Assassin’s Creed will have to overcome a bad history to be a critical or commercial success. Movies adapted from video games have historically not been well-received, for a variety of reasons. The Justin Kurzel-directed Assassin’s Creed, starring Michael Fassbender and Marion Cotillard, aims to buck the unfortunate trend and launch a successful new movie franchise in the process. As many other video game adaptations have proved in the past, that is not an easy proposition.

Fan reactions to movies adapted from video games have historically not been as harsh as it has been with critics - but outside of the movie franchise based on Resident Evil, there hasn’t been a big-name video game series that has succeeded beyond one or two installments. The initial fan reaction to Assassin’s Creed indicates that Kurzel and Fassbender have crafted a winner - and, potentially, broken new ground and opened new possibilities for movies based on video games.

Reactions from fans on Twitter who were fortunate enough to attend an advance screening of Assassin’s Creed have thus far been mostly positive (see the tweets below for the evidence). While it may have been hard for fans of the video game franchise to be disappointed, some fans reported being pleasantly surprised or having their expectations exceeded.

Just finished watching #AssassinsCreedMovie and had the pleasure to watch it with the actors and crew.

Loved it, I'm actually surprised!— Karim Metwaly (@KarimyScreamy) December 14, 2016

I HAVE SEEN THE AC MOVIE!! Overall would give it 8.5/10, meaning I thought it was great. The historical Assassins being a highlight.— Loomer (@loomer979) December 14, 2016

Great acting all around. Action scenes gave me chills. Biggest quibble is some slight contradictions with established lore, but....— Loomer (@loomer979) December 14, 2016

Honestly, this movie gets so many things right. So many great details... I need to watch this again #AssassinsCreedMovie .@assassinscreed— Tasukigirl Cosplay (@Lorie_O) December 14, 2016

WOW! The @AssassinsMovie definitely earned its spot in the Assassin's Creed universe. Freaking PHENOMENAL!I am SO excited they did it right!— Melonie Mac (@MelonieMac) December 14, 2016

Just saw @AssassinsMovie and it's amazing. Everyone needs to go see it! - @mattdipanni— The Mowgli's (@Themowglis) December 14, 2016

100% the movie I was hoping for. @AssassinsMovie had it all imo. Action, suspense and an incredible performance by Michael Fassbender+cast.— Awesome Joey (@ItsAwesomeJoey) December 14, 2016

The #AssassinsCreedMovie met and exceeded all of my expectations! That was flipping EPIC!! @assassinscreed @AssassinsMovie— SinfullyRiddling (@s_riddling) December 14, 2016

Michael Fassbender in Assassin's Creed

One of these tweets comes from bass guitarist Matthew Di Panni of Los Angeles-based alternative rock band The Mowgli’s, via the group’s Twitter page. The Assassin's Creed Twitter reactions to generally praised the acting, especially Fassbender, and the attention to detail when it came to the movie’s historical aspects. And, of course, the action scenes were praised as one of the movie’s strengths. Full reviews for the movie are reportedly embargoed until the day before it opens in theaters, on December 21st.

It’s not surprising that the immediate reaction to Assassin’s Creed, especially for fans of the franchise who were greatly anticipating it, would be positive. Still, these Twitter reactions tend to point the movie toward “pleasant surprise” status. Even if the film doesn’t turn out to be “amazing” or “phenomenal” as some of the tweets suggest, even a slightly above-average effort would place Assassin’s Creed above most other video game adaptations in movie history.

Of course, these immediate reactions tend to be inherently emotional, so it would be wise to wait and see for yourself how good or bad Assassin’s Creed really is. That would also go for any reaction that describes the movie in overly negative terms. But even if the critics don’t like Assassin’s Creed - and if the history of how they’ve treated video game adaptations is any indication, they may not - it appears that fans of the franchise will be pleasantly surprised by what Kurzel has delivered here, and that’s what really matters in the end.

NEXT: Assassin's Creed Director Discusses Sequel Possibilities

Source: Various [via CBM]