Just when you think that Assassin's Creed II is going to feature throat-slitting violence and fountains of blood in a family friendly manner, Ubisoft crosses the line by putting "strong sexual overtones," as thoroughly described by the ESRB.
The Entertainment Software Ratings Board has issued the Assassin's Creed sequel a "Mature" rating, pointing out the potentially offensive "blood, intense violence, sexual content, and strong language" featured in the game.
The ESRB goes into great detail—with potential spoilers!—about the "sexual content" players may experience in Assassin's Creed II, including an interactive mini-game in which "players are able to press buttons to kiss a woman and remove her dress; with the woman's back facing the camera, the two characters lower to bed and blow out a candle." Oh my!
Oh and it gets so much more unsavory, at least from a dialogue standpoint, as references to S&M, page-boy diddling, rape and other deviant acts not fit for print in this publication are made throughout the game. Plus, there's naughty language in both English and Italian!
Will someone please think of the children? Preferably not while reading this snippet of the ESRB's description, pasted below, but afterward.
The game contains strong sexual overtones. During one "seduction mini-game," players are able to press buttons to kiss a woman and remove her dress; with the woman's back facing the camera, the two characters lower to bed and blow out a candle. Some scenes take place inside brothels, though no nudity or sexual acts are depicted. The dialogue contains the following sexual references: "So the whip or the paddle today?" and "Does your wife know about your page-boy fantasies, Captain?"
Character backstories, narrated through still-frame vignettes, explain how villains and historical figures achieved their notoriety; some biographies include references to adultery, sodomy, prostitution, and rape (e.g., "Caterina was captured and sent to Rodrigo Borgia . . . who kept her imprisoned for a year and is rumored to have raped her alongside his son.").
One cutscene depicts a man and a woman wearing translucent, flesh-toned bodysuits as they flee from danger. The digitized lighting effects, the glow from their futuristic suits, obscure most of the details, though outlines of breasts and buttocks are partially discernable (i.e., not definitively nudity).
Consumers may also wish to know that the game contains strong profanity, both in English and Italian (e.g., "f**k," "sh*t," c*zzo," and "m*rda"); the most explicit instance occurs when a man frantically describes a "vision"-"I'm at the opera . . . the soprano is so beautiful . . . I'm in bed with her, she cries as I f**k her."
Ack! My eyes!!
Assassin's Creed II [ESRB]