Compelling Protagonists
Often overlooked as a result of its predecessor’s shortcomings, it is unfair to simply ignore the virtues of Syndicate in favor of its more treasured brethren. It sits unceremoniously in the middle by most accounts, but its merits are many and worth another look.
For starters, the dynamic between the sibling protagonists is a big highlight. They’re both well written, and their skillsets are used in creative ways during gameplay, adding a layer of strategy not seen in other AC games. Evie Frye plays like your traditional assassin: calculated, stealthy, lethal. Her brother Jacob bucks the trend by operating more like a drunken lout, leaping headlong into the fray with fists flailing. Though it is important to utilize both, the fact that you could meld styles to suit your mood and situation meant that multiple playthroughs could be handled in vastly different ways.
Their frequent failure to see eye-to-eye also made for intriguing storytelling, with the pair as much at each other’s throats as by the other’s side. Jacob’s brash demeanor may be a little grating at times, but the overlying fact is that he is an anomaly in a series that has a tendency for repetition, and that’s a welcome change.
