isn't a slapdash effort - the plot might be lame, but the action, level design and graphics are all pretty impressive for a DS title.

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Game Informer

The three-dimensional game world is basically linear, but a brave attempt to add verticality adds some scope.

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GameSpot

Altair's handheld adventure has some enjoyable moments, but it's hindered by loose controls and other irritations.

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GameShark

It’s definitely worth a rental; especially if you have enjoyed the original game as it tells the story of how the characters got to that point, and frustrations and limitations aside, the time spent playing the game is enjoyable – it’s just over way too soon.

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Pocket Gamer UK

Filled with flaws, underwhelming action and lack of staying power, Assassin's Creed composes a chronicle of mediocrity.

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Eurogamer

In a genre as densely (and impressively) populated as the platform game on DS, a short, prickly adventure that makes tokenistic use of the stylus strikes us as a bit disappointing.

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NGamer UK

Nothing to see here. [May 2008, p.65]

Games Master UK

The kind of thing you'd regret downloading to your mobile. But more expensive. [June 2008, p.71]

PALGN

With technical problems that could retroactively plague any Crusade, Altaïr's Chronicles are best left forgotten.

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Video Game Talk

Even though there were some issues in the execution of the game, it was still an enjoyable ride, albeit short.

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G4 TV

Seems like it is just trying to be a fancy 3-D version of an early-90’s platformer and that just doesn’t cut it today. Too many traps and too much repetitive combat with not enough challenge and fun in the mix do not make a great game.

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GameTap

But ultimately, the point is that if you’re looking for a portable recreation of Assassin’s Creed, this isn’t it.

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GotNext

Altair's Chronicles is a stale, uninventive rendition of the universe of our favorite wall-jumping assassin, Altair and should be avoided at all costs.

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Edge Magazine

With juddering 3D that loses all of Altair's beautiful and intuitive movement, and inflicting a multitude of cheap deaths, this crude chapter neither comes close to emulating original's successes nor utilises the hardware's specific capabilities. [June 2008, p.95]

1UP

Much like Altair himself, Assassin's Creed for the DS is an unlikable mess.

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What Our Users Said

The average user rating for this game is 7.0 (out of 10) based on 22 User Votes

Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

[Anonymous] gave it a3:
Poor frame rates, button-mashingly simple combat, and silly, afterthought mini-games make this second-rate Prince of Persia easy to skip.

Kat B. gave it a10:
Move over Prince. Because Altair is the King! I heard tell that there were a lot of similarities between this and the Prince of Persia series, and to a certain extent it’s true. But this game is more like a natural evolution instead of a mere copycat. AC takes the best part of the control scheme of PoP and makes good use of it, but the rest is pure AC. A wonderful, imaginative game that stands all on it’s own. Don’t be fooled, this is no PoP reject. This is wicked.

Tenderoni J. gave it a10:
Wow, kicks heiny! Are we allowed to say heiny in these reviews? I hope so because this game warrants the use of the word. Altair’s Chronicles is a fascinating game. You get some back story on Altair and get different missions than you get in the Xbox version. A great addition to the franchise, I hope there are 3 of these planned like the xbox version has coming.

Al L. gave it a10:
Nice. I expected some really bad port when I heard that AC would be coming to the DS. Instead, what we got was a separate game made just for us. We get some of the back-story for Altair and a better understanding of the world in which he lives. Any fan of the original game can enjoy this as a new experience, and anyone who hasn’t played the original will enjoy this too because it stands on it’s own and doesn’t rely on the other game to give you what you need to understand the game. Well done.

Andre P. gave it a10:
This is an excellent DS title. I wonder if some of the complainers aren’t considering what OTHER DS games are like. The hardware has it’s limitations, but the game makes the very best use of the DS. Personally, I think this game is the bomb! Especially when compared to other games on the DS.

Bunny R. gave it a10:
This is a worthy prequel to AC. Altair’s Chronicles takes place earlier than on the other platforms AC is available for, it’s not the same game. All other versions (simply titled “Assassin’s Creed”) are the same game, and Altair’s Chronicles is the prequel to those games. This game has been built specifically for the DS, and the way it plays really showcases the DS and it’s abilities. Plus, it’s quite simply a damned fine game. Check ‘er out y’all.

Chris L. gave it a3:
huge let down dont be swayed by the big name an marketing of this game its utter rubbish trying to cash in on the success of its next gen big brother full price for a game that lasts 3-4 hrs in its campaign it pitiful at best if you do buy it , it will leave a bitter taste in your mouth knowing your cash could have been better spent on much much better DS games in the coming months Ninja Gaiden anyone?

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Assassin's Creed: Altair's Chronicles

Game Info

Summary

Also On Metacritic

What The Critics Said

What Our Users Said

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