When we last left off, we were conducting our investigation into our sixth target. With most of our skills and equipment returned to us, it’s only a matter of time until our blade finds its mark.
What I didn’t anticipate when I started the original Assassin’s Creed for stream is just how much I missed early-to-mid-2000s jank in my video games. There is no doubt in my mind that modern games are streamlined to be as frictionless as they can possibly be for their players, but I wonder if that’s necessarily a good thing.
There’s no denying that jankiness can result in the occasional bad feels. I’ve experienced a couple of them in my playthrough, going on mini-rants when I do. However, the friction that comes from that adds badly needed texture to the experience that I don’t often get these days. While I may not be happy in the immediate moment, I can laugh about it later, turning it into a fun story for my friends to hear.
To some extent, this is why Skyrim and many other Bethesda games command the incredible following that they have. It’s fun to share your story about robbing a merchant blind after covering their eyes with a pot or a wicker basket, or a chicken ratting you out to the cops.
That kind of feeling has vanished from the big name game development studios, and something important was lost along with it.
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