Notoriety
Notoriety returns with the game giving very little in-game information on it except for how to lower it. In general, it is always good to keep notoriety low to ease movement through the cities and prevent excessive amounts of battle. Note that different weather conditions will not only cause poor visibility for the player, but also for potential hostiles.
- Incognito: Potential hostiles will ignore Connor unless he performs and illegal action, such as pickpocket or killing someone in plain sight.
- Level 1: Potential hostiles will see Connor, but only investigate if the yellow arrow fills (high profile actions make this increase faster).
- Level 2: Potential hostiles will investigate Connor and attack when the red arrow fills (high profile actions make this increase faster).
- Notorious: Potential hostiles will attack on sight.
In the cities notoriety is increased when the player performs illegal actions in front of civilians or directly attack guards. In order to decrease notoriety, Connor will need to do one of the following:
- Bribe a Printing Shops for £400 (marked on the map) - decreases full notoriety
- Bribe a Town Crier for £30-50 (marked on the map) - decreases up to 2 levels of notoriety
- Tear down posters (not marked on the map) - decreases up to 1 level of notoriety
Stealth
Like the previous Assassin's Creed games, stealth plays a large part in navigating in hostile area. Some missions require the player to stay in stealth the whole time, while others can be completed much easier through stealth than open conflict.
Blending
Whenever the player stands in close proximity to two or more civilians they will automatically blend in with the crowd and take on their behavior. While in "blend" the player is immune to being seen by enemy troops or suspicious individuals. As long as the hostiles are not in open conflict with the player, they can hide to prevent detection.
Hiding Places & Stalking Areas
There are many places in the cities and Frontier to hide from view. Previous players will be aware of hay carts as easy to see places to hide and avoid detection, but there are some new features. In many areas of the Frontier, and even in some places in the city, the player will notice tall brush or grass that when entered will cause the player to crouch and serve as cover. Other new hiding places include: convoy carts, clothed over vending stations on the sides of buildings, benches, and wells.
Corner Cover
If the player leans against any flat wall they will enter cover behind it. From this position, the play will gain the ability to Whistle (O/B) and call over a guard and corner assassinate them. This also allows the player to keep a target in view around corners when following them without being detected.
Breaking Line of Sight
If for some reason the player is engaged in combat and wish to escape, AC III has added a new feature of open windows and doors that can be used to cut through a building and lose their pursuers. There is no need to navigate the interiors, as the AI will take over until the player reaches the other side.
