Assassin’s Creed Shadows Review – Gameplay is King

Assassin’s Creed Shadows on PS5 Pro

In many ways, Ubisoft and the Assassin’s Creed franchise have been facing the crossroads for some time now. From the early days of black box missions to the modern evolution into a roleplaying epic, each iteration has brought good and bad changes. And as the series moves into an all-encompassing experience with the Animus Hub, Assassin’s Creed Shadows perfectly encapsulates the approach of trying to please everyone.

Does that mean it’s a bad thing? That ultimately depends on your perspective as a fan, a newcomer, or even a hater. As someone who has played through every single Assassin’s Creed game to date, I find my judgment swaying back and forth, but what cannot be denied is that from a gameplay perspective, Assassin’s Creed Shadows is the best the series has to offer for the most part. But for the storytelling and overall narrative? Not so much.

Players will enter the highly anticipated setting of feudal Japan in 1579, where unrest and corruption gripped the land amidst Oda Nobunaga’s path of unification. This is where the intertwining tales of Naoe and Yasuke unfold, driving your progression for 40-50 hours and beyond as Japan ushers in a new era with blood and sweat.

For anyone familiar with the well-established formula of Assassin’s Creed, you would be right at home in Shadows. While the opening hours are more guided, it won’t be long before you are fully let loose, free to explore as either protagonist in a visually stunning creation, especially on the PlayStation 5 Pro.

Unlike Valhalla or the more condensed Mirage, this version of Japan has much more variety to offer in terms of environments in nature and civilisation. Sprawling farmlands thrive next to concrete jungles, inviting waters bring boats and swimming into the picture, while the mountains and hills provide a different way to experience the hidden beauty of the land. Together with the seasonal changes that have a tangible gameplay impact (more on that later) and the obvious visual tweaks, this is easily the best-looking Assassin’s Creed game ever made.

It evokes pleasant memories of Ghost of Tsushima and its amazing art direction, such are the standards that Ubisoft is trying to reach. And by and large, the team has succeeded in creating a fantastic world to look at and play with. You don’t have to venture off the beaten path too much to be caught by the beauty created; it is just there to be marvelled at all the time. Characters are also given quite a bit of love, including some of the best video game hair I have seen. Just look at Yasuke, but the quality will vary across the cast

The vibrant world helps to incentivise exploration in Assassin’s Creed Shadows, with the large open world (comparable to Origins‘ map) filled to the brim with points of interest, towns and cities to visit, secrets and treasures to obtain, and many leaps of faith to be done across nine major regions. Some regions are gated based on levels, but outside of that, you have the freedom to go where you want.

Many of the game’s objectives are contextual, giving you more reason to get to grips with where you are to find the right locations, which is a good thing. This is further enhanced by the pathfinding system, which charts the most optimal path forward. However, I definitely miss the auto-traveling mechanic, which means you have time to look around instead of worrying about riding or steering.

All of that travel is done in the name of fulfilling destiny, and for Naoe and Yasuke, that means plenty of killing before everything is done and dusted. Beyond the main targets who have earned our heroes’ ire, each region in the game has its own villains to hunt down as side stories that feed into the main narrative. I am not kidding when I say there is a lot of blood to spill, and at some point, you will look at your objectives menu and be weighed down by just how much there is to do, even if many pursuits can be considered optional.

It veers perilously close to the content bloat the franchise has been accused of in recent years, but simultaneously, the need to engage players across the map is clear. What is to be done then? Enter the dual protagonist system not seen since Syndicate, and creating distinct ways in which they can show off the best of their abilities.

For example, storming an enemy-occupied castle as Yasuke is starkly different from doing so as Naoe. The former is pure power and strength, capable of taking on multiple enemies with his hard-hitting weapons. As for the latter, utilising her ninja tools, parkour skills, and the hidden blade is the name of the game.

That is not to say you can only use Yasuke for combat and Naoe for stealth; it comes down to your approach and preference. Yasuke can still climb buildings and hide in tall grasses, but it can be a painfully slow process, whereas the shinobi’s speed and agility make it all a breeze, further allowing the light and shadow system to be fully embraced. On the other hand, Naoe can still hold her own in combat, but her ability against larger groups of enemies pales compared to the hulking samurai. The takeaway here is that Naoe can do what Yasuke can with the right build, but Yasuke definitely cannot do what the she can.

Ubisoft Quebec wants to give players options in Assassin’s Creed Shadows, and that is something to be celebrated, but it also begs the question of whether it is really needed. Players will likely gravitate towards one playstyle more than the other, making sections for the other character harder to appreciate. At least with Eivor or Basim, you can do both pretty well, but the differences here are clearly obvious.

