Ubisoft today dropped our first real look at gameplay for Assassin’s Creed Shadows, the next entry in the acclaimed franchise.
We’ve known for a while now that Assassin’s Creed Shadows would take place in Feudal Japan and feature two main protagonists; samurai Yasuke and shinobi Naoe. Ubisoft previously revealed that the game would focus more in stealth through Naoe’s gameplay, and that Yasuke would focus more on blunt force. However, since the reveal was another CGI trailer, it was impossible to guess how exactly the game would play. Now, we don’t have to guess. Ubisoft today released a meaty 13-minute gameplay walkthrough featuring both playable characters.
Two Assassins, two ways to play
To set the scene, the walkthrough begins with both characters on the hunt for a corrupt daimyo. It begins with Yasuke arriving in Fukuchiyama and encountering several of the daimyo’s men harassing villagers. As a samurai, Yasuke charges in to defend the people by showcasing the game’s new combat mechanics, which feature a lot of parrying and dodging. On top of that, there’s also destructible armor that players can chip away at and various posture attacks to do more damage. In the demo, Yasuke could also switch between the speedy katanas and the heavy yet powerful kanabo.
Assassin’s Creed Shadows Takes Players to Feudal Japan on November 15
Ubisoft and Ubisoft Quebec today formally pulled back the curtain on the next main entry in the Assassin’s Creed franchise, Assassin’s Creed Shadows.
After dealing with the corrupt samurai, gameplay switched to Naoe whose focus on stealth made sneaking into the daimyo’s castle a piece of cake. Unlike Origins, Odyssey, and Valhalla, Assassin’s Creed Shadows aims to bring back many of the stealth mechanics of the older games. This includes utilizing gadgets, peeking around corners, and using the environment in clever ways. Players will find her particularly agile thanks to her grappling hook to access vertical spaces and her kusarigama to assassinate enemies at a distance. The demo ends with Naoe utilizing the new prone mechanic to slink around the bottom of a pond and come up on the daimyo from behind.
Changing seasons
While the walkthrough heavily focused on gameplay, it also showcased the game’s dynamic seasons and weather systems. Unlike previous Assassin’s Creed games, the changing of the seasons and weather will have a direct impact on gameplay. For example, in the walkthrough, Naoe became far more difficult to detect and the added rain towards the end made her near invisible. However, had the mission been done in the winter, Naoe would not have been able to use the pond or bushes as the water would be frozen and the leaves fallen off the bush. Not only will the game’s world and weather look beautiful, it’ll also have a direct impact on how you approach gameplay.
Assassin’s Creed Shadows launches November 15 on PS5, Xbox Series X|S, PC, Amazon Luna, and Macs with Apple Silicon.
