Assassin’s Creed Shadows Review – Two Sides of the Same Coin

From Altaïr to Eivor, Assassin’s Creed has evolved greatly over its lifespan. Those who have been along for the ride since its inception likely look to the Ezio trilogy (2009 – 2011) as the quintessential Assassin’s Creed experience. Although many hold Black Flag in the highest regard, and who could blame them, it’s hard to disagree with the fact that many of the core components for which the series became famous were birthed from the Italian assassin’s character arc. The identifiable characteristics—Hidden Blade assassinations, alternate history clashing of Assassins and Templars, a heavy dose of rooftop parkour, social stealth tactics, etc.—largely remained the focus throughout the mainline series up to Unity and Syndicate. But then Ubisoft made a change.

When the action and somewhat arcade-y gameplay began to grow stale from the games’ annual release schedule, Ubisoft reinvented what Assassin’s Creed is by leaning more heavily into modern RPG genre designs and heightened fantasy with Origins. Thus, the RPG era of the franchise was born. In this reinvisioned chapter, we have unearthed the inception of the Hidden Ones (later known as the Assassins Brotherhood/Order) in Ancient Egypt; we have journeyed across Ancient Greece during the Peloponnesian War; and we have played a key role in the Norse invasion of Anglo-Saxon England. Despite these grand adventures, there has been one setting that has long been demanded by the fanbase, and it’s one that could beautifully marry the older Assassin’s Creed persona with its newfound RPG focus: feudal Japan.

Assassin’s Creed Shadows has been a long time coming. And after close to a two-decade wait, the series is finally hosting the time period that has topped virtually every poll and forum post for ages. Shadows whisks us away to 16th-century Japan, in the late stages of the Sengoku period, where conflicting ideologies and political strife upend the country. A swirl of devout samurai fearing foreign takeover, rebelling shinobi of Iga origin, Christianity-bearing Jesuit missionaries, and growing economic control of Portuguese traders come together to set the stage for a land teetering on the brink of civil war. At the heart of this particular Assassin’s Creed tale are Yasuke, a real-life African samurai (and first foreigner to achieve that title) for whom little else is known, and Naoe, the fictional daughter of historical figure Fujibayashi Nagato.

The essence of Assassin’s Creed Shadows is embodied by its two protagonists. Each seems to sport two different yet distinct faces of this franchise, representing different sides of the same coin. The shinobi Naoe is the spirit of the Assassin’s Creed stylings of yesteryear. Stealth is her forte and that fact is reinforced by her relative fragility in open combat when the opposing numbers begin to swell. Her combat proficiency lies in quietly eliminating targets with nearby enemies none the wiser to their fallen fellow soldier. Naoe is all about utilizing the environment’s verticality to tackle objectives, an endeavor made easier thanks to a grappling hook that allows for the effortless scaling of structures. That’s not to mention her swiftness as she sprints across rooftops and infiltrates restricted zones. Armed with katanas, tantos and kusarigamas (chain and sickle), the star shinobi cuts with swift, deadly precision. To further build upon this assassin power fantasy, Naoe expertly wields a host of tools, including smoke bombs and shuriken.

Playing as Naoe not only highlights the spirit of the series’ earliest iterations, it lightly mixes in pieces of Ubisoft’s other stealth-based property, Splinter Cell. Naoe can adhere to ceilings with her grappling hook to drop down on unsuspecting foes; she can extinguish flames and knock out lanterns to remain encased in darkness; and she’s able to go fully prone to crawl through low grass or hide behind other short obstructions—admittedly, Yasuke is capable of the latter two actions, but neither aligns as seamlessly with his intended gameplay style. These gameplay mechanics bring forth memories of Chaos Theory, despite their limited implementation. And you might find it slightly disappointing that manipulating light sources often doesn’t play much of a role in the chosen approach, but it at least makes for a welcome nod to a genre in which Ubisoft was once a leader.

