Will Assassin’s Creed Shadows be the last chance game for Ubisoft, as many video game analysts attest? It must be said that in recent years, the one who was described as the French flagship of video games has experienced a phenomenal fall, both emotional with players and purely business, with games that are no longer sold and a stock market share that has not stopped tumbling to reach its lowest level in 10 years. The alarm bell was therefore sounded and to avoid ending up dismantled in several pieces, Yves Guillemot and his teams decided to postpone the release of Assassin’s Creed Shadows as many times as it will be necessary. The game was originally scheduled for release on November 15, 2024, but last SeptemberUbisoft decided to postpone its game until February 14, 2025, Valentine’s Day. Except that recently, we learned that the game was going to be shifted, this time by six more weeks and arrive on March 20, a few days before the end of the fiscal year of Ubisoft. And it seems that this date is the right one, since the press and videographers have been invited by Ubisoft to test this Assassin’s Creed Shadows which has been pouring a lot of ink since its announcement. I was able to play it on PC for more than 4 hours, dissect the gameplay of Yasuke and Naoe and even get lost in the open world.. So what are my first impressions? Has Assassin’s Creed Shadows gone to save Ubisoft from bad karma? Response elements…we learned that the game was going to be shifted, this time by six more weeks and arrive on March 20, a few days before the end of the fiscal year of Ubisoft. And it seems that this date is the right one, since the press and videographers have been invited by Ubisoft to test this Assassin’s Creed Shadows which has been pouring a lot of ink since its announcement. I was able to play it on PC for more than 4 hours, dissect the gameplay of Yasuke and Naoe and even lose myself in the open world.. So what are my first impressions? Has Assassin’s Creed Shadows gone to save Ubisoft from bad karma? Response elements…we learned that the game was going to be shifted, this time by six more weeks and arrive on March 20, a few days before the end of the fiscal year of Ubisoft. And it seems that this date is the right one, since the press and videographers have been invited by Ubisoft to test this Assassin’s Creed Shadows which has been pouring a lot of ink since its announcement. I was able to play it on PC for more than 4 hours, dissect the gameplay of Yasuke and Naoe and even lose myself in the open world.. So what are my first impressions? Has Assassin’s Creed Shadows gone to save Ubisoft from bad karma? Response elements…ubisoft’s fiscal year. And it seems that this date is the right one, since the press and videographers have been invited by Ubisoft to test this Assassin’s Creed Shadows which has been pouring a lot of ink since its announcement. I was able to play it on PC for more than 4 hours, dissect the gameplay of Yasuke and Naoe and even lose myself in the open world.. So what are my first impressions? Has Assassin’s Creed Shadows gone to save Ubisoft from bad karma? Response elements…ubisoft’s fiscal year. And it seems that this date is the right one, since the press and videographers have been invited by Ubisoft to test this Assassin’s Creed Shadows which has been pouring a lot of ink since its announcement. I was able to play it on PC for more than 4 hours, dissect the gameplay of Yasuke and Naoe and even lose myself in the open world.. So what are my first impressions? Has Assassin’s Creed Shadows gone to save Ubisoft from bad karma? Response elements…unravel the gameplay of Yasuke and Naoe and even get lost in the open world.. So what are my first impressions? Has Assassin’s Creed Shadows gone to save Ubisoft from bad karma? Response elements…unravel the gameplay of Yasuke and Naoe and even get lost in the open world.. So what are my first impressions? Has Assassin’s Creed Shadows gone to save Ubisoft from bad karma? Response elements…

This preview controller in hand was cut into two parts. The first was centered on the first hour of the game, from the beginning of the adventure to the usual appearance of the Assassin’s Creed logo and which therefore acts as a Prologue. The opportunity to discover for the first time the two characters of the game, namely Yasuke and Naoe. A first part more focused on the narration, issues and events that will lead our two warriors to meet and especially to combine their forces. In this regard, you should know that Assassin’s Creed Shadows offers an audio version in total immersion, that is to say in Japanese and Portuguese language. Why the Portuguese ? Because we start the adventure, we discover a Yasuke who arrives in Japan speaking Portuguese, he saidhe who is accompanied by Jesuit fathers Luis Frois and Alessandro Valignano before he makes “adopt” by Oda Nobunaga. Yasuke is not named Yasuke at the beginning of Assassin’s Creed Shadows, he has another name, Portuguese by the way, but I will not reveal it to you for not spoiling anything. However, this Japanese version called immersion is not the real original version, since if you want to have the synchro labiale, it is the English version that you will have to choose, even if I am sure that most of you will choose the VF. I know how much we are attached to our French dubbing actors in France. Personally, I preferred to select the Japanese language as in the time of Ghost of Tsushima, to keep this historical coherence.
