Assassin's Creed Liberation HD

Assassin's Creed Liberation HD has received a warm welcome on Playstation 3. The enhancements in the graphics are easily noticeable. Although it lacks of something new in the mechanics of gameplay and the absence of multiplayer, the excellent conversion, and the change in the way you control Aveline, makes it a game that deserves to be played.

Most importantly from my perspective, Aveline is the most worthwhile female lead character since Ubisoft's own Jade from Beyond Good & Evil.

Players looking for the full Assassin’s Creed experience will be better off with Black Flag, but anyone looking for a more streamlined, less daunting game will find a lot to like here.

The HD version isn't without its issues, but the overhauled visuals make the environments that were phenomenal on the PS Vita equally so on home consoles. The unique choices in Assassin's Creed: Liberation also differentiate it from the rest of the series in a way that makes its upscaling relevant to the industry as a whole.

Assassin’s Creed: Liberation is mandatory for all fans that did not played it and also a proof of the versatility of the series.

Quotation forthcoming.

If you have spent several hours on Assassin's Creed IV, you will immediately understand that Liberation is a step backwards compared to the strong fourth chapter. But at the same time, it is a story that deserves to be rediscovered. If you missed it on PS Vita, give it some confidence. You will not regret it.

With this nice port from PS Vita, Liberation HD is a solid game for fans of the series.

Liberation has plenty of interesting things going for it, but is only essential for completionists. [March 2014, p80]

A good attempt at bringing a handheld game to a home console, although one let down by the same problems that affected the original. Not a bad game, but one with untapped potential.

Liberation HD won't change anyone's mind about the Assassin's Creed series. It clings closely to the style of the series' earlier entries, but feels cramped even in comparison to those games.

The PlayStation Vita version is faithfully ported to the PlayStation 3 and, as it turns out, does not make as much of an impression on the big screen. Ubisoft tweaked the free-running and combat aspects of the game, though didn't bother fixing bugs and other shortcomings. Graphically, it's a totally expected letdown.

The time and care it put into those cinematics is obvious, so it's disappointing that the gameplay and its bugs--issues that existed in the Vita version--didn't receive the same level of attention.

Liberation is so-so, a cheap yet only moderately fulfilling title that throws back the curtain on the elderly systems of the Assassin's Creed franchise pre-Black Flag.

Assassin's Creed: Liberation HD offers a number of improvements over the Vita original, some of which enhance the experience by facilitating smoother gameplay, yet many of the title's weaknesses are amplified on the larger screen.

A host of graphical improvements and some new missions can't hide the fact Assassin's Creed: Liberation HD needed to do more to bring the Vita game closer to the outstanding Black Flag. Ubisoft Sofia did what they could, but the resulting game is still an average, limited Assassin's Creed experience. If you haven't played it, try a demo. If you have, there's no reason to play it again.

Even with a one-year gap between them, there are enough similarities between Liberation and Black Flag to recommend the former. It’s certainly not the best game in the franchise though does open up yet another chapter in the Assassin’s Creed saga. Still, those who have become particularly attached to Black Flag may find it hard to hoist up their sails and touch down in New Orleans.

The fact that this was designed as a portable game ultimately is this version’s weakness and why the handheld version remains superior.

Assassin's Creed Liberation HD's smaller, less complex objectives feel unsurprisingly tailored to a handheld device, but that doesn't stop this from being a decent romp on the PS3 – especially if you snuck past the portable release. The original title's flaws still remain, however, and to top it off, Aveline's story is hampered by some worryingly poor technical performance.

It’s the definitive version of a game that had very little going for it in the first place.

A half-hearted HD conversion of a half-hearted game. The problems with the main series are even more evident here as much has been reused to fill out the running time. The story seems more important than it is and the game's greatest strength - to switch between different personalities for Aveline, is regrettably mostly used as a gimmick.

Assassin’s Creed Liberation HD fails to meet the same measure of fun that previous games in the series managed to accomplish.

Easily the most disappointing Assassin’s Creed title ever. Aveline had the potential to be one of the best Assassins yet, but poor character development, simple mission design, and a far-too-short adventure left me wanting more in all the worst ways.