Assassin’s Creed 2 to be made free on Xbox Live

Assassin’s Creed is a pretty big franchise with a massive fan following all around the planet, irrespective of the platform it’s played on. No doubt appeasing said enormous fan base, Microsoft has decided that it will make the popular Assassin’s Creed 2 a free download for fans on the Live arena.

The game, as the company states, will be the next "Games with Gold" title, and will be available free to Xbox Live Gold subscribers July 16-31. “Mark your calendars for July 16 - Ubisoft’s critically-acclaimed “Assassin’s Creed II” will be the next game featured in the Xbox Live ‘Games with Gold’ program. Normally 1600 Microsoft Points, ‘Assassin’s Creed II’ can be downloaded on Xbox 360 for free by Xbox Live Gold members between July 16 and July 31. After you download it, it is yours to keep,” Xbox Wire states.

The information was also confirmed via Twitter by Microsoft’s Larry Hryb (popularly known as Major Nelson) who stated that Assassin’s Creed 2 will be the next game that will become available to users with Xbox Live Gold subscription.

Ubisoft's Renaissance-themed open world title was first released back in November 2009 on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, and in March 2010 on Windows PC. The game, as mentioned earlier, will follow Hidden Path Entertainment's Defense Grid: The Awakening, which is already a free download on Xbox Live as July's first Games with Gold title.

Assassin’s Creed 2, alongside Halo 3, was one of the titles that Microsoft's Yusuf Mehdi mentioned during the company's E3 2013 press briefing as being part of the Games with Gold program.

Assassin’s Creed 2 was noted for its open world and non-linear gameplay, and allowed players to roam freely within several regions throughout late fifteenth-century Italy such as Venice, Florence, Forlì, San Gimignano, and the Tuscan countryside.

The game was originally due to be released at the same time on all three platforms, but Ubisoft announced on Sept. 24, 2009 that the PC version would be delayed to the first quarter of 2010 so that the company may have "a bit more time for the dev team to deliver the best quality game."