Ubisoft’s announced that UK comedian Danny Wallace is to return as Shaun Hastings in Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood.

VIA VG247:

Wallace’s character debuted in Assassin’s Creed II last year. ShortList has some shots of Wallace’s character in action.

Clark Kent says: ‘Brotherhood‘ launches on November 19 on PS3 and 360. It releases on PC next year. Check out the trailer below:

Ubisoft has said that assassination multiplayer will be included in the new Assassin’s Creed game.

VIA VG247:

Ubisoft said in its Q3 investors call today that the game would see Ezio striking the Templars at their headquarters in Rome.

It would also include what Ubi called “innovative” multiplayer, where players can participate in an assassination mode against friends online.

Further information would not be revealed on the multiplayer, but Ubi said that the general rule for new releases is that each will contain cooperative multiplayer and as far as Assassin’s Creed was concerned, Ubi would not comment on whether it would be a yearly title, but that it will continue to support the franchise.

Last month, Ubisoft said a new AC game was on the way with mutliplayer.

After initial confusion, the firm confirmed to us the game does not tie into the recent DLC for Assassin’s Creed II.

Ubi then said ACII’s Ezio would return to the title as protagonist after it was revealed the title was a continuation of the second game’s plot.

Ubisoft boss Yves Guillemot also said today that Assassin’s Creed II has now sold more than 8 million units.

Clark Kent says: This is starting to get good. Got any classic ACII war stories? Share them in the comments section below!

Airport Authority Hong Kong has installed several PS3 Game Poles at various locations in the Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA) for free public access. Clark Kent asks: Argh, Hong Kong is really messing with my 2011 #lifegoal. See why their airports are cooler than ours after the jump. VIA TMR: Implemented in partnership with Sony Computer Entertainment Hong Kong, the developer of Playstation 3, the PS3 Game Poles comprise a total of 14 units of PlayStation 3. Stationed at various spots, including areas near the boarding gates at Terminal 1 and the Coach Station at Terminal 2, these PS3 Game Poles allow travellers to enjoy themselves while waiting for flights. The Game Poles feature the latest PS3 games including the highlights of the Asia Game Show x Online Game Show 2009 (AGS x OGS 2009), such as ‘Final Fantasy XIII, ‘James Cameron’s Avatar: The Game’, ‘Uncharted 2: Among Thieves’, and ‘Assassin’s Creed 2’. HKIA is one of the busiest airports around the globe, handling the world’s fourth-highest international passenger volume in 2008, according to Airports Council International. An October 2009 study by Cimigo showed that departing passengers’ dwell time at HKIA is around four hours, with an average of over three hours being spent within the restricted area. Clark Kent says: The fact that they can play ‘Final Fantasy XIII’ and ‘Avatar: The Game’ in an airport FURTHER reinforces the fact that you better be prepared for a zombie attack.

Ubisoft has tweeted that the first bit of Assassin’s Creed II DLC will be released on January 28.

Clark Kent says: I’ve been playing ‘God of War’ and ‘God of War 2′ — need to get back into Ezio’s story before it gets too stale.

VIA VG247:

Called the Battle of Forli, the add-on will run you 320 MS Points ($3.99/£2.72/€3.72) on Xbox Live and PSN.

In it, players defend the Forli base with Machiavelli and Caterina Sforza against the Orsi brothers through six new playable memories and must protect a Piece of Eden from the Templars. Leonardo’s flying contraption also returns, allowing you to fly across Romagna.

Bonfire of Vanities DLC hits next month, and includes 10 memories, Machiavelli, and takes place in Florence where Ezio must save the city from the monk Savonarola using a new move called the spring-jump.

Sounds like loads more stealthy stabbings are headed players way. Which is a good thing.

There’s a video over on Joystiq, featuring creative director Patrice Desilets chatting about the DLC. You should go have a watch.

Hopefully, you like Ezio, because the next Assassin’s Creed is expected to be released sometime before March 2011, and it’s a continuation of his story.

Ubisoft has spilled the beans on the previously teased Assassin’s Creed 2 downloadable content due for release on PS3 and Xbox 360 this January, with decent price points to boot.

Clark Kent says: While on hiatus from New York, I robbed myself the opportunity to dig into this game once it was out. But I’ll be back into the loop soon enough. Just wait and see…

VIA VGR:

The extra content was originally confirmed a couple of weeks back but little else was revealed that they’ll be called The Battle of Forli and Bonfire of the Vanities. Naturally Internet speculation was in full swing, but now Ubi’s dropped the deets.

The first pack to arrive – The Battle of Forli will arrive in late January for $3.99. It “will feature Machiavelli and Caterina Sforza fighting alongside Ezio to defend against the Orsi brothers,” and consist of six memories (or missions).

The second – Bonfire of the Vanities will hit consoles in February for $4.99 and feature the historical goings on around monk Savonarola across ten new missions. The murderous protagonist will even get a new spring-jump move.

Both packs, as previously mentioned will eat up a gig of space. So make sure you’ve got spare console real estate when the DLC drops. UK pricing has yet to be confirmed, we must add.

Clark Kent says: If you haven’t played ‘Assassin’s Creed II,’ yet, you’re losing out on life. Chuuch!

