The Acolyte Podcast

As is tradition, the end of the year brings discussions on many gamers' Game of the Year. For this podcast, I put my own spin on it and give my FGOTY, otherwise known as Favorite Game of the Year. This is a game that I have completed a playthrough of, in the current year, but doesn't have to be released in said year. So, I want to nominate 2016's Watch_Dogs 2. Developed and published by Ubisoft, t...

Recently, Assassin's Creed Mirage got an update that stated a total of 10 million+ players have played this game. As an attempt to return to form, or a "back to the roots" if you will, it has been a well recieved entry from many core Assassin's Creed fans and the numbers (along with the help of massive updates) proves this. So, as I revisit Mirage once more, I look fondly upon a game that does tru...

Who's better than the legend himself? Ezio Auditore da Firenze is my number one favorite character in the franchise and narrowly edges past Bayek for that distinction. I don't have to explain anything about Ezio, so enjoy!! -The Hooded Shadow

For almost 30 years, Lara Croft has been a mainstay in the video games zeitgeist. She is one of the few recognizable female characters, and a badass one at that, that has had so many unforgettable globe-trotting adventures. My introduction to the Tomb Raider series started with 2018's Shadow of the Tomb Raider and a few years later I played 2015's Rise of the Tomb Raider. Each game ended up having...

As a passionate history nerd, the Viking Age fascinates me greatly. So when it was announced in 2020 that the newest game would be set in this era, my hype was comparable to only one other game in the franchise, Unity. I was so hyped, that it was borderline unhealthy. Jokes aside (kind of...), I couldn't wait to see how a Viking would navigate the conflcit of the Assassins (Hidden Ones) and Templa...

This episode is a companion piece to my 3-part review of Assassin's Creed Shadows released earlier this season. I just had a desire to make this and express my true feelings about the game after the smoke cleared, many months later. "Shadows Broke Me" is inspired by an infamous video titled "Odyssey Broke Me" by YouTuber LaZzerZ. I explain everything I currently feel about the franchise and come t...

In this episode, I'm revisiting 2018's game expansion "Legacy of the First Blade, Episode 1." This expansion's first episode introduces us to legendary sanctuary Assassin, Darius ,  who is the first weilder of the iconic weapon of the Assassins, the hidden blade. The first episode of this expansion shows a bit of backstory for Darius and is, honestly, really great to experience as an Assassin's Cr...

One of my biggest critiques of Assassin's Creed has been the lack of memorable protagonists with most of the games released, especially the more recent ones. The early days featured most of these  memorable characters such as Edward and Altair, but it is Ezio that still remains the most iconic of the bunch. So when Bayek came along in Origins, he instatntly won over the hearts of many Assassin's C...

Altair Ib'n La Ahad was the first Assassin that we came to know and who set the standard for the prototypical Assassin. We get to see many phases of Altair's life not only in his respective game, but in "flashback" sequences during the story of Assassin's Creed Revelations; as well as other books and comics. So the "grandfather" of the Assassins ranks very highly on my list just by principal alone...

The modern Hitman games (World of Assassination trilogy) have seen major success as a constantly updated, almost "live-service" style project. Unlike traditional live-service models, which prioritize small updates or items such as weapons and skins, Hitman takes a unique approach. So in my newest "Unique Ideas" episode, I discuss what I'd like to see happen with the live-service design for Assassi...

Way back when, one of the most requested settings from fans was for the series to tackle Ancient Egypt and in 2017, Asassin's Creed finally delivered. Origins marked a shift in the design of the franchise and in hindsight almost serves as like a "soft reboot." As for me, from minute one to the last cutscene, I loved Origins despite it's different direction. And even though this was the moment that...

Everybody's favorite pirate and the main character of Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag, is one of the most memorable characters in the franchise. Also, the game has the overall best writing and best cast of characters that help elevate Edward into my Top 4. This handsome, witty, and very stubborn Welshman earns his spot on my favorite charcaters ranking list. Thanks for listening! -The Hooded Shado...