SAMURAI OR GREAT WARRIOR?
I take the opportunity to slip a word about the controversy around the status of samurai for Yasuke and that would have been removed from the game, but also in the online descriptions, especially in Japan. Well, I did notice at the beginning of the adventure that Yasuke is no longer described as a samurai, but now portrayed as a great warrior, that’s right. This is what we read with subtitles, great warriors, Yet when we listen to what is said by Japanese dubbing comedians, we perfectly hear the word “samurai”. What exactly does this mean ? That changes have been made in the texts, but not at the level of dubbing? Because we can imagine that it was too late and too complicated to redo the voices in such a short time… Is it a last minute changeor was it that way from the start? It will be necessary to wait for the full version of the game to see if the word “samurai” about Yasuke has indeed been erased in the writings by Ubisoft.

In recent weeks, Ubisoft has resumed communication around its Assassin’s Creed Shadows. A sober communication certainly, but detailed and at least mastered, with a regular focus on the different aspects of the game. Combat system, Parkour, difference in gameplay between Yasuke and Naoe and implementation of the open world, with the changes that many had been waiting for many years, namely a less dirigiste game. And that’s actually the first feeling you can get when you’re walking through the open world of Assassin’s Creed Shadows. Assassin’s Creed Valhalla already offered various levels of indication according to desires or needs, and we saw with Avatar Frontiers of Pandora this desire to get out of its formula now exhausted. Besides, besidesi have been testing Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 for 15 days and I can tell you that we are the total opposite of the Ubisoft open world. There for once, there is kind of zero but then zero indication and it is up to us to manage as big. Demerdenziziche as Monique would say.

THE TIME OF CHANGE?
But back to Assassin’s Creed Shadows, because Ubisoft understood that it was necessary to stop systematically giving the hand to the players, to trust them a little. Fewer icons and points of interest are displayed on the map, and as you can see in my images, at first it is empty, there are only the names of the regions that are displayed. It is by moving around the world that we will then bring out new elements, whether subregions, local landmarks or information given in the form of a reward, often linked to a narrative, whether in a main mission or an auxiliary quest. In fact, by taking height and scrutinizing the map on the horizon, we will not be able to show all the quests and activities to clean on the map, eithersince only nearby points of interest will be revealed. Good news that proves that Ubisoft has realized that it was urgent not to chew the player’s work, to give him the opportunity to explore the game as he sees fit. “Less is more” as we say so often and it perfectly applies to this Assassin’s Creed Shadows. After that, let’s be honest, Assassin’s Creed will also not sink into the austere hardcore side of a Kingdom Come Deliverance, as the license will continue to cater to the general public, and not to a niche market, or at least insiders. Especially since the up-and-down simulator of Kingdom Come also has its flaws, to the point of frightening some players. In any case, even if Ubisoft understood that itit is up to the players to adapt to the game, and not vice versa, we will find options to guide those who still need a little help. For example, there is the pathfinder, which is this mechanism already available in the latest Assassin’s Creed and which allows you to find the most direct way to get to an objective. An option that can be deactivated via the options, just as you can choose or not the auto tracking when Yasuke or Naoe have to follow an NPC and dialogue with it. This was already the case in previous Assassin’s Creed and this auto tracking also works with the horse if I do not say nonsense. In any case, as long as nothing is imposed, options can be enabled or disabled, this is the best compromise there is.conversely, we will find options to guide those who still need a little help. For example, there is the pathfinder, which is this mechanism already available in the latest Assassin’s Creed and which allows you to find the most direct way to get to an objective. An option that can be deactivated via the options, just as you can choose or not the auto tracking when Yasuke or Naoe have to follow an NPC and dialogue with it. This was already the case in previous Assassin’s Creed and this auto tracking also works with the horse if I do not say nonsense. In any case, as long as nothing is imposed, options can be enabled or disabled, this is the best compromise there is.conversely, we will find options to guide those who still need a little help. For example, there is the pathfinder, which is this mechanism already available in the latest Assassin’s Creed and which allows you to find the most direct way to get to an objective. An option that can be deactivated via the options, just as you can choose or not the auto tracking when Yasuke or Naoe have to follow an NPC and dialogue with it. This was already the case in previous Assassin’s Creed and this auto tracking also works with the horse if I do not say nonsense. In