Assassin's Creed: Revelations is asking a lot. The third sequel in as many years, Ubisoft has been remarkably clear that another game is coming next year that will carry the series' main character Desmond forward. This leaves Revelations in an awkward position, serving as a coda of sorts to the stories of Ezio Auditore de Firenze and his Crusades-era forbear Altair Ibn-La-Ahad, stories that seemed competently told already. It doesn't seem like Assassin's Creed: Revelations needs to exist - but then, neither did Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood, which nonetheless turned out to be great.

Surprise or no, Ubisoft has managed it again. By introducing an interesting new cast of characters, making additional refinements to the free-running and combat systems, and providing closure to characters we've gotten to know for their entire lives, defying all logic, Assassin's Creed: Revelations is another great Assassin's Creed game - mostly.