Yasuke, on the other hand, boasts an intimidating stature and powerful presence. Although he technically can climb structures, he does so with much more effort and far less grace; and attempting to perform a Leap of Faith with Yasuke results in a flattened pile of hay (and a sore back). Whereas Naoe is a reminder of a pre-RPG Assassin’s Creed, Yasuke continues the evolution of more recent installments. In fact, Yasuke feels like the natural progression of Eivor’s combat capabilities in Valhalla. The lead samurai may not be dual wielding two-handed weapons like his predecessor, but the unrelenting brutality remains in tact in the series’ bloodiest outing yet. As a matter of fact, Shadows‘ combat overall feels like a refinement of Valhalla, allowing greater variety in its light and heavy combos, slightly enhancing the dodge and parry systems and augmenting them all further through skill development.

Serving under Oda Nobunaga, Yasuke honed his martial prowess to become a samurai with unmatched skill and limitless potential. He is able to swap between long katanas, wide-sweeping naginatas and skull-smashing kanabos depending on the needs of the situation. The foreigner-turned-samurai can also attack at range with a bow or the Teppo, rifles of increasing popularity due to outside influence. This suite of armaments, coupled with Yasuke’s heavier armor, makes him a formidable force to be reckoned with, even when outnumbered. He’s the go-to choice when it’s time to tank hits, shrugging off attacks from lesser foes, and go toe-to-toe with the elite enemies dispersed through the opposition’s ranks.

Outside of the Naoe-focused intro, which took several hours to complete, and some character-specific missions, the two protagonists can be swapped between at will. If the player stumbles upon a castle, which act as Ubisoft’s usual stronghold activity, the player can decide whether going in blades blazing against the entire occupying force or stealthily assassinating each individual soldier is the preferred route. Much like the recent RPG entries, Shadows grants both characters different special abilities and skill trees. Although Yasuke cannot perform Hidden Blade assassinations, he can execute Brutal Assassinations. These lack the subtlety of the series’ iconic takedowns, usually drawing much attention, but they are gory and vicious displays of Yasuke’s might. One viewing of Yasuke impaling a man on a katana before raising the skewered man several feet off the ground by the blade alone drives home the sheer power. Conversely, Naoe is the only one capable of performing a Double Assassination, provided she’s currently using a tanto which is jointly wielded alongside the Hidden Blade.

The differences in each character’s approach are further expanded upon through the Mastery system. As levels are attained, Mastery points are accumulated and each can be spent on a host of active and passive skills across twelve skill trees total (six per character). Each usable weapon has its own skill tree, as do highlighted playstyles, such as shinobi and samurai. Perhaps you wish to live that cinematic samurai life by weaving in sheathed attacks and dashes; or maybe you would prefer to entangle opponents with the kusarigama’s chain before cutting them to ribbons as they lie prone. Assassin’s Creed Shadows wants players to fine tune the gameplay loop to their liking by either focusing on whichever character captures the era of Assassin’s Creed they love most or striking a balance between the two. And this is made all the clearer given that obtained points spent on one protagonist are left untouched on the other, eliminating choice paralysis and encouraging experimentation.

For the most part, it works, but there are some hang-ups. The most glaring is the Knowledge Rank system tied to the Mastery System. Each skill tree is divided into tiers, which are unlocked as enough Knowledge Points are gained. This pursuit is tied to the orange icons scattered across the map. The side missions tied to these points are varied, but not all are engaging. The Kuji-kiri activity dives into Naoe’s past, providing backstory and context for her buildup into a lethal shinobi. The Kofun option sees the player navigating underground areas, blowing open new pathways, in search of treasure. Hidden Trails put Naoe’s parkour to the test, requiring the nimble navigation of complex environments—complete with yellow-hued markers to guide players in typical Ubisoft fashion. The Shrine, Temple, and Kata diversions fair less favorably. Wandering locales in search of prayer spots and scrolls isn’t terribly engaging; neither is inputting on-screen button prompts in a shallow rhythm mini game.

The core problem with these “optional” missions is that they don’t feel optional. Naoe and Yasuke are hard-capped in regards to the abilities they can unlock if they don’t pursue Knowledge Points to ascend to the next Knowledge Rank. That means the player must engage with this mixed bag of activities to become a more competent combatant. It takes a conscious effort to pursue this path, as the ranks didn’t accumulate passively through normal play. After 20 hours of gameplay, I realized I was still at Knowledge Rank 2, meaning I had barely scratched the surface in terms of available abilities. Given that Assassin’s Creed Shadows still presents the same freeform objective board as its RPG predecessors, it presents the player with a sense of freedom to tackle the game however they see fit; unfortunately, this Knowledge Rank system sits in stark contrast to that design choice.

