113 hours. 27 minutes. 59 seconds.
That’s how much time it took me to get the Platinum trophy for Ubisoft’s latest Assassin’s adventure. After years of demand from fans of the franchise, those who hide in the shadows now do so in the lands of Japan. But do these fabled lands hold a new leaf for the franchise? Or is it more from a series and developer that is slowly losing its edge.
Set in 1581 during the Azuchi-Momoyama period: We are in a chaotic era of war and unification, enacted by Oda Nobunaga and his army. The game lays out its background, then blends it with fiction and intrigue to create the story of Assassin’s Creed® Shadows. Where an Igan shinobi meets Yasuke the African samurai, and both take on their own tales of revenge and retribution.
The first 3 to 6 hours are undeniably rough. While it may seem like criticism aimed at an already struggling franchise, the game’s early structure feels more like a performative attempt at innovation than meaningful progress. But what this does is creates a mess of narrative which for the most part is in-fact good. Introducing us to Naoe and her village of Iga, it gradually drags us toward the inevitable. The invasion of Oda Nobunaga. During this, you’re invited to do activities which will gather meaning as you play, along with learning the basics of gameplay. And then you become Yasuke. Where you will also learn some of the basics of their gameplay. Depending on your play style, you’ll either career through this or wonder why it is all taking too long.
Potentially leading to the experience I had.
The experience I had? Well it felt like a story split down the middle. Two characters who share ideals, but meet at too late a time and after too much death to feel like they have any impact on the other. So much so this influenced the gear experience I had. Gear is earned by exploring the world and the vast locations the game delivers. While I collected a fair amount of Naoe’s gear during my first part of the story. It felt like in the latter stages of the game it was all about Yasuke. And this isn’t due to having left him to be played for so long. Due to the difference in their arsenal, he has a wider range of gear that needs supporting.
Each character has a helm, body and accessory slot. A mount slot. And 2 weapon slots. Naoe has 3 weapons to call upon: The katana. The tanto. And the kusarigama. While Yasuke has five. The long katana. The naginata. The kanabo. The bow. And the teppo, or rifle. While Naoe also has a toolset with kunai, shuriken, smoke bombs and sound bells. These tools are weaker in comparison and variety to how Yasuke can be played. And this feels especially flawed in light of one of your allies being a romanceable teppo fighter for Naoe.
Who can’t use a teppo.
Allies are found on your journeys, and will gather back at your hideout. An area in-game which utilises the dynamic weather and season system to customizable effect for players. Here you can place buildings to assist your character and resources. And it allows you to have conversations with the many friends you’ll gather. Some of whom can be romanced by Naoe or Yasuke in hard-to-miss contexts. It’s a great little area to rest in when you need a break from the immensity of the map and missions ahead of you.
The objectives board starts with a basic layout. Showing Naoe, Yasuke and the Shinbakufu, the games’ big bad, the board will grow quickly. It gathers missions specific to the nine provinces. Rumors you find from saving people or using scouts. And then other miscellany you may happen upon. As it grows, it can feel overwhelming. But I found a sense of peace in it. Never committing to any one thing and simply choosing what I wanted to do as I went along my way. Ultimately this may be the price of affecting the narrative experience. But I appreciate that the game allows me to do so at their expense.
The greatest development Shadows brings to the franchise, is the weather and seasons system.
Ray tracing is in full effect within the game. Light dances across the lands and through the sakura bloom, if you’re in the right season. The community broke down that a full season lasts 1 and a half real hours. While day and night cycles every 24 real-life minutes. This is a great piece of innovation which I found lacking any real sense of control. Which is odd considering how much of this game can be customised and leaves the players to their own choices. It’s also left wanting further by locking in-game events behind seasons and time. Thankfully these only really affect the completionists. But there are times you’ll want to take on an area at night for the stealth advantage, and have to wait.
So is Assassin’s Creed® Shadows the woke, broke mess the internet says it is?
If two leads of differing gender and ethnicity, making out with the same sex and saving a fictional Japan is woke to you, then I guess it is. But Assassin’s Creed® Shadows is just another addition to a long running franchise that neither takes away or adds anything to it. Continuing what Origins and Odyssey begun, and doing a better job of it than the previous title Valhalla, it’s probably the first one that I’ve wanted to see continue. Naoe’s journey is a precious one to undertake, and is a character deserving of taking on the more tank-like aspects of Yasuke. While his style is fun for rushing through sections, it is Naoe’s that is the heart of the franchise. And with the little ways it expands on the effect Ezio had on the Assassin’s and their battle with the Templar, I think Naoe should take up these arms and bring the Brotherhood back again.
Assassin's Creed® Shadows is a fine entry into the long-running Ubisoft franchise. While it doesn't fix a lot of the issues the series has, from buggy launches, lack of real freedom while entertaining this notion and a clumsy narrative, it's an overall okay time to be had.
Featuring leads that I'd love to see come back, and a dynamic weather and day system which is its best innovation, Shadows does enough to keep the franchise, and Ubisoft, on life support for another period of time.
