Assassin’s Creed — When they were still in Italy

I would do a Family Guy reference, but no one will get it…

Way back in 2007, there was this game called Assassin’s Creed that came out. Most people would probably say that it was an ‘ok’ game (those that played it when it came out, of course), but what was back then would eventually become one of the most notable video game franchises today’s gaming world has ever known.

Some two years later, the game would receive a sequel known as Assassin’s Creed II. This one would be considered a great improvement over its predecessor, and frankly, they weren’t wrong about that statement since it would be the last Assassin’s Creed game I would play, and it was actually fun. And yes, it was better than the first game. Of course, I would never know what came after that since I stopped playing with this one (they say that Assassin’s Creed IV is the best in the series).

The game centres around a group of assassins trying to defeat an Illuminati-esque group of bad guys trying to collect information by travelling back in time via something called “genetic memory”. According to the game, this is the collective memory of one’s ancestors passed on from generation to generation. It may sound like complete nonsense, but it’s video game logic, so whatever. In terms of gameplay, the game combines hack n’ slash with stealth. But the most exciting aspect of the series is that every game takes place, to a certain extent, in a famous time (e.g. the French Revolution, the Renaissance), with its own language… sometimes more explicit than other times.

They called them Barbarians because they couldn’t speak properly. This is almost the same.

So, I can only say this in regards to the first two games since I stopped playing after that, but I can say that in the first game, they do not speak to any degree (the first game takes place in the Middle East). If I remember correctly, the explanation was that since the game takes place from the perspective of a modern man, the program he uses to access his “genetic memory” translates it to English for him. However, in the second game, they use a different version of the program, which leaves some of the words or phrases in the native language, and in this case, it’s Italian.

In essence, what you have now is Italian characters speaking a mixture of modern English and Italian, modern or otherwise. Interestingly enough, the closed captions not only romanises some words (salute) it also translates next to them what that word means (salute = hello). So what happens now is that you’re also learning Italian while playing the game. The basics anyway, since it won’t get you far in life if you just heard a bunch of random Italian words (and some risqué, too). But then I thought, “maybe I should play the game in Italian?” but then I realised that I already finished the game, and I subsequently moved on.

The problem is that the immersion is ruined. I can’t find it believable that people from the Renaissance would speak like that. Either stay in English because the program translates it or speak Italian because you are an Italian living during the Renaissance. Regardless, I cannot understand what they are saying in Italian unless translated in the closed captions. Anyway, they didn’t speak like that in the Renaissance.

Not the Renaissance I was told of, anyhow

First of all, immersion. If one, such as yours truly were to desire an experience where they feel “immersed” (so to say) in the game, creating an “authentic” feeling of sorts. Regarding that, there’s a simple solution: change the language they speak from English to Italian. Although, this will also affect the modern-day characters who speak English. But most of the game takes place in the past, so that’s less relevant.

Now, regarding translation. It is important to know if you are actually to change the language setting — as I suggested, you might also want to turn on the closed captions to understand what the characters are saying.

So basically, you have a playthrough where everyone in the Renaissance speaks Italian all the time (though it’s probably modern Italian, I can’t tell since I don’t speak Italian). That’s as far as gameplay goes that I can suggest. But if I could write some of the dialogue in the game, it wouldn’t be that weird.

Call a Renaissance Expert! I don’t get any of this, do you?

I think, regarding the authenticity of the language spoken in Italy during the Renaissance, a Renaissance expert should give their opinion on the matter. It could a professor or just a dedicated Renaissance nerd. As long they can provide the information, then that’s cool.

But then comes the translation of language. Of course, translating the language isn’t a problem, especially since it’s (probably) modern Italian. Dialogue aside, at least the closed captions won’t have to translate words in brackets literally.

But the real problem is immersion, but who to consult with on the problem? Game developers, of course! Or maybe just ask a dedicated and enthusiastic gamer who can tell you how to personally immerse yourself in the experience of a video game, Starting by closing the lights in your room. But immersion strategies are a topic for another time.

In Conclusion…

Play ANY Assassin’s Creed game, except for Assassin’s Creed V, since that one is regarded as the worst; any game in the series other than that will be worth your while. It’s at least fun for one game, but I can’t that it’s for everyone.

Regarding the “immersion” problems or translation “errors” or the likes, that was only the second game, so maybe subsequent titles were better.

In retrospect, I realise now that I should’ve played ALL of the game in Italian. It would’ve been better…