any case, as long as nothing is imposed, options can be enabled or disabled, this is the best compromise there is.we will find options to help guide those who still need a little help. For example, there is the pathfinder, which is this mechanism already available in the latest Assassin’s Creed and which allows you to find the most direct way to get to an objective. An option that can be deactivated via the options, just as you can choose or not the auto tracking when Yasuke or Naoe have to follow an NPC and dialogue with it. This was already the case in previous Assassin’s Creed and this auto tracking also works with the horse if I do not say nonsense. In any case, as long as nothing is imposed, options can be enabled or disabled, this is the best compromise there is.we will find options to help guide those who still need a little help. For example, there is the pathfinder, which is this mechanism already available in the latest Assassin’s Creed and which allows you to find the most direct way to get to an objective. An option that can be deactivated via the options, just as you can choose or not the auto tracking when Yasuke or Naoe have to follow an NPC and dialogue with it. This was already the case in previous Assassin’s Creed and this auto tracking also works with the horse if I do not say nonsense. In any case, as long as nothing is imposed, options can be enabled or disabled, this is the best compromise there is.which is this mechanics already available in the latest Assassin’s Creed and which allows to find the most direct way to get to a goal. An option that can be deactivated via the options, just as you can choose or not the auto tracking when Yasuke or Naoe have to follow an NPC and dialogue with it. This was already the case in previous Assassin’s Creed and this auto tracking also works with the horse if I do not say nonsense. In any case, as long as nothing is imposed, options can be enabled or disabled, this is the best compromise.which is this mechanics already available in the latest Assassin’s Creed and which allows to find the most direct way to get to a goal. An option that can be deactivated via the options, just as you can choose or not the auto tracking when Yasuke or Naoe have to follow an NPC and dialogue with it. This was already the case in previous Assassin’s Creed and this auto tracking also works with the horse if I do not say nonsense. In any case, as long as nothing is imposed, options can be enabled or disabled, this is the best compromise.just as one can choose or not the auto tracking when Yasuke or Naoe have to follow an NPC and dialogue with him. This was already the case in previous Assassin’s Creed and this auto tracking also works with the horse if I do not say nonsense. In any case, as long as nothing is imposed, options can be enabled or disabled, this is the best compromise.just as one can choose or not the auto tracking when Yasuke or Naoe have to follow an NPC and dialogue with him. This was already the case in previous Assassin’s Creed and this auto tracking also works with the horse if I do not say nonsense. In any case, as long as nothing is imposed, options can be enabled or disabled, this is the best compromise.

With the presence of Yasuke and Naoe, we wondered how the change of character would take place in the game, and in reality, it is as simple as in Assassin’s Creed Syndicate: just open the menu, go to the “Inventory” section and hold the X or Square button to move from Yasuke to Noae. We will have the right to a light loading time, with a passage in the Animus, knowing that changing characters is not possible when a mission or a quest is launched. You have to finish it with the character you have in your hands. Beyond this mechanics of varying the pleasures by going from Yasuke to Naoe, or vice versa, the character switch will have a real interest. Unlike Syndicate, howeverthere is a real demarcation of style and gameplay between Yasuke and Naoe. As you already know, Yasuke is a so-called tank character. Not only is he physically very tall, but he also has an imposing size and the fact that he also wears samurai armor allows him to take well the blows of enemies. And very quickly, during the big fights, especially when the enemy is in numerical superiority, we understand that Yasuke will do better than Naoe. Not that our kunoichi is not able to handle half a dozen opponents at a time, but let’s say that it loses life more easily than Yasuke, which forces the player to opt for a different tactic, to play with more nuances. This is the purpose of this maneuver, and probably theone of the great successes of this Assassin’s Creed Shadows: to have managed to propose two radically different gameplays, which means that the approach of a mission changes at all according to the character that we embody. I don’t know if the whole game will be playable with a single character, without ever changing it or if certain moments will be imposed on us, but infiltrating a castle with Yasuke who moves slowly and is unable to climb a wall or climb a roof can quickly be a problem. It is there that Naoe deploys all her full potential, with her agility, her flexibility, her very stylized animations so that her movements give the feeling of controlling a kunoichi straight out of an anime, without forgetting her grappling hook which it to cling wherever it is possible,and even to draw enemies towards oneself.

