Greetings, everyone. First let me say that I've been reading this forum and keeping my eyes on this game for a long time now, and I can say honestly that this is the most exciting release I've seen in a long, long time.

Probably the most exciting part of AC for me is that most of Altair's movements are based on "parkour" and "freerunning". You may have heard that all of his movements are realistically within the realm of human achievement, and as a practitioner of parkour, I can tell you firstly that (of what I have seen so far) they certainly are and secondly, that these movements are surprisingly natural, and nearly anyone can learn them!

I don?t claim to be an expert in the area, but parkour has brought so much to my life, that I?d like to try to share what I do know with you. Also, I noticed that there are a few other tracuers who post here, so don?t be shy about correcting me / throwing your weight in on this post / showing your support for parkour!

Parkour was founded by David Belle and Sebastian Foucan, who discovered the art simply through normal, natural playing in their neighborhood as children. Both were inspired by David?s father, Raymod Belle, and by the work of George Herbert, who is the father of the modern obstacle course and outdoor training. Parkour is the art and practice of overcoming obstacles, usually in an urban setting. Those who practice parkour are called tracuers.

Most likely, you?ve done what is termed ?parkour? many times in your life. If you are moving efficiently and overcoming obstacles, you are performing parkour. Children and adolescent males in particular are often seen jumping off of objects, trying to climb things, and generally experimenting with their physical environment. As adults, we tend to ?clam up? and ?act right?; and furthermore, it only takes a few painful falls for most people to lose this sense of experimentation and wonder.

Parkour seeks to regain that quality. By refining and practicing the movements, we can build our confidence and learn new ways to maneuver through the environment. We can see the world in a new light and familiarize ourselves with ways of movement that come from an older time.

But that?s enough talk from someone who shouldn?t properly be rambling on too long, let?s see some videos!

"Power is nothing without control - this is a popular video from a tracuer named ?Blane?. Gives you a basic idea of what parkour is all about.

"iPK" - this is an impressive video that shows off some techniques that best resemble what Altair might be doing in AC. They also show some non-traditional (i.e. slow) moves that would better be classified as buildering than strictly parkour.

"Texas Parkour summer training" - great compilation that really lets you see what kinds of movements are possible in parkour. Also ends with some bails - everybody falls sometimes, even Altair!

"Frosti says goodbye to Chicago" - One of my favorite videos, this gives you a good look at some serious agility and technique. You can see that Frosti is able to move quickly through seemingly impassable urban terrain, I like the clip in the scaffolding particularly.

"B13 escape scene - Finally, the master at work. This is a clip from the movie ?B13?, starring the founder of parkour, David Belle. This clip has a few action movie-type quirks, but the entire scene is shot without the aid of wires or computer enhancement.

So hopefully, you are as juiced about giving this a shot as I was when I first got into parkour (what else are you gonna do until release?). Here?s where to get started:

Parkour.net, Americanparkour.com, and Urbanfreeflow.com all have excellent tutorial articles and videos, but first I would suggest reading this post from "Asa" on americanparkour.com

He talks about an important issue; that parkour is not about the individual movements, but about the intent behind them and the mindset that you practice in. Like a martial art, parkour is as much a cultivation of the mind as it is of the body.

And that brings me to my last point - if you choose to try this out, (as I hope you will) be aware that most people are not fit enough to perform most of the moves you saw in the videos above. Proper conditioning and strength training should play a big role in your training schedule early on, or your joints and bones will pay the price later on. However, with proper control and conditioning, you?ll find parkour very, very rewarding.

If I can help you out or answer any of your questions, please PM me or post a reply and I?m sure myself or any other tracuer can point you in the right direction. I wish you the best of luck and happy training!<div class="ev_tpc_signature">

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Parkour - live without fear