Why I Cancelled My Pre-Order For Assassin’s Creed 3

GP writer Sean Dimagiba discusses what led him to cancel his pre-order for Assassin's Creed 3 and why he feels worn out by the series.

[Snookies12]

I felt worn out as well by the time Revelations came around. Honestly I had no interest in ACIII, even though I own all the others. However, seeing the videos at E3, and how amazing the game looks. I can't help but be excited once again. It's supposedly a reworked engine, meaning better stability which was my main complaint with the AC series. I really believe ACII was the best in the series, I just hope ACIII outdoes it.

[Lucretia]

the reason u were tired is because all the spin offs sucked. they felt like you were playing the same game again. same locals, same enemies, like 1 or 2 new abilities.

it was boring.

i tried brother hood and hated it even tho i realy liked AC2.

so skipped revalations and am waiting for AC3 since only the numbered titles have an actual change in gameplay

[LiamDirish]

Brotherhood didn't suck, the den defense mini game from Revelations took the fun out of that game

[KUV1977]

I had like 2 den defenses throughout the whole game. In the end I had to specifically play 'bad' to get some den defense scenarios for the trophy.

I think Brotherhood as well as Revelations were really good.

[QuodEratDemonstrandm]

You had to be 'evil' to get one more den defense?
I got four at once after killing the Jannisary Captain.

[Oh_Yeah]

assassins creed is actually a good series though, at least they add some new gameplay features instead of just upping the graphics or rehashing like cod, gears of war and the like.

[HockeyMan]

@ Lucretia
I respect you feelings about the games, but doesnt it detract you from futher enjoyment of ac3 when you learn the story but know none of the background?

Personally I love ac. Top 3 v.g franchies for me
, ac:b and :r were a little lackluster compared to the jump from 1 to 2 but it didnt matter to me cuase i love the story and gameplay so much

[guitarded77]

I just slowed down and didn't play them all at release... I actually just got Revelations this week and I'm enjoying it. Last AC I played on release day was 2, now I just wait for them to hit the $20 mark, and by that time I'm ready to play another AC.

[Gaming101]

If you didn't like either Brotherhood or Revelations then your interest level in the series and gameplay wasn't there to begin with.

[pixelsword]

I never played any of them; I might get this one and just watch a friend play the rest or something.

[theaceh]

I will buy AC3 on day 1. But if Ubisoft doesn't show me more Adam and Eve stuff this time I will be REALLY pissed. When It comes to the "People who came before", every new AC game is starting to feel like a small part of those glyphs puzzels.

[Kurt Russell]

Revelations finished me off... I didn't like the Tower Defense elements, and I just got bored. I completely agree with the article, they over did it and now I am out.

[antz1104]

^ Lol at the tower defense comments for AC Revelations. Seriously, how many times did you have to do it over the course of the game? Once, maybe twice? Its a good story that closes off Altair and Ezio. Personally I like Ezio more in this game more than any other.

[t0mmyb0y]

Supposedly a reworked engine? Not only is it a new engine, Ubisoft Montreal worked with 8 other studios. That's a lot of people working on 1 game.

[Outside_ofthe_Box]

I haven't bought an AC game since the original so I'm not worn out at all. I'm looking forward to AC3.

[theaceh]

You have missed Sooooo MUCH my friend. At least there are some good AC wiki sites to help you catch up with the story line.

[WeskerChildReborned]

Yea, it's a whole new game compared to the other AC games and i am excited as well. It look's amazing.

[Baba1906]

well play them becouse of the multiplayer. still addicted to it. =D

[ChrisW]

I never played Revelations. I got bored about half way through AC2... but for some odd reason, I'm pretty excited about AC3. However, I will wait to hear the reviews and see how different it is from AC2.

[LiamDirish]

I hate these articles, why i hate this, why i hate that. i thought this site was called news fro gamers not opinions from d**kheads

[TopDudeMan]

+1 bubble for funny!

[strange1986]

Haha yup. Nothing beats a healthy dose of self-entitlement.

[Nimblest-Assassin]

You sir just won the internet

Why pre order a game when you are tired of a franchise... Especially when ac3 looks fresh compared to acb and acr?

Why try to make it so dramatic? I gulped as I said? GTFO

I got tired of cod. You don't see me pre ordering
MW3...
Just fishing for hits

[WeskerChildReborned]

Aha, yea i too hate the hate articles. Haters gonna hate.

[videoxgamexfanboy]

Did u just use the word "hate" three times in two sentences? Lol

[wiggles]

Hahaha that was amazing

[Baka-akaB]

Not even going to bother reading this . Are you some kind of trained animal ? If obviously not , why would you have pre ordered a game from a serie that now worns you out ?

[pbasson]

then waste time by writing a article moaning about it.

[TopDudeMan]

I think the change in setting will work wonders for the instalment.

[SnakeCQC]

its the story of the game that counts! and each one has delivered! there is nothing wrong with it! ac3 has been in developed time for some time i think i heard it started before acr

[Lucretia]

except that its a game and gameplay is what counts the most. for the story there is Youtube so no one has to play those crappy spin offs of AC2.