TWO GAMEPLAYS FOR THE PRICE OF ONE
Naoe’s other talent is infiltration and beyond the classic movements that allow her to surprise enemies from behind, she also inherited a mechanics that had made the salt and success of the Splinter Cell series, namely playing with black, darkness. It is also advisable to neutralize all kinds of light sources that could compromise your presence. That’s why we can put out the candles, destroy the hanging lamps and flee the spotlights, whatever they are.Being highlighted, too little for Naoe who proves to be more comfortable clinging to beams on the ceiling or hiding chests, waiting for the right moment to murder in the most icy silence. Of course, as a ninja woman, Naoe will have all theparaphernalia to behave as such, with secondary weapons such as Kusarigama, shuriken, smoke bombs and kunais, convenient to neutralize enemies at a distance. In combat position, Naoe and Yasuke will have the same mechanics, with light attacks that are triggered with R1, more powerful blows by pressing R2 and the ability to hold on each of these keys to deploy other attacks more powerful and more efficient. We even have a devastating blow that allows to go into a black & white cinema mode that only resurges the blood red of the enemies that we will perforate, or even beheaded. Assassin’s Creed Shadows will notelsewhere not the timid question violence and it will not be uncommon to repaint entire walls with sprinkles of blood from his opponents.

For the rest of the movements, you will have to play with parades and dodges, knowing that some enemy attacks cannot be parried and only dodged. This is quite easy to detect, it is at the moment when a red spark appears before the enemy strikes. Blue sparks, on the other hand, mean that the parade is valid, but also that the enemy will hit several times in a row, which means that you have to parry as many sights as he will hit. A subtle way to perform beautiful choreographies, while establishing a system of timing in the opposite. Moreover, as much Naoe dodges with fluidity and flexibility, as much Yasuke will be able to make only small steps of side or rear to avoid them. The difference in size and speed are felt fromelsewhere between the two characters and this is what gives all the interest to control them in turn.

Apart from all this, our two fighters share about the same way of fighting, with this very nice feature where after loading a big attack and pressing Triangle or Y, we can then trigger a flash attack with a very stylized visual rendering, where the screen goes black & white to resurface only the blood. A cinematographic side reminiscent of the old samurai films, which were then taken up in pop culture. It’s not only very aesthetic, but it also does a lot of damage. Here, I think about it, but speaking of the differences in gameplay between Yasuke and Naoe, know that the secondary weapon of our African warrior is a rifle that allows him to align enemies in the distance, but can also serve as a very stylish finish moves. Of course, to prevent abuse, tothe developers of Ubisoft Quebec have made sure that each recharge takes a crazy time, knowing that it must be reloaded after each shot, since the weapons are still very primitive at the time. And inevitably, when we are surrounded by enemies who throw themselves at us, the rifle will remain a less effective weapon than a katana. Note otherwise that some activities will be exclusive to a character, such as learning new Kata for Yasuke, Kuji-kiri meditation for Naoe, but the two will share a hobby in common, namely the painting of wild animals from Japan. It can be a heron that you see eating a fish in the distance, or two deer that clash the woods to impose themselves. It will be part of the recurring activities for the total completion of the 100%. Ubisoft Quebec have made sure that each reload takes a crazy time, knowing that it is necessary to reload after each shot fired, since the weapons are still very primitive at the time. And inevitably, when we are surrounded by enemies who throw themselves at us, the rifle will remain a less effective weapon than a katana. Note otherwise that some activities will be exclusive to a character, such as learning new Kata for Yasuke, Kuji-kiri meditation for Naoe, but the two will share a hobby in common, namely the painting of wild animals from Japan. It can be a heron that you see eating a fish in the distance, or two deer that clash the woods to impose themselves. It will be part of the recurring activities for the total completion of the 100%. Ubisoft Quebec have made sure that each reload takes a crazy time, knowing that it is necessary to reload after each shot fired, since the weapons are still very primitive at the time. And inevitably, when we are surrounded by enemies who throw themselves at us, the rifle will remain a less effective weapon than a katana. Note otherwise that some activities will be exclusive to a character, such as learning new Kata for Yasuke, Kuji-kiri meditation for