Assassin’s Creed Shadows (PC) review: Beauty, brutality, and the burden of bloat

Ubisoft’s Assassin’s Creed Shadows is undeniably the talk of the town, and it’s impossible not to review this game without acknowledging the surrounding conversation. Admittedly, I have never been an RPG person, barring a few fantastic exceptions, such as Cyberpunk 2077 and Elden Ring. However, I have absolutely been an AC person for as long as I can remember. Assassin’s Creed 2 was the very first AAA game I ever played — the eagle-skull AC logo was the first tattoo I ever got, and Jesper Kyd’s Ezio’s Family is still the first song on my driving playlist.

AC Shadows has the weight of the world on its shoulders, and it does a lot of things right. There were many reasons I cared about Assassin’s Creed Shadows leading up to launch, which makes it even more saddening when the game makes the same mistakes its predecessors made, while still showing so much promise for the franchise’s future.

Assassin’s Creed Shadows price and availability

Assassin’s Creed Shadows is available on PC, the Mac App Store, PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 5 Pro, and the Xbox Series X|S as well. There are no last-gen versions of the game, and it is the first game built exclusively for next-gen consoles. The game comes in three editions:

• Standard Edition ($70): The base game.
• Digital Deluxe Edition ($90): This includes the base game, as well as the Deluxe Pack, which adds exclusive gear sets for both protagonists, special weapons, trinkets, and mounts, along with 5 Mastery Points, which give users a little head start on their skill trees.

Users who have an Ubisoft+ subscription can get the game for just $18 per month. Given Ubisoft’s pricing trends, don’t expect a major sale anytime soon — this game will hold its full price for a while. If you’re waiting for a discount, you might be in for the long haul.

Assassin’s Creed Shadows is breathtaking

True next-gen open worlds have a new gold standard

Right off the bat, Assassin’s Creed Shadows looks breathtaking. From the opening moments, where you traverse a burning village and a mist-shrouded mountain, the game flexes its next-gen fidelity with stunning weather and particle effects that wowed me. The polish in every frame is undeniable, and the extra time this game spent in the oven clearly speaks for itself, translating into everything you see on the screen.

While Assassin’s Creed Shadows is not as hyperrealistic or deliberately cinematic as Ghost of Tsushima, the expressive lighting, combined with the game’s harsh winds and blinding rain, makes it finely comparable in its own right. Shadows trades Tsushima’s painterly, vivid world for a grittier, more grounded aesthetic, but it still manages to capture that same sense of awe when you take in a golden field swaying in the wind or watch lantern-lit towns come alive under the night sky. Shadows might not have an incredibly unique art style, but by god, it is gorgeous.

The last time I remember being this impressed by a lighting system was when I ran Cyberpunk 2077 with path tracing — that’s how highly I would praise the RTGI in Assassin’s Creed Shadows. From strong, constant gusts of wind that kick up dust, leaves, hair, and clothes to torrential rains that soak everything they touch, it all feels like an announcement that next-gen Assassin’s Creed has finally arrived. Make no mistake — this is easily one of the best-looking games of this generation and a new benchmark for open-world visuals.

Running on an RTX 4070 Ti on a 1440p display, Shadows gave me a steady 90–110 FPS with DLSS Frame Generation turned on, never once dipping below 85 FPS. This made for a perfectly smooth experience with zero crashes, bugs, or glitches encountered in around 40 hours of my playtime. Sure, this should be the bare minimum, but it’s sad that most major releases are broken on launch, which is one of the worst major trends in gaming today.

However, Ubisoft has decided to cap all cutscenes on PC to 30 fps — a bizarre decision that leads to a huge discrepancy between cutscenes and gameplay, making for a jarring back-and-forth I absolutely despised.

Dual protagonists done right… almost

Both protagonists have their merits, but neither shines

For the first time since 2015’s AC Syndicate, we have dual protagonists who are two distinct characters in the world with their own arcs. We first meet Naoe, a shinobi whose life is uprooted by forces beyond her control. A few hours later, the game introduces its second protagonist, Yasuke, a bodyguard enslaved to Portuguese priests who came to Japan.

You start off with Naoe’s plot, where things are set in motion for her, but there’s just not enough depth to either her character or, sadly, her English voice actor, which leads to genuine disappointment every time a story cutscene pops up. She’s great in bits and pieces, but the moment a cutscene goes on for longer than a minute, things get bad, thanks to largely lifeless acting and writing that is reminiscent of Dhar Mann videos and Mastercard commercial blocking.

On the other hand, Yasuke’s story actually made me pay attention, thanks to the unique draw of him being a foreigner twice removed from his home. Being an outsider shunned — ironically similar to the surrounding conversation online — Yasuke chooses to forge himself anew in Japan, learning the way of the Samurai and becoming one not through race but by virtue and merit.