With deep skill trees and more loot to browse through as well, that fatigue will surely start to build, and that is a concern. It probably doesn’t help that the story’s pacing is tilted more towards Naoe at the start, meaning that if you don’t stick through it, you won’t get to see more of Yasuke’s backstory and development. On some levels, I can understand what the team is trying to do, but there is a clear trade-off for the inconsistent pacing.

That malaise also spreads to the Animus elements of the story as well. The diverse opinions about everything else that goes on outside of the primary experience will not be silenced with Shadows‘ treatment, but at the very least, we get some form of progress. This is still one area that has yet to be cracked, and at this point, perhaps it isn’t worth the risk.

What isn’t risky is the combat and parkour systems that arrive in their most refined state in Assassin’s Creed Shadows. The light/heavy attacks, parrying and dodging, and combat abilities all work well in tandem to give players the satisfaction of putting their enemies down. It’s not just the melee weapons that are fun; Yasuke’s bow and teppo are fantastic to use in the rotation, and Naoe’s tools provide another way to toy with your opponents.

Wonderfully bloody finishers for the different weapons further add to the enjoyment, and the enemy variety is just enough to keep you on your toes constantly. Being able to focus on a particular weapon and its skills can bring a host of benefits, but you can also be a jack of all trades that have passive buffs working overtime to become a fearsome force.

When it comes to the parkour, best left to Naoe, I might add, the Grappling Hook is undoubtedly game-changing. No more struggling to find handholds, just let me ascend quickly to the top and take in the surroundings or to swing from platform to platform. The way environments are designed helps elevate the experience further, giving you more ways to navigate Japan.

The stealth system, however, does need some work. Being able to crouch to use tall grasses feels like an obvious improvement to make, and having it in Assassin’s Creed Shadows is welcomed. The way seasons work in changing environments and opportunities is a great idea as well, but it doesn’t happen enough to matter. Then we have enemy behaviours, where there are head-scratching moments for sure.

It can be way too easy to avoid detection, even at close range, and the aforementioned light and shadow system feels like a missed opportunity that isn’t utilised enough in the game. And if the pile of dead bodies out in the open isn’t enough to force an alarm in a heavily fortified position, then I guess the guards had it coming to them.

I wasn’t too sure about Mirage returning to the more contained areas for major assassinations, but neither am I convinced by the open nature of things in Shadows. That final kill has to feel significant, and that can happen as you plan your careful approach.

Yet, certain targets require actual combat to bring down, even if you manage to make your way to them without being detected. I cannot shake the feeling that I have been robbed, and the same goes for when everything is on fire, but the target remains painfully oblivious to the danger surrounding them. I would rather the game fail me then, and reward those with a more calculated approach.

The two-step forward, one-step-back nature of Shadows doesn’t just stop there. Players have the agency to make certain decisions, but the consequences of the choices, more often than not, lead to nothing outstanding aside from the recruitment of certain allies. Would sparing someone rather than killing them make a real difference? It doesn’t seem that way at this point, and it makes me want to use the Canon Mode feature instead to remove any room for doubt.

Speaking of the allies, it didn’t feel that important to have them be part of the arsenal at all. Storywise, they help to flesh things out, with Junjiro being a particular favourite. Still, in gameplay, the ability of both Naoe and Yasuke means allies in combat are usually just another warm body rather than true comrades. Or, if you prefer, they can be romantic partners, but that’s just a diversion more than anything.

The same goes for the Hideout, which I have been very interested in checking out since the early previews of Assassin’s Creed Shadows. It represented a real sense of progression in building a righteous league to stand up against the forces of evil, but it turned out to be more about resource management than anything if you want to reap the benefits.

With less focus on tying the Hideout progress to the narrative and more towards arbitrary resources, I became more concerned about being able to forge higher-level weapon upgrades and improving my ration healing efficiency than growing the league itself. It could have been a physical representation of the hard work you are putting in, and to some degree, you get that in customisation options, but it could have been so much more.

Other areas that felt like easy wins, such as more streamlined inventory management and more meaningful use of the scouts, can be rectified in due time, but looking at the big picture, these are just minor issues that can be overlooked if you are having a good time.

Assassin’s Creed Shadows finally delivers to players what has always been demanded, a franchise adventure set in the world of ninjas, shinobis, samurai, and ronin. It is somehow boosted and hampered by its dual protagonists, Naoe and Yasuke, and their place in the narrative, but the underlying systems are where the game truly shines bright. There is still room for improvement, but if you are looking for a substantial adventure where gameplay is king rather than the storytelling, then feudal Japan beckons.

Assassin’s Creed Shadows will launch on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC on March 20.