Naoe, but the two will share a hobby in common, namely the painting of wild animals from Japan. It can be a heron that you see eating a fish in the distance, or two deer that clash the woods to impose themselves. It will be part of the recurring activities for the total completion of the 100%. it is necessary to reload after each shot fired, since the weapons are still very primitive at the time. And inevitably, when we are surrounded by enemies who throw themselves at us, the rifle will remain a less effective weapon than a katana. Note otherwise that some activities will be exclusive to a character, such as learning new Kata for Yasuke, Kuji-kiri meditation for Naoe, but the two will share a hobby in common, namely the painting of wild animals from Japan. It can be a heron that you see eating a fish in the distance, or two deer that clash the woods to impose themselves. It will be part of the recurring activities for the total completion of the 100%. it is necessary to reload after each shot fired, since the weapons are still very primitive at the time. And inevitably, when we are surrounded by enemies who throw themselves at us, the rifle will remain a less effective weapon than a katana. Note otherwise that some activities will be exclusive to a character, such as learning new Kata for Yasuke, Kuji-kiri meditation for Naoe, but the two will share a hobby in common, namely the painting of wild animals from Japan. It can be a heron that you see eating a fish in the distance, or two deer that clash the woods to impose themselves. It will be part of the recurring activities for the total completion of the 100%. when surrounded by enemies who throw themselves at us, the rifle will remain a less effective weapon than a katana. Note otherwise that some activities will be exclusive to a character, such as learning new Kata for Yasuke, Kuji-kiri meditation for Naoe, but the two will share a hobby in common, namely the painting of wild animals from Japan. It can be a heron that you see eating a fish in the distance, or two deer that clash the woods to impose themselves. It will be part of the recurring activities for the total completion of the 100%. when surrounded by enemies who throw themselves at us, the rifle will remain a less effective weapon than a katana. Note otherwise that some activities will be exclusive to a character, such as learning new Kata for Yasuke, Kuji-kiri meditation for Naoe, but the two will share a hobby in common, namely the painting of wild animals from Japan. It can be a heron that you see eating a fish in the distance, or two deer that clash the woods to impose themselves. It will be part of the recurring activities for the total completion of the 100%. learning new Kata for Yasuke, Kuji-kiri meditation for Naoe, but the two will share a common hobby, namely painting wild animals from Japan. It can be a heron that you see eating a fish in the distance, or two deer that clash the woods to impose themselves. It will be part of the recurring activities for the total completion of the 100%. learning new Kata for Yasuke, Kuji-kiri meditation for Naoe, but the two will share a common hobby, namely painting wild animals from Japan. It can be a heron that you see eating a fish in the distance, or two deer that clash the woods to impose themselves. It will be part of the recurring activities for the total completion of the 100%.

IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION
Of course, there is still a lot to discover, but all this will be dissected at the time of the complete test, but one thing is for sure, these 4 hours spent with this Assassin’s Creed Shadows reassured me. Very sincerely, I was pleasantly surprised, me who did not give him expensive skin, especially since the first gameplay video where I found that the combat system was too frozen. So it is sure that compared to Crimson Desert which will arrive this year and that I was able to test, we are on mechanics which still remain very rigid, but the game still happens to be interesting in its approach. The fact that Yasuke and Naoe play differently will bring nuance, variety and in-game, it works pretty well.I will say that the big flaw of the game is in the lock of enemies that clearly lacks flexibility. When you are surrounded by several enemies, it is difficult to pass from one opponent to another, you have to relocate, relock, it lacks fluidity, reactivity, something that was nevertheless mastered in a Ghost of Tsushima where you could align several enemies at once, by making crazy-furious combos. There, there is still this rigid aspect inherited from the old Assassin’s Creed and that Ubisoft must evolve. Because the competition is there and it has already made a very sharp turn. That said, there is clearly the best and we feel this desire to shake up the formula. So yes, Assassin’s Creed Shadows pleasantly surprised me during this preview and Ihope that these good impressions will end up on the final game. See you on March 20th for the final conclusion..
