For years now we've enjoyed the adventures of Ezio Auditore as he makes his way through the Italian Renaissance and Ottoman-controlled Constantinople. That story is over. Ever since the conclusion of Assassin's Creed II, a senior team of Ubisoft developers has been secretly toiling away on what comes next. That team aimed high, with plans to examine and rethink every element of the franchise from the ground up, build something new, and take a full three year development cycle to do it.

The game that emerged is Assassin's Creed III. Set in the latter half of the 18th century, we'll see the war between the Templars and the Assassins escalate as it crosses over to the New World of America, and witness firsthand the events of the American Revolution. Caught in the conflict is a daring new hero in the Assassin's Creed franchise. We have the full story of this new hero and the striking game in which he stars, along with exclusive screens and art from the project, all packed into a massive 13-page cover story.

To whet your appetite, take a look at an early glimpse of the new game. Our cover image gives you the first hints of what to expect. Who is this new protagonist? What is his importance to the larger history-spanning story of the franchise? Let the speculation begin.

If that front cover didn't give you enough to talk about, explore the full wraparound.

In addition to our main cover, a small number of random subscribers will receive our limited-run special edition cover crafted by acclaimed comic artist Alex Ross, as seen below.

The full wraparound:

On top of Assassin's Creed III, don't miss our yearly nod to all the April Fools out there. Game Infarcer returns, and no one is safe or sacred.

We also take a closer look at the best-selling XBLA game of 2011 -- Pinball FX 2 -- and reveal some brand new tables coming to the hit game. Here's your first taste:

If that's not enough, watch for previews of Far Cry 3, Darksiders II, Resident Evil 6, and Xenoblade Chronicles. And what is our final verdict on games like Journey and Silent Hill: Downpour? That's on top of a full rundown of reviews for every Vita game we could get our hands on.

If you're a subscriber, all of this and more is on the way to your mailbox in the coming days. If you subscribe digitally, watch for your issue to arrive on March 6th. To subscribe to the digital edition right now, click here.

After you read our cover story on Assassin's Creed III, check back all month to our dedicated hub page for the game at gameinformer.com/ac3. You can also click on the banner below to head straight to the hub, which you can bookmark to check back on every few days as we roll out new info, images, and interviews.

As always, thanks for the continued support, which is the biggest reason we can continue to deliver more stories just like Assassin's Creed III. Let us know what you think of both covers in the comments below.