It’s not the only time that Shadows presented this illusion. Even though the map is broken into level-appropriate regions, I was given a mission on more than one occasion that claimed to be at my current level despite being embedded in a region far higher in level. For example, I was given a level 20 assassination mission that appeared in a level 35 region, specifically within that area’s castle. As you can imagine, this meant that all the enemies surrounding this level 20 target were hovering around 35, making the task all-but impossible. Combining Naoe’s penchant for stealth and the game’s toggleable “Guaranteed Assassination” option (all Hidden Blade kills are one-hit kills regardless of enemy level) is the only way this objective became even remotely achievable. But in doing so, I was essentially bypassing the level-gating that Ubisoft commonly adheres to and trivialized the levels associated with my carefully-selected legendary gear.

Fortunately, that particular instance sat in the minority of mission experiences. Overall, Assassin’s Creed Shadows includes a fair variety of mission types, ranging from epic assaults on castles to following a dog to solve his owner’s murder to learning the intricacies of a tea ceremony. The story playing out alongside it all actually turned out to be rather engaging, especially when Naoe and Yasuke finally crossed paths and began working toward a common goal. Naoe’s relentless hunt for those responsible for her father’s death sees her chasing the shadowy group known as The Shinbakufu, this installment’s version of the Cult of Kosmos and Order of the Ancients. The duo gradually build support and gain allies, some of which can be temporarily called into battle, to their hideout, a fully customizable area players can add to with new buildings and smaller cosmetic touches.

Interacting with some of these allied characters, both historical and fictional, create memorable moments. In fact, I quickly wrote off an early cast introduction, a child named Junjiro. I initially found the 10-year-old rather annoying. But as the story progressed, he revealed more depth than I was expecting and led a strong narrative moment that stuck with me. Not all characters are winners and earn their spot in this tale, but it is worth noting that there are multiple likeable, well-realized characters beyond the two protagonists. While all may not agree, I found the entire cast (and narrative experience in general) elevated by the optional Immersive Mode. By selecting Immersive Mode, all dialogue is presented in Japanese and Portuguese. This was favorable to the English setting as it did exactly what the option claimed: made the experience more immersive through authenticity.

In regards to performance, Assassin’s Creed Shadows is a pleasant surprise. I will admit that this review was conducted on a PS5 Pro, meaning I cannot speak to base PS5 optimization. From what I have experienced, Shadows is among Ubisoft’s least buggy offerings. The worst of what I ran into were an upright boat vibrating as it clipped through a dock; battle music that refused to end until I fast traveled to let the game reload; and the usual parkour troubles when the character leapt in a direction that wasn’t intended, such as swan diving into the water far below instead of hopping down to the much closer bridge. However, those instances didn’t notably detract from the larger experience. And there were no major framerate troubles observed, which is shocking given how incredible the environments look. The insanely dense flora residing alongside travel routes, like banks to a river, were among the most impressive I’ve seen in a game. It was made all the more eye-catching as seasons changed. Fall added red and yellow accents to the usual sea of Summer’s vibrant green leaves, whereas Winter brought more barren trees as the world became covered in white snow.

One final note about the game’s design. It may present a more focused approach in some regards, but the publisher’s annoying trends have not been erased. We’re not talking about the bloated open world design for which the developer is known (an aspect that has been scaled back compared to Odyssey and Valhalla). Nor are we harping on the ridiculous cosmetics storefront that requires even more of your real-world money, because why bother? Instead, I’ll take this moment to touch on an all-new addition that feels extremely weird: Projects. Timed missions related to stabilizing anomalies can be completed to earn Data Fragments. These can then be used on Projects, which are designed like your standard battle pass. There is (currently) no cost associated with the activation of the two available passes, but it feels lazily implemented through the Animus menu. And should additional cost be added to these systems in the future, it would be all the more problematic for these single player games. Maybe that’s not too surprising given Shadows is the first to use the new Call of Duty-like Infinity hub to access current and future Assassin’s Creed games.

Assassin’s Creed Shadows Review Verdict

[Editor’s Note: Assassin’s Creed Shadows was reviewed on PS5, and a copy was provided to us for review purposes.]