Assassin’s Creed: The Ezio Collection – Which Game Is Best

Ezio Auditore is one of the most recognizable names in the Assassin’s Creed series, and the three games he was featured in are staples of the franchise. Assassin’s Creed: The Ezio Collection includes Assassin’s Creed 2, Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood, and Assassin’s Creed: Revelations, and between the three, there is one game that stands out as the best in the trilogy. Each game has a unique story, different mechanics, and added features to the series making them some of the most important titles for Assassin’s Creed.

The story of Ezio Auditore starts as one of tragedy and revenge, but he eventually reaches the rank of master assassin and becomes the leader of the Order of Assassins. Ezio’s influence in the Assassin’s Creed series, and his inclusion as the protagonist in multiple titles, make him one of the most important assassins to ever come into the Order. His origin story and the way he rises above his need for revenge are chronicled in the best Ezio game, Assassin’s Creed 2.

Although each game in The Ezio Collection has an interesting story and valuable information for Desmond Miles, Assassin’s Creed 2 has one of the best storylines in the franchise and completely changed the series from the original Assassin’s Creed. The new game mechanics and the scope of Assassin’s Creed 2 set the rest of the series up and became the reason Ezio was popular enough to have multiple titles as the protagonist in Assassin’s Creed.

Assassin’s Creed 2 Changed the Franchise

At the start of Assassin’s Creed 2, Ezio witnessed the execution of his father and brothers, then fled Florence with his mother and sister. After his father’s uncovering of the Pazzi Conspiracy took most of his family, Ezio set out on a mission of revenge that takes him all over Italy. Along the way, he finds allies in some of the most recognizable names in Italian Renaissance history, like Leonardo Di Vinci and Niccolò Machiavelli. His quest to take out the Borgias and anyone involved in his family’s death leads him to the Order of the Assassins.

The story in Assassin’s Creed 2 and Ezio Auditore’s quest for revenge is still one of the best in the Assassin’s Creed series. This title also revamped gameplay and smoothed out some of the more frustrating mechanics from the original Assassin’s Creed. Assassin’s Creed 2 was also the first time the ancient beings spoke to Desmond through the life of one of his ancestors. A lot of what was included in Assassin’s Creed 2 has, in some way, influenced many of the other titles in the series.

As both the introduction to arguably the most famous name in Assassin’s Creed and a basic outline for the rest of the games in the series, Assassin’s Creed 2 was a driving force for the franchise. The open-world exploration of several areas in Italy, and the way the game intertwined many famous historical figures in Assassin’s Creed 2‘s plot changed the franchise for the better. Assassin’s Creed 2 is Ezio’s first and best game.

Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood Added New Mechanics to the Series

In Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood, Ezio sets out to finish off the Borgia family, wipe out the Templars in Italy, and rebuild the Order of Assassins. At the beginning of the game, Ezio has a major setback and once again has to flee with his mother and sister. After regaining his strength, Ezio finds himself in Rome, the heart of the Templar influence in Italy. He recruits new assassins and leads the Order against the Templars as he takes out high-ranking targets and goes after the Apple of Eden.

Ezio’s journey in Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood is more about changing Italy and getting rid of Assassin’s Creed‘s Templars than his own personal revenge, making it different enough from Assassin’s Creed 2 to still be thoroughly entertaining. This title also allowed players to recruit new assassins and send them out on missions that resolved automatically. Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood gave the option for coordinated attacks with the new recruits which eventually expanded in the series to mercenaries and other allies.

Although it didn’t stay in the series long, Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood introduced multiplayer to the franchise. The Assassin’s Creed multiplayer was unlike any other online multiplayer at the time, allowing players to test their assassin skills against others while simultaneously being hunted. Although multiplayer was only in a handful of titles, it was genuinely fun and added a different feel to the series outside of the structured storylines in the main campaigns.

Assassin’s Creed: Revelations Gave Ezio a Satisfying Ending

Assassin’s Creed: Revelations connected Ezio to the first Assassin’s Creed protagonist, Altïar, as he searched for a secret library. The library of Altïar was also sought after by the Templars, so this title is about a struggle for power between the two orders and a race to see who can collect the seals and unlock the secrets of the library first. Assassin’s Creed: Revelations gave Ezio a romantic storyline as well that eventually led to him settling down and retiring from the Order of Assassins.

As with previous titles, Assassin’s Creed: Revelations includes some hidden messages to Desmond, but in this installment, Ezio speaks directly to him even though he doesn’t fully understand how his life is being observed. Assassin’s Creed: Revelations was unique in the connections it formed between past and present-day and the lives of multiple assassins. The game was a fitting end to Ezio’s storyline and helped set him aside so new protagonists could be explored.

The assassin missions and multiplayer function were both refined in Assassin’s Creed: Revelations and the scope of the missions available to send assassins on were expanded. There were also some interesting developments with the present-day storyline as well as more information given on Subject 16. Although Assassin’s Creed: Revelations neatly finished up Ezio’s story, it didn’t add many new elements to the Assassin’s Creed series.

Assassin’s Creed 2 is the Best Game in the Ezio Collection

The highly-regarded Assassin’s Creed 2 is by far the best Ezio game in the Assassin’s Creed series. Although the other two titles expanded on the mechanics and added a few new elements, Assassin’s Creed 2 helped make the franchise what it is today. The influence of Ezio’s original storyline and the connection he has with future assassins changed the series from the original Assassin’s Creed. The story in Assassin’s Creed 2 was also much more emotionally driven and started from before Ezio became an assassin, which is generally the case with future protagonists in the series.

Although Assassin’s Creed 2 is the best title, all of the games in the Ezio Collection offered unique experiences and helped to launch the Assassin’s Creed franchise into what it has become. There are currently 24 Assassin’s Creed titles including spin-offs, and the series doesn’t seem to be slowing down. The fanbase for Assassin’s Creed continues to expand with new characters and settings, but the series owes a lot to the games included in Assassin’s Creed: The Ezio Collection.

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