ltaïr is one of my favorite new video game characters, and I’m all for Ubisoft expanding the fiction around their fledgling star. However, a move to the handheld space doesn’t mean anyone receives a get out of jail free card on gameplay. While Altaïr’s Chronicles makes some ambitious attempts to try something new on the DS, many of the mechanics and moment-to-moment interactions in this prequel game fall woefully short.

Altaïr needs to find a chalice. There’s your story. While there are several steps to this process, few are memorable enough to elevate into your conscious thoughts. Sure, you can plan to run across some rooftops, kill some Templars, and climb some buildings. However, it all feels like a LEGO set that hasn’t been put together into a shape you can recognize or care about.

The three-dimensional game world is basically linear, but a brave attempt to add verticality adds some scope. There are a number of stages scattered across the Holy Land, and each one hides unique traps and varied encounters. The later levels of this relatively long game are in particular filled with cool challenges. Unfortunately, the potential of that game world is hamstrung by several major technical and design problems. Blind death drops abound as you leap into offscreen areas that the camera hasn’t yet revealed. An overly touchy jump mechanic has you leaping too short or long all the time, with unsurprisingly disastrous results. An auto lock-on during combat often sends you reeling towards an enemy you had no intention of attacking. Checkpoints are poorly placed, sometimes even triggering right before a guaranteed death – time for a level restart. Put it all together, and the game is kind of a mess, but at least it’s trying to do something more exciting than the glut of me-too DS games on the market.