AC3 is new on all fronts so its worth a purchase

[Zechs34]

Yeah... I also pay $60 for a game as good as AC3 will be so I can ignore its biggest aspect. You're statement is based on your opinion and preferences but AC:B and AC:R sold a ton, obviously enough to keep the interest going for the series.

[Rupee]

@Lucretia lol yeah Youtube is where the story's at.... idiot.

[NoTheMama]

Worn out by the series, yet pre-ordered AC3? That makes sense! Lol

[Khan_k]

What a whiner, I cancel a pre order and make an article about how I got tired of it but I might still buy it.

I got AC2 and loved it, skipped brotherhood and bought Revelations only 2 weeks ago. I liked it except for the ending, felt like an add-on but that was expected. AC3 looks pretty cool, but it's hard the change or add to an awesome formula.
I would love to see the AC mechanics put into a fantasy game. Huge castles and giant monsters ect to climb on.

[QuodEratDemonstrandm]

AC:Brotherhood has a huge castle. Fun to climb, and fun to parachute off the flag pole.

[Oh_Yeah]

dude try dragons dogma then...thats exactly what it reminds me of, assassins creed, monster hunter, dark souls, and skyrim mixed. amazing game.

[wiggles]

You aren't missing much by skipping Brotherhood. I am sure they will probably have a recap in ACIII So you basically save the $20 Brotherhood costs now.

[ACBAA]

drama much

[BattleTorn]

"So, he cancelled the pre-order, got my money back, oh, and I might become “blacklisted” by my GameStop for cancelling a pre-order. Fantastic."

Tell me about it.

[310dodo]

I gave up on AC after part 2
but I wont lie

Connor being a native American, and thus the game taking place on American soil makes me extremely happy!!

i cannot wait for Assassins Creed 3!!!

[Hufandpuf]

Same here, I played ac1 and 2. But when I played Brotherhood, I got seriously bored, like really really bored, so I skipped Revelations entirely. But oh, man, AC3 looks really awesome and resparked my love for the franchise.

[bloodybutcher]

i actually really enjoy playing it:) brotherhood and revelations are good,i don't get tired of gameplay.i play story mission,then just run around, trying every way possible to kill guards.i can do it for hours and never get bored^^

[shammgod]

I think I feel the same, but i didn't buy brotherhood or revelations for those exact reasons..,the game got stale. . I hope they change up the formula a bit. The game looks great so far. Hope for a good one

[ChunkyLover53]

I love the series, sure the story isn't that original, but I like how it takes you to the past, but your also in the present as well.

I thought Brotherhood was great with what it added, the stable of Assassins to help you out was a great idea, the addition of multiplayer also kept things fresh. I waited to get Revelations until it was like $20 at a sale earlier this year, I was pretty tired of the same character, but after playing through the game, it actually had the best story telling of any of the other games. You felt like you finally learned something.

The tower defense parts were lame, but the game itself was fun. When I saw the AC3 trailer, I knew it was a game I had to have, so I pre-ordered it and I'm not upset about that in the least. The game looks fantastic, and The American Revolution is an interesting setting.

[BattleTorn]

"So, he cancelled the pre-order, got my money back, oh, and I might become “blacklisted” by my GameStop for cancelling a pre-order. Fantastic."

This guy thinks 1. Gamestop employees actually care what games you preorder 2. will be upset if you cancel a preorder

BHAHAHAH YEAH RIGHT!

[Pozzle]

Lol. Yeah, I was confused by that part too. Since when did Gamestop "blacklist" people just for cancelling a pre-order? They're a business, they don't care! His pre-order spot will just go to another customer.

[seanpitt23]

Yeah I know what you mean I just don't know the new features will be enough but I know the storyline this time is deffo a step in right direction

[Spacemagic]

Assassin's Creed is an amazing franchise. Every installment is badass and I can't wait for III. Also Liberation may be enough of a push to snag a Vita...

[DivineAssault]

i dont usually get sub series' in games so i never played brotherhood or revelations but i will buy AC3.. Its got an upgraded engine too so it should be a real treat to play it after only playing 1 (which sucked) & 2 (which was MUCH better).. I wana see which console runs it best before buyin it

[Tzuno]

because the game is the same, only in a new time. I quit Assassins Creed from Brotherhood.

[clevernickname]

I never pre-order anything. I just bought Arkham City GOTY with all the DLC for $29 from Amazon. If I had pre-ordered I would have paid full retail for half a game that I could later buy for half the price with twice the content.

[antz1104]

Um.....maybe some people didnt want to wait 8 MONTHS to get it? Challenge maps and 1 story driven dlc hardly make half a game. Batman AC was pretty huge.

[clevernickname]

I can wait eight months when I haven't even finished Arkham Asylum yet (also GOTY edition). I have dozens of games waiting to be played. I'm not missing anything. And yes, I was exaggerating for effect about "half a game."

