Prepare to start jumping from rooftop-to-rooftop while turning guards into a bloody heap in this, the first of two DLCs Ubisoft have in store for Assassin’s Creed II fans. However, many of these fans may find themselves slightly disappointed by this entry. While there is no doubt you will have a good time as you step back into Ezio’s boots, it is undeniable that the overall experience leaves much to be desired, and you are left wondering whether it was really worth the short time you spent on it.

Before describing the plot, I must point out that this add-on is set right in the middle of the main body of Assassin’s Creed II’s story, and so gamers who have not yet completed the game should be warned that this next paragraph may contain spoilers to its storyline and that they might want to skip it.

Basically, the add-on is set just after Ezio has gotten his hands on the piece of Eden. His fellow assassins advise him to transport it to the highly guarded city of Forli, where they believe it will remain safe, but when Ezio arrives in Forli things take a turn for the worst as the notorious Orsi brothers have their eye on the piece of Eden for profit and so they attack the city. Naturally, Ezio goes about protecting the treasure and Forli along with its ruler, the familiar Caterina Sforza, who you should recognise as the highly flirtatious lady you rescued during the main story of Assassin’s Creed II.

Now here is the fundamental problem; it is just more of the same. With mission structures, objectives and fights being no different to those which you did on numerous occasions in the main game, there is nothing you will come across during your time defending Forli that you haven’t already come across before, and the plot offers no compensation, being a shallow and insignificant expansion on Ezio’s story. To make matters worse, you will be finished and done in less than an hour, which is only just made acceptable by the cheaper price of only 320 points.

During this brief and familiar stint, however, fun is still existent as Caterina and her daughter’s crude comments always provide an in-game chuckle, and although it never appears within the DLC’s actual plot, Leonardo’s flying machine now sits on the top of a tower on the outskirts of Forli, available to be used for a thrill at any time you like.

Still, this DLC lacks quality. Ending with a cliff-hanger leading on to next month’s DLC, ‘The Bonfire of the Vanities,’ it is hard not to hope that this was merely a run up to next month’s release, and that this next DLC might be a far richer and more original experience. Still, there is no escaping the disappointment one feels after playing this add-on which, though fun, doesn’t add anything to the entertainment that is already at your disposal in Assassin’s Creed II.

5/10