How much more militant were the Assyrians actually compared to other Near East Bronze Age states? Were they genuinely a jingoistic, semi-genocidal empire, or is that later propaganda? If the Assyrians were like this, what conditions led to the rise of those traits in their culture and politics?

Mods, I hope I'm allowed to ask for further information - this is important for the answer!

/u/MissBrainProblems: since you specify Bronze Age states, are you specifically interested in 2nd-millennium-BCE Assyria (i.e. before the Bronze Age Collapse)? The more famous Assyrian empire is the Neo-Assyrian Empire, whose kings include Sargon II, Sennacherib, Esarhaddon, and Ashurbanipal - but they're an Iron Age empire. The Assyrian approach to imperialism between the periods varied drastically, so it'll be helpful to know which you're interested in.