Revisiting The Revolutionary Assassin’s Creed Syndicate

Assassin’s Creed Syndicate is the ninth game in the main franchise and uses two playable protagonists, which was popular with fans. Although Assassin’s Creed: Shadows has been delayed, it won’t be long before we have the latest installment of the Creed franchise. While we wait, we should begin revisiting the previous games. Since Syndicate was the first Creed game to use dual protagonists, let’s go back and look at the beloved installment as we wait for the next.

Assassin’s Creed Syndicate

Assassin's Creed Syndicate
Image from Assassin’s Creed: Syndicate courtesy of Ubisoft Quebec

In Assassin’s Creed Syndicate, we follow twins Evie and Jacob Frye during the Industrial Revolution. The game opens as the twins embark on a mission to find one of the Pieces of Eden. This technology is often mentioned in the Creed franchise throughout different games. It will allow someone to control people, mind and body. The Isu initially created it as a means to control people. Templars and Assassins have been in a race to collect the pieces of Eden, and Assassin’s Creed Syndicate shows parts of that.

Jacob and Evie go against the Brotherhood’s wishes by traveling to London to assist with the growing Templar problem. Templars had taken over London by using local gangs as a means to control. Once they arrive in London, they meet up with Henry Green, who puts them in touch with contacts that will help them. Syndicate features a lot of historical figures, including Charles Dickens, Karl Marx, Alexander Graham Bell, and much more. These figures aid Jacob and Evie’s missions in Assassin’s Creed Syndicate.

The twins each have a different main goal. They both support each other’s goals but have their focus. Evie believes their main focus should be on recovering the Pieces of Eden from Templar’s hand, while Jacob wants to free London from the gangs funded by the Templars. He does this, in part, by making his gang, The Rooks. In the cutscenes, we also see that Jacob is a bit more selfish than Evie. Evie often takes missions heavily based on morality and helping people, while Jacob scoffs at them.

Jacob and Evie’s Gameplay

In Assassin’s Creed Syndicate, Jacob and Evie had different fighting styles and missions. You could switch between the twins on smaller side missions or even explore London, but you don’t have a choice with some main missions. When missions focus more on retrieving the Pieces of Eden, you have to play with Evie. Missions that concentrate on wiping out the Templar-led gang, the Blighters, will feature Jacob.

In cut scenes of Assassin’s Creed Syndicate, we see that Jacob and Evie are often on the same page, though both seem to view the other as more chaotic. Their skills focus on different things. Evie focuses more on strength, which matches because her assigned missions require more stealth. That doesn’t mean Jacob’s missions don’t need stealth; Jacob’s entire mission is heavily based on stealth, but Evie is better at it. Jacob is more focused on strength and brute force and is heavy on fist fighting. In his missions against the Blighters, we’re often encouraged to use hand-to-hand combat.

Playing as Jacob or Evie, we can use a grappling gun, which helps us zip line through London and get places faster. This is a unique feature of Assassin’s Creed Syndicate. It also allows us to get to high building points faster as well. We can also drive in horse-drawn carriages and even go on high-speed chases where we try to run police officers off of the “roads,” which are more like cobblestones in London at the time. Jacob and Evie also have their train as a base for themselves and The Rooks.

Critic Reception

Assassin’s Creed Syndicate was well received when it first came out. IGN gave Assassin’s Creed Syndicate an 8.2/10, stating, “Apart from its ill-fitting conclusion, it never takes itself too seriously and delights in the rich possibilities of its Victorian setting and great new grapple gun.” Game Spot gave a slightly better rating of 9/10; both reviews cited the ending as the reason for holding back a perfect 10 for Assassin’s Creed Syndicate.

“Syndicate’s story is a riveting tale of compassion and greed, but the mechanics of its climax don’t carry enough urgency and drama. A final boss fight usually tests the skills you’ve learned throughout the game, but Syndicate’s is a memorable one for the wrong reasons,” the Game Spot review said. From a fan’s perspective, many agree that the ending is lackluster but doesn’t detract from the game’s fun or story.

Final Thoughts

Assassin’s Creed Syndicate was an incredible game that gave Creed fans a good time. It was the perfect Creed game between the excitement of dual protagonists, the rush of using the grappling hook, and the gripping story. Some consider it one of the last games in the golden age of Assassin’s Creed, relying on stealth-based missions with just enough story to back it up. Ubisoft claims that it’s returning to its stealth roots and moving away from the RPG aspect of Creed. With Shadows releasing early next year, we hope it lives up to its dual protagonist predecessor.

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