Ubisoft’s Ambition
Its not secret that Ubisoft pretty much as a whole has been in a bad way for a while now. With rumors of buyouts and secret meetings the studio has a hell of a lot riding on the release of Assassins Creed Shadows. I mean, it’s almost crazy how much negative press this game has received for having the audacity to star a black man as a samurai who actually existed. All that nonsense aside having played the game and experienced its story, I am here to tell you to ignore all those clowns on TwiX and beyond; Assassin’s Creed Shadows is a tremendously enjoyable game.
Assassin’s Creed Shadows takes the series to the era that’s probably been its most requested and that is feudal Japan, specifically 1579 during the final stages of the Sengoku period. As is the way with the Creed series, players will bear witness to historical events such as Oda Nobunaga (a man who is well known for his ambition) and his assault on the Iga province. These moments are interwoven into the story of Shadows dual-protagonist Naoe and Yasuke masterfully, but if I am honest the Ass Creed games have always had some of the best storytelling and that remains true here. You will just have to trust me when I tell you that this is one of the series best stories, I don’t want to spoil anything here but it’s a fantastic tale of sorrow, friendship, love and revenge.
MSRP: $69.99
Platforms: Xbox (reviewed), PlayStation, PC
Price I’d Pay: $69.99
One of the first things that players will have to decide on when starting up Shadows is how they want to engage with the game. The game wants you to play with the exploration mode, with this player will have to locate mission objectives on the map instead of simply being led to a waypoint. Players will be able to use a spy network that will aid in helping narrow down target locations and even bribing some officials for information as well. The other option is the more traditional guided approach which will give players waypoints to go to for missions. I used this style begrudgingly due to the fact that I wanted to finish the game before review but the little bit of time I spent with the exploration mode made me miss it. I don’t know what it was, but in some of the past Creed games I didn’t find the exploration mode this satisfying but there is something with the execution here that just made it the superior play style to me.
Each of the protagonist have their own separate playstyles and their own journeys that are played out. Naoe is going to feel most like the assassin characters in past games. She is all about stealth, can climb towers using her grappling hook and parkour skills and of course wields the series staple; the hidden blade. While Naoe can equip katanas and other weapons I found myself getting mu butt kicked in direct combat with her. It makes sense as she is supposed to be using stealth, but man I am ashamed to say how many times I died. Yasuke on the other hand is the opposite as he is built for direct combat and not really good for stealth. Yasuke is based on the historical samurai who came to be employed by Nobunaga at this time. He is depicted as a big and powerful man; I’m not going to lie, it’s funny at times. Because where Naoe will climb over walls and open doors, Yasuke just barrels into them, knocking them down. This works with enemies as well, creating space and allowing for ground attacks on enemies. Using Katanas, bows and even guns (knowns as Teppo) players who want to forget the stealth and go in with swords swinging are going to have a lot of fun with Yasuke.
That’s to not say that he doesn’t have assassinations, they just aren’t quiet; Yasuke has brutal assassinations which usually end with him letting off a very primal growl as he shoves the sword into the enemy and then picks them up in the air, before flinging the body to the side. Its all very brutal and graphic, which is one of the things I loved about Shadows, dismemberment has made its return, arms, heads and more can be cut off in the flashy finishing moves.
It cannot be overstated how good Assassin’s Creed Shadows looks. Using an upgraded version of the Anvil engine, the developers have managed to deliver a game that at times is just so detailed and picturesque its crazy. As players move through bushes in the world, they will see bugs fly out of them, rainstorms will make paths muddy leaving behind footprints; the level of detail in this game is just staggering. As players progress through the open-world the land will experience seasons that not only act as resets to the various castles that can be robbed of its resources but they also change the world. Where bushes and long grass can be used to hide in the warmer seasons, players will notice in the winter those same bushes are gone and the ground is covered in snow.
The open world is so beautiful there would be times where I would just be riding on my horse taking in a rainstorm, (which rank among some of the best I have seen in gaming recently) or just watching the wind blow the cherry blossom leaves around. As players roam the countryside, they will find shrines and various activities that can be interacted with. I am going to give you a pro tip, you want to do those activities. The rewards for these quick tasks that will have players praying at shrines or collecting papers are used to level up the skill trees, not to be confused with the actual skill point that will actually unlock the abilities and passives. Players will also build a hideout which will be where they can upgrade equipment and weapons. The base building is pretty deep too as players will find tons of pets, bushes, trees and building materials to tweak the look of their base. Annoyingly, the framerate can take a dive when players load into their base for some reason, while a patch during the review period made it a little better it still wasn’t perfect. I am hoping the day one patch eliminates the problem all together.
Assassin’s Creed Shadows has had a lot of controversy before release and I am so happy to report that most of it amounts to the “usual suspects” being WRONG. Playing as Yasuke felt like seeing Japan for the first time thorough the eyes of a foreigner. Flashback sequences show just how much reverence and respect he has for his new home, remember context is king. And while some of those online would have you think that this game is disrespectful to the Japanese culture or people let me tell you that nothing can be further from the truth. My play time was full of reverence and respect shown to their culture and great care weaving it into the tapestry that is Assassin’s Creed lore.
As much as I loved this game it is not without some issues though, for one the team has taken away the climb anywhere ability that the past few mainstream Creed games have seen. So now players can only climb where they see hand holds, this isn’t a big deal as I am old school and this is how the series started. Just weird to take these steps back, but I can understand why they did here. One thing they reverted that I can’t understand though is the ability to have your horse auto ride to markers. The roads are sooooo narrow, and when the streets have people on them you are going to run them over. Luckily the game doesn’t count this against you but it was still annoying to try and dodge all these people with these stiff horse mechanics. I never experienced any crashes or real issues other than the seasons being bugged, but it was resolved after a patch; the team has done a really good job of polishing this up on the Series X.
I have been a big fan of the Assassin’s Creed games since their inception, back when Jade Raymond was shepherding young Desmond’s journey. It’s been a long time since then and the series has seen lots of changes and to me Assassin’s Creed Shadows marks the best this series has ever been. With its destructible environments, fantastic story and excellent characters, Shadows has managed to dethrone Odyssey as my favorite Assassin’s Creed game. If I can give you any advice, it would be to ignore all the haters on the internet and play this game; as of now its definitely a contender for my 2025 GOTY.
Review copy of game provided by publisher.
