With numerous delays and intense online discussion, Assassins Creed Shadows has become one of the most anticipated (and controversial) games of the year.
As the fourteenth (!) major instalment in the franchise, the debate surrounding the inclusion of specific characters, historical accuracies, and 'wokeism' continues to dominate the game's upcoming release.
But having played the game this past while, I can say with certainty that many of the proposed criticisms of the game are unfounded. Ubisoft's latest Assassins Creed entry is as sharp and deadly as its predecessors. And new stealth mechanics will continue to impress you throughout your adventure.
Get your hidden blade ready...
The tale of Assassin's Creed Shadows
Shadows takes players on an adventure across 16th-century Japan. It is a time of intense civil war and cultural upheaval for the country, where peaceful provinces are being invaded. Traditional norms are being cast aside in favour of international influences. The towns and cities you visit enjoy equal parts prosperity and poverty, and bandits roam virtually every country road.
As the country begins to beckon a new era, an age-old war between the Assassin Brotherhood and the Templar Order resurfaces, and two unlikely heroes emerge from the shadows. On the one hand, you can play as Naoe, an Igan shinobi, and - if we're splitting hairs - the game's main character.
After a devastating invasion of her peaceful home, Naoe embarks on a quest for revenge, hunting a cabal of villains known as the Shinbakufu for answers. But as the new wielder of the mysterious hidden blade, she soon discovers she has a larger destiny... And that the justice she desperately yearns for must be forged in the shadows.
The game introduces its second protagonist from the offset - the black samurai Yasuke. Inspired by the historical figure, Yasuke is brought to Japan by slavers and earns the interest of leader Oda Nobunaga, quickly becoming an honoured samurai among his ranks. Though it can be some time before he re-emerges as a playable character, Yasuke brings so much to the story of Shadows, both in terms of his mysterious connection with Naoe but also with a unique style of fighting that gives players incredible freedom in how they want to enjoy the game.
One duo - two lethal playstyles
Naoe is your typical assassin, acrobatic, poised, and patient. With a grappling hook in hand, Japan is her playground, and she can easily scale any building or dance from rooftop to rooftop. All the while, she has murder on her mind.
Perched from above, she can descend onto a foe and assassinate them, instantly transforming the muted palette of the environment into an explosion of red. If all else fails, her slender frame allows her to dip and dive around brutish enemies easily, slowly staggering them down while remaining untouchable.
While Naoe is a silent but deadly killer, Yasuke is on the opposite end of the subtlety spectrum, and his gameplay harks to the Viking era of Assassins Creed Valhalla - run in with sword in one hand and hope for the best.
As a giant, Yasuke has a commanding presence, and can't exactly hide in bushes or blend into shadows like his colleague Naoe can. He doesn't have a grappling hook either, and when he tries to walk on tightropes between buildings, they snap under his weight. This eliminates a lot of routes that someone playing Naoe could easily take advantage of.
But in time, you'll soon find out that Yasuke doesn't need to hide from anyone. Charging straight into danger is often the best course of action because the man is a behemoth, capable of fighting multiple enemies at once with ease. He can take hit after hit, which would otherwise one-shot poor Naoe. And he's one of the few characters in any video game I've seen capable of kicking bosses around like a rag doll. It is utterly hilarious.
Action-packed gameplay means you slice first, and ask questions later
Combat is the chief narrator of Assassin's Creed Shadows. Where words fail, a dagger will usually suffice. And with two characters, you can expect two signature fighting styles, unique weaponry, skill trees, and plenty of ways to 'talk'.
Naoe is adept at hiding in unconventional spots, tip-toeing around hostile areas, and whistling to lure enemies closer, only to assassinate them instantly. You and her will become great friends if you want the quintessential Creed experience.
She does this through a wide arsenal of weapons and tools, including a katana, tanto and hidden blade, or my personal favourite, a kusarigama, which allows her to inflict all manner of pain on foes from both long and short range. Support items like smoke bombs and shinobi bells can be used to buy yourself enough time to become invisible again.
