The famous "Assassin's Creed in Japan" that fans have been asking for for many years is finally here. Assassin's Creed Shadows will arrive on PC, PS5 and Xbox Series on March 20, 2025, four months after its initial release date. After a Mirage that attempted a return to its roots with varying degrees of success, is Ubisoft Quebec's title positioned as the one capable of bringing together fans of the open-world formula and those of the episodes of yesteryear? We were able to play it for four hours to get some initial answers.
Assassin's Creed Shadows, a true "current-gen" game
Our preview of Assassin's Creed Shadows logically starts with the prologue of the adventure. The title puts us in control of Yasuke, far from the rank of samurai that will be his later since he is initially only a slave. It doesn't take long to see that the license takes a step forward in terms of character modeling.
The faces are more expressive and realistic than ever. An observation that is valid for both Yasuke and Naoe as well as for the characters that gravitate around our duo of heroes. The staging is also intended to be much more worked. Gone are the abundant shot-reverse shot: the cutscenes really gain in dynamism. Enough to immediately immerse us in this feudal Japan with its unique atmosphere and better enhance the narrative framework. In addition, the music fits perfectly with this universe and perfectly accompanies the important moments. What can we say about the Japanese dubbing, simply excellent.
The environments are also revealed to be more lively. We feel that Ghost of Tsushima has been there, since the wind plays a big role in creating this intoxicating atmosphere. It makes the leaves and flowers twirl in the air, while the vegetation appears generally much more realistic than in Assassin’s Creed Valhalla. The lighting effects are also successful and the lighting of the street lamps is beautifully reflected on the armor of our characters.
The high-flying realization is obvious during the first important dialogue which sees Oda Nobunaga, first unifier of Japan during the Sengoku period, secure the services of Yasuke. Some time later, the warlord sends the latter into battle.
The shadow of the last games hangs over Shadows
We then find a rather classic gameplay: Yasuke can deliver light and more powerful attacks, especially when holding a key, in order to break the enemy guard. Dodging is very much part of it despite Yasuke's impressive size. Here again, the clashes seem more credible than in the past with successful choreographies and a sound design that honors the impact of the blades clashing.
The soldier can also parry enemy attacks and use various skills in combat. Note that each type of weapon (there are a handful per character) now has its own skill tree.
The next mission features Naoe, in search of a mysterious treasure with the help of her father. This one turns out to be rather engaging because of the dark atmosphere that emerges from it as well as the charisma of the shinobi and her father. The events depicted make us want to know more about the fate of Naoe and the people involved in this prologue.
Let's specify that Assassin's Creed Shadows sometimes asks you to make choices during dialogues. None of those made during our preview had an impact on the evolution of the story in the short term, but this will visibly be the case in the rest of the epic. However, you can decide to put the game in "canon" mode so as not to have to make any decisions during the adventure.
Naoe the discreet
On the movement side, Naoe shows off her agility. She can lie down to be discreet and becomes completely invisible in tall grass, a classic of video games. Note that Yasuke also has the ability to lie down, even if he moves much more slowly on the ground. Putting out candles to remain hidden in the shadows is also possible, even if this does not significantly alter the vision of enemies.
Naoe's grappling hook allows her to reach heights very easily in order to take good measure of the surroundings and potential threats on our path. If you discreetly approach a guard, you have the option of executing him on the spot or grabbing him to get rid of him a few meters further. Of course, parkour is still present and very fluid under the control of the young woman, she who rewards us with pirouettes of the most beautiful effect. Don't expect the same thing from Yasuke, almost incapable of crossing the slightest obstacle in this way.
We note all the same that the enemies detect us from much further away in Shadows, even when you think you're hidden up high. A choice probably made to balance the infiltration phases given Naoe's slightly expanded range of movements. Fortunately for her and unfortunately for the interest of these sequences, the character can count on eagle vision (you don't control the bird of prey, but still your character) to... see all the enemies through the walls. Then you just have to zoom in on them to mark them and that's it.
Assassin's Creed Shadows could have chosen to offer a more organic infiltration given Naoe's abilities. This is not the case, since this function, far from being justified by the scenario, greatly facilitates the player's task. It's up to you to see if you prefer to do without it and focus above all on your observation.
Moreover, although the game values the unique gameplay of each of the protagonists, there are few differences in combat. We play the clashes in almost the same way when controlling Naoe and Yasuke. The shinobi is, admittedly, less powerful and resistant than her partner, but she can also ward off enemy attacks despite her thinner blades. So you have to be a little more subtle with Naoe where Yasuke can quickly overcome several opponents. Of course, each has their own unique combat skills, but nothing particularly original. Too bad.
An organic feudal Japan?
This impression that Assassin’s Creed Shadows wants to let go of our hand and detach itself from its past pitfalls without daring to do so completely is also found on the exploration side. We were able to wander around the open world of Assassin’s Creed Shadows for almost two hours with the possibility of completing a series of main missions. The objectives are sometimes inspired by what Ghost of Tsushima does: the information communicated by our allies allows us to know which region or zone to go to to find our objective, but no quest marker appears.
If you are really lost, you can ask scouts to help you directly from the map. This will drastically restrict your search area. A rather original idea, which makes exploration a little more organic, without reaching the level of a Ghost of Tsushima and its wind guidance system. Especially since the famous observation points (even if they reveal fewer elements of the open world) and points of interest, they, still abound on the map as in Origins, Odyssey and Valhalla.
A mission in which we had to eliminate several guards infiltrated in a castle also called upon our sense of observation rather than indicating which enemy to take down with an unsightly pointer. Well, in reality, it was enough to observe each guard from far enough away for Naoe or Yasuke to indicate that it was the target. Let's point out that we could switch from one to the other directly from the menu. The game only imposes a character on us at rare moments.
In any case, the few villages in the open world that we crossed during our session were not lacking in charm. It's difficult to realize the diversity of the open world of the Ubisoft Quebec title in such a short time, but let's hope that Assassin's Creed Shadows will manage to renew itself visually to offer us a real journey.
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