E3 2011: Assassin's Creed Revelations Q&A, multiplayer demo uncovered

The following Q&A was conducted with Andreane Meunier, Online Producer for Assassin's Creed Revelations. In the interview Meunier talks about the multiplayer demo currently being showcased at E3, detailing new characters, new environments and new gameplay features we can expect when the action adventure releases later this year.

Multiplayer Demo – Manhunt

•    What mode will players get to experience at the Assassin’s Creed Revelations booth?
The mode players will get to enjoy is manhunt.

•    Could you please explain the “Manhunt” mode?
Manhunt is a team-based mode with 2 teams of 4 people, where half are predators (seeking to kill their targets) and half are prey (seeking to evade their pursuers). The prey must work together to avoid and stun their pursuers, whereas the predators try to eliminate their targets as quickly and often as possible. A round lasts four minutes, following which a second round begins where the roles are reversed. A total session lasts 8 minutes, where the total team scores are calculated and a winning team is declared.

•    Why did you choose to showcase this mode in particular?
Manhunt is a really fun mode because it allows every player to have two very different experiences in every round, where they feel both the stress of being pursued and the thrill of being the hunter. Team strategies strongly come into play as scoring on both sides heavily encourages group behavior.

•    The demo is set in Rhodes, what can you tell us about this map?
Sitting just off the coast of modern-day Turkey in the eastern Mediterranean sea, the island of Rhodes has changed hands more times than a tarnished Ottoman coin. Formerly occupied by Greeks, Romans, Persians, Turks, and Byzantines, Rhodes was captured in 1309 by the Knights Hospitallers. Over the next 200 years, the Hospitallers transformed the island into a nearly impregnable fortress, building many of the magnificent castles and palaces that still exist today. Now, at the beginning of the sixteenth century, the Hospitallers continue to hold their ground in the face of constant threats from the encroaching Ottomans.

•    Will there be new characters? If so, can you name and describe them?
Yes there will be 4 characters to choose from in the E3 demo. They are:

-  The Vanguard

  A Cossack from Odessa, The Vanguard was spurred into military service by the threat of Ottomans encroaching on her homeland. After many years of faithful service as a scout and spy, the Templars approached her with offers of wealth and power in exchange for loyalty. Seeing this as an opportunity strike at the heart of the  Empire, she accepted gladly.

- The Guardian
 As the estranged cousin of the first Sultan of the Sennar Sultanate, The Guardian, has a deep hatred for rulers who claim divine mandates. After being chased from eastern Africa by his own family in 1505, the Guardian traveled north to Alexandria and soon found solace in the Templars' worldy ideology: Peace through Order and Stability. Calling himself, Guardian of the Truth, he now fights to make this worldview a reality.

-   The Bombardier
The Bombardier is a member of the Ottoman artillery corps with secret ties to the Quizilbash, a rebellious group of anti-Ottoman dissidents from the east. A skilled and conceited man, he desires power and influence, and has come to feel that military service is beneath him. He maintains close and constant contact with the Templars, selling them weapons and information in exchange for money and access to powerful people.

-    The Deacon
Publicly shamed and humiliated by the Patriarch of Constantinople for "actions unbecoming the Eastern Orthodox Faith", The Deacon has spent a decade plotting revenge against his former masters. No longer a believer in the doctrine that he once espoused so passionately, he now uses his nominal position in the church to erode it from within and further the Templars' ideology.

Stay tuned for more from E3 throughout the week.