But think about it for a second. If you have the patience to wait a few months, any game will drop to half or a quarter of the price. Who are you rewarding when you pre-order? Only the retailer.

The only time pre-ordering benefits the consumer is if the game is in very limited supply, and there hasn't been one game I couldn't buy on release day in the last two decades.

[antz1104]

Fair enough, lord knows I understand the unwieldly backlog, lol. And I agree, the pre-order bonuses these days are downright absurd. Batman is one of the few games I will push the backlog aside and get day 1, much like AC or Borderlands 2.

[masa2009]

Yeah, after seeing the Boston E3 movie, I was suprised that there in fact seemed to be relatively little difference with previous installments for a so-called full, numbered title.

One moment in said Boston demo, you even see Connor going through a checkpoint, and the AI detected him in a very sudden, unnatural manner as soon as he crossed an invisible line. The guards walked right alongside him, he crossed the checkpoint and they went "That's him!" and pulled their weapon.
It was awkward, just like AC2.
It didn't feel like the franchise had progressed that much.

Also, at one point, there was talk that they would entirely streamline the controls so you wouldn't have to hold as many buttons to climb, but the control config we've seen from AC3 seems very similar.

I expected a bigger jump conceptually.

[BigDollarZoe954]

Still Got Mine On Reserved love and support the game a good candidate For GOTY IMO

[jc48573]

who wouldn't be worn out after every Collector's edition they've released for every game? I stopped caring. Regular copies FTW.

[masa2009]

On top of that, you know they are gonna re-release a complete edition with all the DLC soon after.
For AC2, they even did one with DLC as vouchers, and yet another with DLC on the disc.
Then there were also editions with the short movie, with or without DLC.
Pre and post release, I couldn't even tell you how many editions of AC2 there were.

[tweet75]

I never preorder Im 6 months behind on gaming only to save money . Most games drop from $60 to $30 or less in 6 months or less. More gamers should do this to save money. In my opinion very few games are worth $60 anyways

[Pieface08]

I like all the AC GAMES.... WAITING FOR 3 TO DROP...

[FarCryLover182]

I really, really want to get this day one. I think it'll be one of the greatest games of the year. However, Ubisoft ALWAYS lowers the price of their games almost immediately. I'm not saying this game isn't worth the full $60, it is, but I like saving money when I can. I decided to wait for ACR and got it for $20 new on sale way back in March. I also see Ghost Recon, not even 2 months old, is on sale for $40 lately. I remember SPinter Cell 5 went to like $25 a month or two later. It's worth the money but if I know I can save $20+, then yes....yes I will

[darren_poolies]

And here is why I care...Oh that's right I don't. Really looking forward to AC3 although I haven't played Revelations.

[TheLiztress]

I played the first one and enjoyed it some. Didn't really play the others.

As for pre-ordering and then canceling, I've done that before. Sometimes you think you'll enjoy a game so you pre-order. Then as the release date gets closer, you might change your mind. Perhaps you view a gameplay video for it or you just lose interest.

[honkayjeezus]

I was worn out ten minutes into the first one.

For a series that has become so saturated yearly, I can't believe the pass the game got at E3.

[Ricdog]

Welcome to the club, I gave up on Assassin's Creed 5 years ago when the first one came out. It was fine for a few hours but I ultimately gave up on it, too repetitive and boring for my taste.

I tried AS2 just recently for 9 bucks since i heard it was much better. And I gave up on that like 1/3 of the way threw. Guess AC games aren't for me.

[lex-1020]

I think I might be the only person who really really liked Brotherhood and thought Revelations was terrible.

[Summons75]

....I thought that was the consensus actually. I loved Brotherhood after being skeptical of it being 2.1, Revelations bored me and at that point I was sick of Ezio. I was about to swear off AC for good when the trailer for AC3 dropped and hooked me again, now I like what I see with it, I can't wait for this.

[Subzero200]

why i dont give a damn

[Vortex3D]

Why do gamers pre-order any games today unless you have way too much money to burn or have no sense of waiting?

I understand any game publishers today need as many pre-orders as possible to know minimum sales they can make.

The good and bad about Assassin's Creed series is you already know plenty about the gameplay will be like. Because of that, is any Assassin's Creed worth pre-ordering? Again if you are the type of my description above, all you care is play as soon as possible and has way too much money to burn.

Any game is heavily hyped today. They have to compete with other games that are also heavily hyped. That along tells you no games released will be like the hype. So, are you ignorance enough to buy the hype? If yes, then good for the publishers. Even stores are hyping that they will sell out if you don't pre-order.

It's just amusing to see article like this on someone finally woke up from the illusion of marketing state.

[theWB27]

Seems kinda weird to have invested all your time in the previous titles, pre-order 3 and turn around and cancel it and this one seems like it's made the biggest jump.

I'm betting this writer is still going to buy it, and beat it. Strange.

[Legion]

I was tired 1/4th of the way through the first AC. Never went back....

[Rock_On_PS4]

Unless this game converts to being an all out fun shooter like the legendary Call of Duty series it is a pass for me.

AC needs guns, guns and more guns.