Assassin's Creed: Lineage [HD]

A Great Game Supplement, But Lacks Value As A Stand Alone Purchase--Only For Diehard Fans
To take advantage of the release of the eagerly anticipated videogame "AC: Revelations," a brilliant and synergistic marketing team has also readied the DVD debut of "AC: Lineage" for the same date. It's a sound proposition, of course, to push for sales dollars--but, to my estimation, "Lineage" plays more as a game supplement than as a fully realized product of its own. If someone had put this disc in a deluxe version of the game, I would tell you what a great extra it would have been. However, sold on its own, it really isn't a satisfying purchase. Want a movie based off of the AC legend? It seems like it would be easy enough to do. But this just seems like an extended cut-scene sequence that you might find in a game that, although beautifully rendered, lacks dramatic impact.

Here's what's included:

AC: Lineage (Approximately 33 minutes): This short film introduces antihero Ezio Auditore and is set directly preceding the timeline established in the story...

Excellently Produced Film, But It's Not a Stand Alone Story
Originally developed as an online video prequel to the video game ASSASSIN'S CREED II, ASSASSIN'S CREED: LINEAGE was released in the fall of 2011 as a promotional tool for the release of the video game ASSASSIN'S CREED: REVELATIONS. The movie is a short film (about 33 minutes) that attempts to provide some back story to ASSASSIN'S CREED II. This is not an animated film; it is a live action movie. It follows Giovanni Auditore and his assignments and eventual framing that leads to his arrest and capture towards the beginning of ASSASSIN'S CREED II.

The filmmaking for ASSASSIN'S CREED: LINEAGE is fantastic. This is not an animated short, but a live action film. It's quite impressive. Most of the actors used are the same actors as they are in the video game and they are just as talented in the flesh as their voices are in the game. As explained in one of the extras on the DVD, the actors, costumes, and a few of the props are real, but everything else was created via green...

*Mostly* for die-hard films, wonderful making-of footage for composite film fans.
Let me preface my review by first explaining why I have given it 4 stars instead of what probably should be 3 or 3.5. If the price were set the same as any other retail Blu-ray, it would be insulting and a waste of time for those who aren't into the Assassin's Creed universe but it's not - it's the exact right amount for how much footage there is on the disc.

If you're not a fan already, you probably don't care about all of the developer diaries and trailers for the first two games. Maybe they might spark some interest for those who are curious but it's really just all there to appease the fanbase. The real meat of this disc is the free-to-view-online Lineage motion picture (and I'm pretty sure you can find the making of online as well). If you just want to watch that online for free, by all means, visit the company's Facebook or Youtube pages but if you're a collector of having decent moviemaking examples on DVD/BD, it's not a bad thing to have in your library. The movie...

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