With Modern Warfare 2 finally in (and flying out of) shops, all attention is now firmly trained on one game only: the gorgeous-looking Assassin’s Creed II. And quite rightly so…

Clark Kent says: The game is out tomorrow and with my birthday coming up this Saturday, there’s no surprise as to what I want for my special day!!!

VIA CVG:

While its predecessor may have divided opinion somewhat, Ubisoft’s period hitman sequel has already been achieving massive critical acclaim. The publisher has hailed it as its “biggest ever release” and championed it with a giant marketing spend. It appears to have paid dividends too: pre-sales figures have reportedly been frightening.

“[It] will undoubtedly be Ubisoft’s biggest ever launch and will benefit from our biggest ever marketing campaign,” Ubisoft told trade mag MCV.

“We’ve had an overwhelmingly positive reaction. The media coverage has been genuinely fantastic and I’m delighted that the reviews have been nothing other than glowing.”

Gamers waiting to pick off foes in Renaissance-era Italy while admiring eyeball-groping views, need only wait until this Friday, 20 November to do so. Assassin’s Creed II is out then.

Spike TV and Ubisoft announced today that the Assassin’s Creed: Lineage short film will be aired on Spike TV, on Wednsday, November 11th, at Midnight. Originally hosted on Youtube, you may also see it here, if you can’t wait ’til the 11th.

Clark Kent says: If only I had cable… The good thing about the Internet is that you’ll be able to find someone who ripped it for their site. So, check back here on the 12th to see if it’s here for you other non-cable-having-mutha-suckas!

VIA E:

The Duke of Milan is murdered, and assassin Giovanni Auditore is sent to investigate. He attempts to thwart a conspiracy that threatens to implicate all of the prominent families of Italy, including the Vatican itself.

Assassin’s Creed: Lineage is developed by Hybride Technologies, the studio behind 300 and Sin City. The short film combines live-action and CGI to create an introduction to Assassin’s Creed II, centering around Giovanni Auditore da Firenze, father of Ezio Firenze, and flesh out the backstory to the events that lead to the game.

Clark Kent says: You can check out the first part of Giovanni’s story below. Be sure to turn on your boob tube to Spike TV and peep ‘Assassin’s Creed: Lineage’ on Spike TV on November 11th.

When Assassin’s Creed debuted and quickly established itself as a blockbuster hit, Ubisoft wasted little time in ramping up work on the first sequel. Later this month, Assassin’s Creed II will arrive in stores, almost exactly two years after the original game’s launch.

As prompt as that turnaround may be, gamers might not have to wait even half that long for another dose of the time-travelling stealth action franchise. In a conference call after its quarterly earnings announcement today, Ubisoft CFO Alain Martinez teased that the franchise could return as soon as next year.

Responding to an analyst’s question about the publisher’s major franchise plans for 2010, Martinez said, “There might be something around Assassin’s Creed, and you mentioned that there will be a movie of Prince of Persia.” He didn’t specify what form that Assassin’s Creed content might take, be it significant downloadable content, a spin-off game, or a full stand-alone installment in the franchise.

Martinez’s comment wasn’t the only Ubisoft executive utterance to raise eyebrows during the call. CEO Yves Guillemot also talked about the publisher’s desire to expand into genres where it hasn’t met with much success to date. Specifically, Guillemot said the company has gaps in its lineup in the racing, fighting, and role-playing game genres, and that Ubisoft will be entering some (not necessarily all) of those genres with original intellectual properties “soon.”

Although Guillemot specified them as weak spots of Ubisoft’s catalog, the publisher already has some entries in each of the named genres. The company’s Might and Magic franchise is one of the longest-running Western RPG series, although Ubisoft has focused more on spin-offs like the Heroes of Might and Magic line of games. Ubisoft also recently acquired the racing game studio behind the Trackmania franchise, Nadeo, but currently has the team working on TrackMania 2 instead of an original IP.

As for fighting games, the just-released Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Smash-Up was developed by the studio behind Super Smash Bros. Brawl. However, it is based on a licensed property and underperformed Ubisoft’s expectations upon release.

Clark Kent says: Thank you, Ubisoft! Now, send me the game so we can get that review poppin’!!

Analyst OTX claims that many gamers are shifting to Sony’s console for upcoming multi-format sequels.

Clark Kent says: Mwhahahahaha, come to the dark side!!!

VIA MCV:

A new report from analyst firm OTX has claimed that a number of keen gamers who bought the likes of Assassin’s Creed and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare on Xbox 360 are intending to purchase the PS3 versions of the upcoming sequels.

The belief comes from numbers showing that 15 per cent of those who plan to buy the PS3 version of Ubisoft’s Assassin’s Creed 2 own the original version on Xbox 360. By contrast, just seven per cent of those intending to get the Xbox 360 version owned the original on PS3.

The report, which was published on Gamasutra, also predicts that PS3 will emerge as the favoured format for Infinity Ward’s shooter. Furthermore, OTX reckons this ‘defection’ will set the trend for future multiplatform releases.

If so, this will be a remarkable turnaround. Week one sales of the first Modern Warfare fell in Xbox 360’s favour, with Microsoft’s console claiming 63 per cent of UK sales.

Clark Kent says: There’s so much that has been said (and shown) about this game already that right now, I wanna wait until I play it. But I will say this… There will be no repetition issue in ‘Assassin’s Creed II‘. You can see why after the jump.