On the other hand, Yasuke uses a long katana, a naginata, and a kanabo (war club) for devastating melee scraps, while both the teppo and long bow give him much-needed long-range weapons and a slim element of surprise.
Before my playthrough, I honestly thought I'd use Naoe for most of the game, given she's, well, the quintessential assassin we're all hungry for. And upping the game's difficulty provides sizeable challenges in how quietly you can act.
And yet, the dual protagonist setup has impressed me to no end, with Yasuke earning an equal part of my attention. Sometimes, instead of concentrating on your movements and eliminating enemies one by one, you just want to run fearlessly toward an army and wage war. With two characters, the choice is yours.
Recruitable allies can help flesh out whatever part of combat you feel you're missing. Does Yasuke need the element of surprise? Then, bring along the loveable Gennojo, who can cause explosions that disorientate everyone. Or for Naoe, you can call upon the Buddhist monk, Yaya, to turn the tide of fights and tank hits while you create some distance.
Feudal Japan gets a digital makeover – but exploration can be tricky
The Assassin's Creed series is famous for depicting specific eras. From 15th-century Italy in AC2 to Ancient Egypt in Origins, even Ireland in Valhalla's DLC, Wraith of the Druids, each setting is given so many details that the games act like digital tour guides. Shadows is no exception.
From the steep peaks of Iga to the merchant region of Settsu, the grandeur of Takeda Castle to the bustling city of Kyoto, you're taken on a whistle-stop tour of feudal Japan. And each new area you venture to across your 80+ hours of gameplay will beg for your attention.
A plethora of side-quests taps into the rich history, customs, and mythology of the land you're engrossed in. In one instance, you're learning about etiquette at a tea ceremony, so you can get information from the big wigs of society – next, you're hunting Japanese spirits, known as Yokai, for paranoid citizens.
There is so much variety on offer that completing side-quests whenever possible comes highly recommended. Not only will these strengthen your character, but they'll also give you a wider appreciation of the era you're in. Don't worry, the villainous Shinbakufu gang will patiently wait.
You'll fill your Codex with an encyclopedia of information on a near-constant basis, giving you endless reading material about the country, including Japanese music and art, the economy and commerce, religion, international relations, and warfare. That said, exploration can be tricky.
All the while, you can collect ornaments and more to populate your hideout, your base of operations. From there, you can manage your network of spies and design your own Japanese home-away-from-home. No doubt, social media will become a duelling ground for creative shinobi to share their amazing creations with one another.
While it is an open world, and quests and locations can be tackled in any order you wish (level permitting), most regions are covered in a dense thicket of brambles and forests. Together with the craggy cliffs, wandering off the paths is nearly impossible. Especially on horseback, you'll regularly get stuck or annoy your mount to no end, trying to take a shortcut toward a quest marker.
When you reach a new town or temple, the exploration can begin well and truly. Virtually everything in the game is climbable, and you'll witness the grandeur of the architecture in vivid detail on screen as you scale walls, leapfrog from one ledge to another, and swan dive off the highest heights. All the while, you'll dispatch all careless bandits along the way. Because, despite the beauty of Japan on display, you are, first and foremost – a killer.
A much-needed win for Ubisoft
Ultimately, Assassins Creed Shadows is a game worth the wait. Your stay in 16th-century Japan will be filled with both curiosity and bloodshed. The game returns to its stealthy roots, and a new focus on light and sound makes for immersive, tactile, and thoughtful gameplay.
An impressive open world and two likeable protagonists allow players to tackle the game on their own terms. Seasoned assassins and newcomers to the series are more than welcome to the shadows.
And with an upcoming expansion, Claws of the Awaji, already announced for release later in the year, players can expect the fun (and bloodshed) to continue to grow over the course of the year. Assassin's Creed is back, people - and as sharp as ever.
Assassin's Creed Shadows will be released on March 20th. It is available to play on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, PC, Amazon Luna, and Mac.
