Twelve*0

I recent downloaded and finished the DLC for Assassin's Creed 2. The 2 missing memories were quite fun, although I feel as though the second was the poorer of the two. The Battle of Forli was quite enjoyable - offering nothing new in the way of gameplay, but the storyline was interesting and the added flying machine sequence was nice, albeit confusing. It was great to revisit the character of Caterina Sforza; who was left lacking in depth in the original game (obviously due to her planned inclusion in this DLC). The Battle of Forli was acceptable but not a 'battle' by any standards. I would have loved there to be at least twice as many combatants as there were - that would have nailed the battle feel. The 'to be continued' ending was fantastic! Leaving Ezio wounded by the mystery monk was a great ending to the memory.

Bonfire of the Vanities was a let down, I was quite disappointed by the story after the enjoyment I got from the Battle of Forli. The story was too simple and shallow for me to care too much. The end cut scene was the highlight, but the rest was yawn-worthy. The gameplay was reminiscent of the original Assassin's Creed - REPETITIVE. Kill 9 Lieutenants? Sure! Sounds exciting. Approach these assassinations differently? Kind of. 9 different, unique approaches? No. No. No.

I quite enjoyed running across the rooftops, but that is usual for me. The new springboard assisted leap was a fantastic addition in theory, but in reality it was awkward unless you knew where the boards were. There also appeared to be a certain lack of the opportunity to employ said technique - I do hope in further updates to the game will introduce these boards throughout the entire game.

I live in hope.