Assassin’s Creed III is a stealth-focused historical open-world action-adventure game. Despite the numbering, it is the series’ fifth main game and a direct sequel to the previous game, Assassin’s Creed: Revelations. Following the events of the last game, the series’ protagonist, Desmond Miles, travels to a cave in New York with his father, William, and two companions, Rebecca and Shaun, to find a temple built by members of the First Civilization. Desmond can activate a significant portion of the equipment using the Apple of Eden. It was created to help safeguard Earth from a solar flare that threatens to destroy the world. On the other hand, Desmond enters a fugue state and is sent to Animus, a virtual reality system that allows him to relive his ancestral memories. He will use Animus to investigate the First Civilization’s warning and the threat posed by the Knights Templars and their modern-day company, Abstergo Industries.
The rest of the game takes place in Colonial America before, during, and after the American Revolution, which lasted from 1753 to 1783. Ratonhnhaké:ton (Connor), a member of the Mohawk tribe, is the primary character in this game. He is introduced after a significant section of the game follows his father, Londoner Haytham Kenway, who sails to America after killing an Assassin in the London Opera. The player goes through the gameplay of the opera killing, the boat ride, and the landing in Boston. Haytham is a member of the Templar Order. He steals a key from the Opera and teams up with five guys dedicated to his cause to find the warehouse where the medallion key is kept. As he becomes more involved in the community, he meets the Mohawk lady Kaniehti: io (Ziio), who gives birth to Connor. The game then allows you to play through 30 years of Connor’s life, from his youth with the Mohawk tribe through his training to become an Assassin after his community is besieged by the Templars led by his father. The Assassin-Templar battle is then included in the American Revolution.
The open-world atmosphere is presented as soon as Haytham lands in Boston. Eventually, the player will be able to visit New York, the Mohawk village, a large portion of the American Colonial Frontier, various settlements such as Lexington, Concord, and Charlestown, a brief visit to Philadelphia, and the entire Eastern seaboard while commanding the warship Aquila. Different historical people are encountered along the way, and all information about characters and locales is humorously described in the Animus database. Because practically all of the game is played in a virtual reality environment, sections can be swiftly replayed, and little wireframe-like faults are frequently displayed to remind the player that it is only a simulation. However, there are missions with Desmond today where he must recover power sources in countries such as Italy and Brazil to unlock the temple entrance.
Aside from the main plot, several alternative missions and tasks may be found by exploring the surroundings. Based on the equipped weapon, the fighting system employs melee and ranged weaponry with various actions to disarm, strike, parry, shoot, and assassinate. Counter-attacks are new and portrayed slowly to give the player time to hit. Ranged weapons, such as muskets and rifles, are new to the series and take a long time to reload. The free-running movement used to climb practically any building or barrier has been adjusted to integrate the motions into a fluid move by holding down a single button or key. However, deviating from different acts at any time to choose a new path is still conceivable. Mobile hiding places, such as haystacks in wagons, can now be used to sneak up on foes. Disguises can be used to deceive soldiers, but not officers. A three-tiered notoriety system is in place, and becoming anonymous means fleeing and hiding, ripping down wanted posters, and bribing town criers. All computer-controlled characters have routines, which are now influenced by the weather, including a day-night and season cycle.
In addition to the gameplay from previous games, this title features hunting and catching animals in the woods to sell the skin. A significant portion of the game can also be spent constructing the settlement of Davenport Homestead. They begin with a single structure, NPCs known as craftsmen can be persuaded to reside near the Homestead. This brings raw ingredients and facilities for crafting. Raw materials and produced objects form a local economy where the player can choose to sell them via land caravans or sea convoys. Progress in the Homestead is also visible, with more workers and buildings appearing. After fulfilling their assignments, artisans get upgrades, which grant better equipment and weaponry. Money is acquired through the Homestead economy and by finding secret chests, selling hunting spoils, looting opponents, and pickpocketing. Additional technologies allow you to pick locks using a brief, interactive routine. With naval campaigns, another, quite different role is played on the Eastern seaboard. Connor must command the ship using sails, cover, and cannons in a full naval action, with significant improvements available over time. Bowls, Morris, and Fanorona are three historical board games that can be played on the ship, in cities, or at home.
Joining the three clubs, hunting, brawling, and thieving, unlocks further tasks. Each of these has tiers of optional goals. Other objectives include locating optional trinkets, gathering almanac pages and feathers, delivering messages, carrying out murder contracts, synchronizing viewpoints, and more. The three significant environments (Boston, Frontier, and New York) must be liberated from Templar dominance by liberating districts. Homestead convoy taxes are reduced after liberation. Up to six people can be recruited to maintain a presence, and their capabilities (assassination, bodyguard, etc.) can be called upon in times of need. Basic directives are frequently given to companions. When they are not needed, they can be sent to other states to complete tasks independently, and they return with a large sum of money and rewards. These missions improve their skills, diminishing their chances of success. Forts in the three areas can be taken to drive out other nations.
Multiplayer comprises 12 game types and is marketed as an Abstergo Industries entertainment product. In addition to the usual modes, there is a cooperative Wolfpack mode in which up to four players work together through 25 levels to kill NPCs within a time limit. Another team option is Domination, in which the Animus game console is used to conquer and protect portions of a virtual map from the other team.
The gamepad is utilized to display the in-game map in the Wii U version, and players can also use it to equip different weapons quickly.
