Scientists Gone Stabby: How Pissed is Ezio?, or What the Fuck, Part Two

Click here for how the collaboration started. Spoilers abound so check the Scientists' Stats for where we are in the game if you want to avoid them.

Title: Assassin's Creed II
Publisher: Ubisoft (2010)

Scientists' Stats -
Time Played: 19hrs 52min
Last Achievement Earned: In Memory of Petruccio
Last Significant Event: The game just fucking ended!


Jeff gave his final thoughts on ACII and he was impressively calm. Well, maybe it's more accurate to say he was adultly calm and I took it as impressive since I was so without any kind of calm or adultness during Part One of my final thoughts. But it's been a couple days now so I can look at the ACII ending with a bit more equanimity. In fact, with a little more thought I've come to the conclusion that it's Ezio that really deserves to feel short-changed.

So after more than a decade of chasing down the people (ostensibly) responsible for the death of his father and brothers the big reveal for Ezio is a weird message from a goddess or lady from an ancient civilization (it's unclear, but the experience is not unlike the end of Indiana Jones and the Crystal Whatever when you have to wrap your mind around what just became a part of the Indiana Jones mythology... for my part, I missed the simplicity of the Nazis)  that ends up being for Desmond Miles and the present-day Assassins. Wha???? Ezio goes to all this trouble and that's what he gets? Essentially nothing? I'd be pissed! Hell, I am pissed.

For what I assume is consolation, Ezio decides to collect all the feathers his mom wants in honor of his younger brother (read: Jeff must get all Achievements). I'm marginally interested in this as I liked the family dynamic in the game so I went trundling on in to the living room to see what would happen when Ezio brought the feathers back. For those of you not playing the game, Ezio's mom hasn't spoken since the execution. I'm thinking this is when she'll be able to get over her grief and enjoy the pimped out villa. Not so! Even a decade later all she can say is thanks (or somesuch) and then sink back onto the bed in despondency. *sigh*

And you know what else left me cold? The cool, non-Animus Altair flashback that Desmond had where Altair and Maria climbed a tower which was set-up to be this mysterious thing that was bad for Desmond as he shouldn't be having non-Animus flashbacks and then the game never went back to it. (phew, run-on much?) What the shit is up with that? Was that yet another teaser for the next installment? Do I get no conspiracy rewards for playing this installment?

So what's the big take home message here? Ubisoft is probably going to set the third installment in the Desmond Miles present. Yech! I am not a fan of this for multiple reasons. Bad, bad idea! But I do have one little glimmer of hope. Maybe that dangling plot line of non-Animus flashbacks means that ACIII will be set in the present but with flashbacks to both Altair and Ezio as Desmond progresses through whatever Ubisoft can come up with.

Oh, and that glyph video. Did Adam and Eve actually come from a high-tech facility from a pre-history culture? See what I mean about the monkeys-throwing-shit conspiracy arcs? I assume since ACIII will be the last one that we might finally have some answers.

Please, please let us have some answers.

And, Jeff, a quick question for you if you don't mind adding a comment here: Now that the game is finished what do you think the setting for ACIII will be?