Retro Replay Review

Gameplay

The first draw is simple: this DLC puts Leonardo Da Vinci at the center of a compact mystery instead of treating him as a familiar supporting face. You begin with a clear problem—he has been kidnapped, his paintings have disappeared, and the Hermeticists are pursuing their own grand purpose—and that gives the eight new memories a stronger hook than a disconnected batch of errands.

For a Brotherhood fan, the value is in having a defined post-game-sized thread to work through. Eight memories is enough room for the search to feel like a real continuation, while the Trajan Market and Aqueducts Templar Lairs add two named destinations to tackle. Neither inclusion changes what Brotherhood is, but both give the package more shape than story scenes alone would.

The extra dice game at La Volpe’s Thieves Guild is a small bonus, not the reason to buy in. Likewise, the ten achievements are welcome only if you enjoy completing every corner of the game. The important question is whether you want more Ezio and Leonardo; if that answer is yes, this is a much easier recommendation than it is for anyone merely chasing a new diversion.

Multiplayer gets a map, four characters, and two modes, which makes the download broader than a single-player mission pack. That portion has a naturally narrower audience: it is useful if Brotherhood’s competitive side is already part of your routine, and far less persuasive if you only came for Ezio’s campaign.

Graphics

Trajan Market and the Aqueducts give the add-on two distinct Roman landmarks to visit, while Leonardo’s missing paintings supply the central visual clue of the investigation. This is still Brotherhood’s Rome rather than a separate new world, so its visual strength comes from returning to that setting with a fresh mystery attached.

Story

The Da Vinci Disappearance wisely starts from a relationship you already understand. Leonardo’s absence matters because he is Leonardo, and Ezio’s search has immediate personal weight without requiring a long setup. The missing paintings are a fittingly specific lead, turning the hunt into something more characterful than a generic rescue mission.

The Hermeticists are also a good fit for Assassin’s Creed’s taste for secret societies and larger claims about humanity. Their aim to transform mankind gives the kidnapping a suitably conspiratorial edge, though the premise is more compelling because it is tied to Da Vinci than because the cult itself is inherently novel.

This is not a sprawling new chapter; it is a concise coda with a clean objective. That limitation works in its favor if you want an evening or two of Brotherhood that has a reason to exist. For background on the add-on’s release and history, see this overview of The Da Vinci Disappearance.

Overall Experience

The Da Vinci Disappearance earns its place as a solid Brotherhood add-on because it knows what fans want more of: Ezio, Leonardo, Rome, and a conspiracy that can be wrapped around a direct personal stake. The eight-memory structure gives it enough substance to feel like more than cut content repackaged as a collectible hunt.

Its frustrations are mostly about scope. If you expect a dramatic overhaul or a reason to fall in love with Brotherhood all over again, this will feel modest. The dice game, achievements, and multiplayer pieces broaden the checklist, but they do not carry the same pull as the Leonardo investigation.

For anyone who enjoyed Brotherhood’s campaign and was sorry to leave its characters behind, the payoff is worth it. Treat it as a compact, well-aimed encore rather than a must-have expansion for every kind of Assassin’s Creed fan, and it lands comfortably.

Retro Replay Score

7.4/10