I had said before that an open world game like this is very similar to a lot of other games that are like it. In many ways the system is tried and true but to other people this could actually seem kind of boring since there isn't much in the way of difference from one game to the next. I feel as though at least this release of AC (the only one I've ever played) is very similar to a lot of games such as Witcher 3 and Ghost of Tsushima in that there are so many place to go, things to see, and hundreds of mostly optional quests.
It is easy to understand how people might get a bit sick of the style considering that. There are a couple of things in Assassin's Creed that they do that holds my interest though and at level 15 or so I was introduced to the Cultists and how I need to hunt them down - if I want to.
I had intended to play this game by just going ONLY to the main story things until I wasn't strong enough by level progression to get past it, then start doing optional stuff. This game is quite well made though and while many of the quests and raids on castles get a bit repetitive, they keep things interesting by throwing some stuff in there that I don't think you actually must do. I can't say for sure if that is the case with the cultists or not, but the notion of infiltrating the global network or cabal that controls the land is an interesting one and it keeps things fresh when you find what previously probably seemed like useless scraps of paper that are clues.
Basically, you infiltrate a cultist meeting where you discover that they control all aspects of society and the reflection of how the actual world that we live in was not something that was lost on me. I think that all of us have at one point in time or another felt like our leaders of our countries or even local areas are all tied into a global network that works to keep us placated just enough so that we do their bidding willingly. The ongoing battle between the Spartans and Athenians is presented as a laughable thing to the cult, who doesn't care which side wins but merely that they continue fighting thus ensuring their continued power.
When you find out about this news all of a sudden you are charged, if you want to, in bringing down the cult. I do not know if this becomes mandatory later, but for now it seems as though you can choose to, or not to pursue tracking these individuals down and killing them, then getting you closer to the inner circle and presumable, taking down the entire network.
The first cultist that I tracked down didn't even fight back. She was kind of a brains of the bunch I guess and she simply ran away from me. When I caught up with her it took only a few sha-lacks of my giant warblade to eliminate her. I collected this little triangle trinket that she has and all members have one. I also got some XP and a few items.
It's pretty wild actually because sometimes these cult members will be in areas that you have already completed and they aren't necessarily aware that you are coming for them. Sometimes they will be in plain sight in the middle of a city where you don't even have any enemies... well, you don't have them YET. However, murder is still illegal in the cities so if you just waltz up and slash them to death in front of everyone they citizenry and well as any guards will turn on you and this can be very bad news for you depending on the level of the area that you are in. The idea is to lure them to some sort of area out of sight and execute them there, if you are strong enough to do it in a stealth attack this would be ideal, but depending on a lot of things such as what gear you are wearing, this might not be an option. It's nice when it works out.
You don't just get a map with all of their locations on it either. You have to discover clues as to where they hide out and go after them if you feel like it. I have no intention of seeking out all the clues but if I stumble upon them, so be it!
When I killed my first cultist there were a lot of witnesses and this raised my bounty really high and the next thing I knew I was being tracked by multiple mercenaries. Thankfully they were both below my level so I was able to separate them by using my horse to get away and then take them out one by one.
This adds another layer to the game if the usual raiding of palaces and looting crap like 3 drachmas here and there from a pot starts to get old and trust me, it will.
Depending on the area that the cultist is in, you may actually end up discovering new areas on your trip there and I found out by accident that this is a great way to score some easy XP and is a method I will use in the future. I will describe this slightly cheesy method of "free XP" in my next writeup.
So far "Odyssey" has been a great ride. Combat isn't the best but it is good enough and the perceived limitations that it has could very likely be due to my inexperience rather than any real flaw on the part of the game.
I'm about 6 hours in and still look forward to it every time I boot it up!