AC: Unity defines what a next-gen game appears to look like. There's no need to play the previous AC games in-order to understand the story. Looking forward to it!

Assassin's Creed Unity brings the action to revolutionary Paris and tosses four-player co-op into the mix. Have a read of our early preview...

Stay true to the creed.

A return to the creed; Strengthening the central pillars; Being an Assassin is fun again; Cooperative play; Elise's hair

"Skating" crowd movement while wading through; Loading times

This new beginning for the epic adventure series is a familiar mixed bag.

+ A fine return to city-based parkour action; an entertaining new hero; endless amounts of things to do; fun co-op

- A somewhat confused and cliched story; user interface issues; bugs; no traditional multiplayer

If you're invested in the classic AC style, this will do the trick. You'll love being a part of Ubisoft's Paris.

Paris is among the best-looking open-worlds we've ever seen; Hitman-style missions are a step forward in a stagnant series

Side-activities still feel like filler this far into the series; Loading times are absurdly long; so death is a true punishment

A franchise as rich in heritage as Assassin's Creed, one that divides fans with the length of an intro or the flamboyancy - or sombreness - of a lead character, obviously requires a set of staples addressed with any new release. The elephant is in the room, if you will.

The assassins have kept a steady schedule, as Unity and Rogue are the 7th and 8th installments on consoles, not counting several spinoffs. Unity is the Creed's first effort exclusively for this current generation, and Ubisoft has fashioned it with co-operative multiplayer to celebrate.

Over the course of its six previous entries (main series) the Assassin's Creed franchise has done an amazing job of remaining fresh despite its yearly release cycle. From Altair's epic journey during the Third Crusade to Edward Kenway's Caribbean piracy it has woven an intricate storyline of...

While it will likely suffice for Assassin's Creed core fans, Unity stumbles throughout and never really finds its footing. Where last year's Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag saw the franchise reach new heights, Unity is somewhat of a sidestep that only shines sporadically.

Assassin's Creed Unity features breathtaking environments and occasional scenes of great heightened action.

The game suffers from clunky free-running movement; Climbing and descending aren't as seamless as they are intended to be; Unity suffers from terrible frame rate dips and other graphical weirdness.

I was very eager to wade into this water, with AC3 being disappointing, but AC4 changing back the tide, and as I found out, AC4 did a fine job of warming up the franchise for the true, next-generation Assassins Creed game. Okay, let's get down to business now.