One of my favorite things is to get info on a new Assassin's Creed game that is in development (sometimes more than playing the game itself) and boy did we just get a bombshell dropped on us by Stephen Totilo and additional information from Insider Gaming that talks of a now cancelled game set in the "Reconstruction Era" post-American Civil War. It sounded very interesting too...In this episode, I...

The young, charismatic protagonist of Assassin's Creed Unity has a strange relationship with me. On one hand, I don't like Arno's naivete and the fact that he blindly follows the woman he loves at the expense of being a dedicated Assassin but his performance and aura is incredible, and is probably the best in the series for any main character. So please enjoy my ranking of Arno Dorian. -The Hooded...

Remember when Assassin's Creed was one of the top of the line, needle moving, franchises that when a new game was announced, it took its place as one of the most hyped games of that particualr year? Well, Assassin's Creed doesn't feel like that anymore as they have released another huge title with a setting that was requested for a decade and nobody really talked about it in the general gaming dis...

Can you believe it's been 10 years since Syndicate released!?! Anyway, the Victorian Era set entry has seen its fair share of praise and criticism over that span of time. I very much have a like/hate relationship with this game that constantly affects where I put it on my rankings list. So, lets revisit Syndicate one last time. Thanks for listening!

While they are not mainline titles, probably the most overlooked or maybe least known entries in the franchise are the games in the Chronicles series. Chronicles covers three different time periods and therefore, lets us experience three different but familiar characters and their stories. Personally, I really enjoy these games, and even though they're not considered "mainline" releases, I just wa...

When we first saw the Crossover stories for Valhalla in late 2021, it sparked a passionate discourse on other characters appearing together. But this is not a new concept as we've seen ideas and fan fiction about this as far back as 2014. So, for the next entry in the "Unique Ideas" series, I thought I would add my two cents on other crossovers that I would like to see. Please enjoy! - The Hooded...

One of the most interesting characters to wear the iconic hidden blade. He was born in Samarra , was picking pockets in Anbar , began his path to a Hidden One in Alamut, then ultimately laid his roots in Baghdad . Basim is such an intriguing character from the time we first met him in Valhalla and then get to experience his origin story in Mirage . He just misses my Top 5, but I love Basim to deat...

A butterfly that flaps its wings can cause a tornado elsewhere. That is the definition of a "Butterfly Effect." Nothing else describes Unity better than this because it had arguably the biggest impact on the franchise by altering its trajectory after the culmination of its golden years. I remember the hype for the game, I remember being so incredibly blown away by its graphics and art design and t...

In this "Revisited: Assassin's Creed" epsiode, I am discussing the rise, fall, and legacy of the game that affected the trajectory of the franchise forever. Unity despite being in my Tier 1 Rankings, is a game that has a lot of great ideas but is hindered by its flaws. Even though I love the player experience it gives of being a Brotherhood Assasin , a lack of execution of those great ideas did th...

Aya definitely makes her prescence felt in Origins (in a good way). And while she's the other playable character in that respective game, she is one of the many reasons why Origins is among my favorite games in the franchise. Here is my ranking of Aya of Alexandria , later known as Amunet ). Be sure to check out my rankings of each playable character and it will continue through the rest of the se...

In this episode of my favorite characters ranking, I look at the better half of the Frye twins that stars in Syndicate . To be honest, I don't really care about Syndicate that much anymore and the only reason I ever boot up the game anymore is to run around Victorian London as Evie. Be sure to check out my other rankings episodes and thanks for listening! -The Hooded Shadow

In this continuation of the "Unique Ideas" series, I discuss a way to improve on the design of the open world structure of these games. Being influenced by a particular peer of Assassin's Creed , designing a dynamic mission structure system could breathe a massive amount of fresh air into the "stale" RPG design of the current games. For context, this episode is just a fun idea that I had and I'm n...

I cannot describe the level of hype that I felt when it was officially announced that the next setting that  Assassin's Creed  would take place in was the Viking Age. It was one of my top 5 settings that I had wanted to see for several years and it took place during the invasions by the Scandinavian warriors unto the British Isles. However, I was very disappointed with the outcome of Valhalla  bec...