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Full flight ahead

Ciao, ciao e benvenuti a questa piccola recensione! Sono felice che tu sia qui e… oh, you only understand gelato parlor? Then you probably haven't played Assassin’s Creed II , which takes us to Renaissance Italy and has done more to awaken my cultural interest in the boot-shaped state than Lady and the Tramp, Margherita pizza and Italo pop combined. The game about assassin and heartbreaker Ezio Auditore da Firenze was long regarded as the best spin-off of the Assassins series and remains a favorite of mine to this day. Will I ever dare to question the status quo and my fond memories and take a second look? Probably not.

So my thoughts remain untainted by the ravages of time when I think back to my adventures in Venice, Forlì and Florence. The leap from the Arabian desert of its predecessor to the vibrant and flourishing Italy and to an all in all better game, which did away with many of the criticisms of Assassin’s Creed and unleashed one of the most interesting protagonists in video game history on the world in the form of the aforementioned Ezio. And whose cinematic trailer introduced me to the song Iron and its composer Woodkid.

There's probably no point in going on about this game - you'd have to call it a relic in view of the series that now comprises twelve spin-offs - which is why I'm going to bury myself in the soundtrack. It was once again created by Jesper Kyd and does pretty much everything better than the first Assassin’s Creed . At least, that's what you can say if you're more into action and less into meditative ambient music. Lucky for me, because I do.

Kyd not only manages to create music that is generally more appealing or worth listening to, but also establishes a motif with Earth that will run through the entire series and extend across various interpretations by other composers. The piece is therefore inextricably linked to the brand, although it is actually a very simple melody: a sequence of four notes whose last two notes alternately ascend and descend before being supplemented by a final, ascending note after the fifth repetition and reaching completion. Very simple.

In this version, the female singer's voice merges with a dark riff on the electric guitar and the beautiful, light-hearted melody turns serious. But not for long, because the beauty won't go away, the voice returns and once again rises above the rock interlude, soon accompanied by strings and a feeling of sublimity. This interplay, which sounds like a mixture of Prince of Persia and Total War , wonderfully underlines the character of Ezio, whose carefree childhood comes to an abrupt end (also heard in Ezio’s Family) and who now single-mindedly goes on a Templar hunt in his quest for revenge. However, he retains his mischievous yet charming manner.

The following description of the soundtrack can be found on Kyds Homepage , explaining his intentions for the music:

To reflect the change in character, story and setting for Assassin’s Creed II , Jesper Kyd took the music in an adventurous and dramatic new direction, crafting a melodic, acoustic and progressive musical palette. The music propels the action, captures the allure and mystery of the story and immerses players in the breathtakingly detailed settings.

Jesper Kyd, composer

Word. The motif of heated temperament can also be found in the fantastic Venice Rooftops and Venice Escape, and Kyd generally goes to great lengths to make the action pieces as powerful as possible without slipping into the pathetic. The resulting hectic pace fits perfectly with the image of the assassin rushing across the rooftops (see also Florence Escape or Wetlands Escape), but works just as well on its own. The composer makes use of the components already described in Earth , such as female vocals, electric and acoustic guitars, driving beats and dominant percussion.

The absolute showpiece and my go-to song when I want to clear my head: Chariot Chase. As in Bear McCreary's score for the sci-fi series Battlestar Galactica , the rhythmic drums captivate me, accompanied here by the nasty rasping guitar riffs that create a heart-pounding maelstrom and simply get you going. Add to that the distant dang-dang of the cowbell - what more could I want?

Apart from these adrenaline kicks, there are also quieter tracks such as the Mediterranean-feudal-cheerful Florence Tarantella, which sometimes sound good (Dreams of Venice, The Madam) and sometimes less good (Hideout). In addition, there are the obligatory stealth/sneak tracks such as Approaching Target 1 and Stealth, which again go more in the direction of their predecessor and capture the theme of suspense-through-mysticism well, but don't excite me as much. And of course the accompaniment for the sci-fi animus storyline (Hideout, The Animus 2.0) should not be missing, even if its influence on Home in Florence reminds me more of Mass Effect than the Italian Renaissance.

Be that as it may, the second installment of the Assassin’s Creed-series will probably stay in my memory forever because of the soundtrack alone. I like the theme, the flair and the aesthetics of the score, which inspires with its combination of rock, romance and intoxication and easily makes up for the less powerful or striking tracks. For fans of the series, the OST is a must-know anyway; for everyone else, it offers a great soundscape that makes you want more.

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Nostalgia warning

The rating of the individual tracks is purely subjective and clearly colored by my own experience with the game. You can find out more in the article About Nostalgia.

No.	Title	Artist(s)	Ratings
01	Earth	Jesper Kyd	5
02	Venice Rooftops	Jesper Kyd	5
03	Ezio's Family	Jesper Kyd	4
04	Florence Tarantella	Jesper Kyd	4
05	Home in Florence	Jesper Kyd	3
06	Approaching Target 1	Jesper Kyd	2
07	Approaching Target 2	Jesper Kyd	2
08	Venice Fight	Jesper Kyd	3
09	Florence Escape	Jesper Kyd	4
10	Tour of Venice	Jesper Kyd	3
11	Flight Over Venice 1	Jesper Kyd	5
12	Back in Venice	Jesper Kyd	4
13	Dreams of Venice	Jesper Kyd	4
14	Home of the Brotherhood	Jesper Kyd	1
15	Leonardo's Inventions, Part 1	Jesper Kyd	2
16	Venice Combat Low	Jesper Kyd	3
17	Venice Escape	Jesper Kyd	5
18	Darkness Falls in Florence	Jesper Kyd	2
19	Sanctuary	Jesper Kyd	2
20	The Madam	Jesper Kyd	3
21	Approaching Target 3	Jesper Kyd	2
22	Flight Over Venice 2	Jesper Kyd	4
23	Ezio in Florence	Jesper Kyd	3
24	Venice Industry	Jesper Kyd	1
25	Stealth	Jesper Kyd	2
26	Venice Combat	Jesper Kyd	4
27	Notorious	Jesper Kyd	2
28	Night Mission in Venice	Jesper Kyd	2
29	Chariot Chase	Jesper Kyd	5
30	The Plague	Jesper Kyd	2
31	Wetlands Combat	Jesper Kyd	4
32	Wetlands Escape	Jesper Kyd	4
33	Leonardo's Inventions, Part 2	Jesper Kyd	2
34	Hideout	Jesper Kyd	2
35	The Animus 2.0	Jesper Kyd	1