Well, there are many other things exciting about this new Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood trailer besides Ezio driving a tank, but think about – Leonardo Da Vinci actually designed a tank in the 15th century. Check out his actual blueprints:

Leonardo designed this ”tank” as a safe way for soldiers to move through the battlefield. Inspired by turtles he envisioned a turtle-shaped shell surrounded by cannon. Inside the armored carrier were to be two giant cranks to be operated by eight men. The sloped, armor-plated exterior was deigned to deflect projectiles protecting those inside.  Yes, it looks outlandish so the question has been raised – could this tank have worked?

In 2009 a team of builders and scientists from the Discovery Channel put it to the test.  Immediately, they noticed something was wrong with Leonardo’s design.  It was not unusual to see in Leonardo’s other designs something reversed or unfinished.  It’s been widely believed he did so in case others stole his work they would not be able to create it properly.  With a little tinkering, the scientists were able to create and operate Leonardo’s tank.

As you can see the tank could have worked. One has to remember what a true “renaissance man” Da Vinci was. His contributions to art, anatomy, medicine, mathematics and science are all well documented. While the tank may seem astonishing, he is known for designing, among other things, plans to build a glider (which Bob Kane said inspired him to create Batman), a helicopter and a robot (which was actually used by NASA in designing space suits).

Had Da Vinci’s tank actually been created, it’s possible that Ezio and and 7 of his friends could have operated it. Yep, Leonardo was a good friend to have.

Check out the 4:20 mark in the new Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood trailer below to see Ezio operate Leonardo’s ‘finished’ tank.

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Ever thought a tank on legs would look stupid and too far fetched to be made real?  Yes, we’ve seen legged robots that are able to keep themselves upright, but give them a poke or a sharp incline and they are far from agile.  However, the days of Metal Gear are closing in on us.  Follow the link for a video of the incredible quadruped robot, BigDog.

This advanced robot, with suitable Metal Gear Solid name, is a sight to behold.  It appears to share uncanny similarities to the dystopian Gear depicted in Kojima’s MGS series, such as Crying Wolf from MGS4′s Beauty and the Beast Corp.

Sporting four legs, BigDog can walk, run, climb on rough terrain and carry heavy loads.  The quadruped robot is being developed by Boston Dynamics with the aim to create a rough-terrain mobility robot.

[youtube width="480" height="378"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W1czBcnX1Ww[/youtube]

BigDog’s articulated legs are so shockingly animal-like in their balance and agility, matched by the on-board computer’s decision making on differing surfaces, that you might mistake it for MGS4′s creepy Gekko’s.  In fact, filter the buzz coming from the petrol engine that drives the hydraulic actuation system, turn it into a moo or howl and you’re surely in Snake’s world now. 

Imagine a pack of these things galloping towards you in the battlefield…  Cure your fear by watching the less agile and pedestrian BigDog Beta:

[youtube width="480" height="378"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VXJZVZFRFJc[/youtube]

Source: Boston Dynamics

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Prototype is what Crackdown would be if you were a bad-ass instead of a superhero. Crunching cars beneath your feet, running up buildings, literally smashing peoples’ heads into the ground, and absorbing dead bodies into your own — just some of the things you will be doing as Prototype’s main anti-hero, Alex Mercer.

During GDC, we were presented with a brief explanation of the background and inspiration for Radical’s new game. Essentially, when players are given an open world to do whatever they want, they always behave badly. Radical have embraced that fundamental human desire to be naughty and designed a game that is gritty, disgusting, and fucking awesome.

As you can tell from this slide, the basic structure of the game is to “Kill guys and take their stuff”. It’s much more than that, though. There’s a war going on between the Infected and the Military, and you’re in the middle. You can play the two against each other, or help one side fight the other — whatever it takes to accomplish your goals.

Alex has no idea who he is (except that his name is Alex Mercer, apparently) and absorbs peoples’ brains to help himself figure it all out. He accomplishes that in many ways, all of which involve killing people in super-awesome expressions of love. We witnessed a man’s head getting forcibly squished into his own chest cavity, but we also saw such classics as the basic head-exploding curb stomp. Awwww, how cute…

Once people are absorbed, Alex’s biomass increases. This effectively let’s him smash things easier and grow huge claws and so forth. You can also assume the identity of the absorbed people to blend in easier or open special abilities. For example, assuming the identity of a high-ranking military official let’s the player call in air strikes!

Alex can also steal vehicles, including tanks and helicopters. Both hijacking maneuvers include spectacular gore-splosions, but Alex somehow manages to keep his white hoodie nice and clean. Of course, you can just avoid direct contact by tossing the tank at the helicopter, destroying them both.

I have a sneaking suspicion that Eric Holmes and Tim Bennison may have a little Prototype in themselves.

After the presentation, one of the Radical guys just sat there and played the game for 15 minutes while we all watched. It looked amazing, and they claim the graphics are far from complete. I asked about a release date, and they say they are really hoping for this year, but there is no official release scheduled.

Oh, they also let slip that there will be a full-blown cooperative mode, as well as the possibility of “other multiplayer modes” that they aren’t ready to discuss. Stay tuned and we will give you all the information as we get it.

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