Assassins Creed III Review

It's starts off slow playing catch up if you haven't played any of the other games. It gives you a nice quick refresher on navigation and assassination. Then you become a loyal assassin noblemen, Haytham Kenway. In Assassins fashion this game is constantly reminding you that there are historic facts concerning people, places, events, and more. There's a big twist that completely caught me off guard and switches things up.
Once you finally become the main character hours later you must learn how to hunt, bait, snare, and climb through trees. The story is really great but not starting as the main character really slows the gameplay down and creates a little frustration if you expect to be tomahawking people as the main character within the first few hours as that is not the case. This time around you have to earn your Assassin robes as Connor. 
This game and story have quite a different feel and theme. Whereas as the other stories have been about revenge and power this one is about freedom. The game itself has truly evolved to a point of near perfection with mission variety, hunting, assassins, homestead, and the overwhelmingly impressive naval battles. Those of you that may not know I was a sailor and this made me wish I still was but during those times instead. It was easily the most fun and satisfying feature of the game. 
The sound design, sound effects, and graphics were phenomenal. The naval battles sounded, looked, and felt so real. From the background noise of the cities and frontier to skinning animals and shooting your gun the sound is incredible and the environments teeming with life.
It took me about a month to beat this game almost 100%. I even tried the online multiplayer for once just so I could play this game more but it just couldn't get into it. It's neat but it's not for me and didn't give me enough of the world to play in. I wish it was more if a sandbox multiplayer but maybe that's just me. I also would love to face off against friends in naval battles. The pause menus could have been more well organized and there could have been a better tutorial for caravan trading, recipes, crafting, and ingredients but besides these very minor complaints this could be my favorite game of the year and might be yours too.
Don't worry about being new to the franchise either. You don't need to play previous games or feel like you have to especially since this has such a different tone and feel to it. Due to this it is the best time to jump in as it was easily the best one in the series. With added elements like hunting, running in trees, naval battles, overly satisfying combat, and a perfectly well balanced economic system it nearly renders other Assassins obsolete. Beating a game nearly 100% and most of the achievements within a month are in now way a bad thing but unless you plan on buying the DLC I would say that this title is a BUY and trade as that is what I did as I don't buy into George Washington being a king and even if he was chosen as king I don't think he would be an evil or corrupt king. So maybe it will just be DLC of GW being a jolly and just king where you fetch ale and meat for him and his esteemed party guests. Anyways enough of my babbling, KEEP CALM AND STAB TEMPLARS.
Verdict: BUY