When I first laid eyes on the trailers and screenshots for 1666: Amsterdam, I honestly had a hard time figuring out what kind of game it actually was. The distinct style and presentation, combined with the fact that developers who worked on previous Assassin’s Creed titles were behind the project, initially led me to believe we were looking at some sort of witch-themed Assassin’s Creed. However, having now spent time with the current early access content, a much more accurate comparison comes to mind: it feels like a witch-focused version of Vampyr. And honestly, that is a surprisingly good foundation for 1666: Amsterdam.
World Design and Exploration
As it stands right now, 1666: Amsterdam delivers a pretty linear experience with some semi-open areas to explore. Even though you are mostly funnelled directly toward your next objective, there are moments where the atmosphere may shine.
However, there are currently very few distractions or points of interest to pull me away from the main path. Right now, exploration feels a bit bare-bones. My hope is that the developers pack these semi-open environments with more secrets, side activities, and interactive elements so that future updates make exploring the world feel genuinely fun and inviting.
Combat Mechanics and Camera Woes
If there is one area of the game that desperately needs a trip back to the drawing board, it is the combat. Right now, the combat in 1666: Amsterdam is pretty lackluster and feels quite stiff. There isn’t much variation in how you can tackle encounters, making fights feel more like a chore you have to push through to get further into the story, rather than an engaging mechanic to look forward to.
To turn things around, the developers really need to make dodging more interesting and introduce a functional parry or block system. Furthermore, placing a heavier focus on quick-use skills during combat would make the flow much more dynamic and fun.
The issues don’t stop at mechanics, either; the environment plays a major antagonist. Because a lot of the fighting takes place in close quarters, the camera frequently hides behind your character, making it difficult to see what is happening. Worse still, you often get locked between objects and walls, completely stripping away your mobility and making certain fights feel frustratingly unfair. There is undeniably a lot of work to be done on the combat side, but if the team prioritizes this moving forward, 1666: Amsterdam could eventually become fun to fight in.
A Tale of Eras: The Storytelling
Without a doubt, the absolute best thing about 1666: Amsterdam right now, and the primary hook keeping me looking forward to future content updates, is the narrative.
The premise of jumping between different eras, especially the more modern times, is genuinely intriguing. I find myself deeply invested in wanting to know more about those storylines and how they evolve. Ironically, the 1666 setting itself is currently the least interesting part of the narrative, which is unfortunate since it is the era we spend the most time in. That said, knowing the writing team is capable of crafting compelling concepts, I am hopeful that later acts will turn the 1666 segments around and surprise me.
Final Early Access Thoughts
In its current early access form, 1666: Amsterdam offers a 6-to-8-hour ordeal, depending on how much extra side stuff you attempt or how many times you have to replay difficult sections. For an early access title, that is a very respectable amount of content. It gives players a clear idea of what the game is trying to achieve and, in the case of 1666: Amsterdam, leaves you longing for the continuation.
Of course, there are plenty of rough edges in need of tweaking before this becomes an easy title to recommend. The combat needs to be much more fluid and interesting, magic cooldowns and charge times need to be sped up, animations could use polish, and the world desperately needs more side content.
Even with these hurdles, the intriguing story, the fantastic concept of shifting between eras, and an underlying core gameplay loop that works give 1666: Amsterdam a massive amount of potential. It has all the makings of a great game by the time it reaches its final release.
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