The scenes where Yasuke and Naoe interact became my favorite, because their chemistry is undeniable — all the more reason it was disappointing that the two main leads couldn’t become romantic partners in the game. Still, neither protagonist’s story breaks any new ground, and I can only wonder how a truly strong story could have vastly improved the overall experience, making it much more memorable.

The discourse around Yasuke

The elephant in the room

While I wasn’t impressed with the majority of the writing and acting in the game, it is the strongest when it focuses on Yasuke’s emotional journey in this new land. Still, it’s impossible not to talk about the discourse around his inclusion as a character, and whether or not he was truly the legendary Samurai that Shadows tell you he was.

Cards on the table, I wasn’t hyped at all about playing as Yasuke, or even his inclusion in the game — all I wanted was a fast-paced, lithe assassin running around Japan, which I got completely in Naoe. What then, was the narrative point behind including an African samurai in this game? Online forums would have you believe that Ubisoft did this only to gain brownie points for representation, even at the cost of historical accuracy, but it was only after playing and experiencing the game that I came to the realization and conclusion — it truly didn’t matter to me.

When Yasuke takes center stage during the main story, the writing is tight; the action is popping, and the gameplay is rewarding. I wanted this man to prove himself above his peers and rise above the constant “outsider” jabs he faced from foes and the people in Japan. To the writers’ credit, while this is indeed a trope done to death, the hyper-stylized world and strong acting by Yasuke’s VA really did make me invest in the character.

Does it then matter if Yasuke really was a legendary Samurai? I think not — it never mattered that Niccolò Machiavelli wasn’t taking leaps of faith from the Florentine skyline, nor did it ever matter that the Pope wasn’t really a power-hungry Templar who took fists to the face from an assassin right in the heart of the Vatican. After nearly 50 hours in the game, it was Yasuke’s journey — about belonging, perseverance, and carving out a place in a world that rejects you — that made him a compelling enough character and an addition to the franchise, not his historical authenticity.

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Gameplay in Assassin’s Creed Shadows is tight and responsive

Shadows merges old and new playstyles impressively

In terms of gameplay, Shadows makes a clear attempt at bringing together the old and new Assassin’s Creed gameplay experiences. Naoe is the lithe assassin who moves in and out of darkness and foliage, using the verticality of the map to let her hidden blade do most of the talking. By contrast, Yasuke is a hulking Samurai who runs through doors, tackles enemies to the ground, and mows down droves of foes with his long katana and kanabo.

You can play throughout most of the game as Naoe, something I found myself doing all too often. I saw the appeal of playing as Yasuke, but only in certain story missions where the script demanded he be the strongest person on the battlefield. Traversal with Yasuke is deliberately slow, and while it makes perfect sense for the huge Samurai to be slow on his feet or when climbing, it becomes frustrating pretty soon.

Yasuke is the least assassin-like character ever in an AC game. His combat sequences, however, do serve me with a power fantasy I’ve only felt in Ghost of Tsushima, or with a strength build in Elden Ring. In fact, Yasuke’s inclusion in some story missions tailored solely around his brawling strength almost felt like an unsubtle attempt at mimicking Ghost of Tsushima, where Jin Sakai served as the perfect blend of both shinobi and samurai. Regardless, when I did get tired of silently moving around and having to double-think each move as Naoe, it often came in handy to just switch to Yasuke, run through the entire castle, and take down anyone who moved.

It’s been a while since I had so much fun in AC combat

Source: Steam

Combat ranges from decent, to challenging, to downright exhilarating at times — it’s smooth and tight, rife with parries, dodges, blocks, and health-bar whittling. It’s pretty forgiving if you know what you’re doing, but if you’re not on your toes, things can go south quickly. If you find yourself surrounded — something a good assassin should never do — combat becomes far more dangerous, with various enemy types using their different combos as you struggle to get a hit in.

I constantly felt challenged to use my abilities properly, dodge at the right time, parry when needed, and even take a blow or two if that meant finishing the fight. Truth be told, I haven’t enjoyed combat sequences and finishers in Assassin’s Creed this much since AC3, and while that game’s combat looked and felt good, it was never challenging the way Shadows is. As such, Shadows’ fights felt far more rewarding and a joyride to engage in. However, what will never make sense to me is the designers’ ridiculous choice to blow trap music and Japanese rap during major combat encounters and plot beats — a decision so jarring that it threatened any immersion I had.

Stealth is where Assassin’s Creed Shadows really shines

The game really does stealth well. Of course, it goes without saying that in order to truly enjoy the stealth in the game and live the assassin experience, you’d have to play as Naoe. Thankfully, you can do so for almost the entirety of the game. As the spry shinobi, I reveled in the darkness, using the shadows — and even creating them by extinguishing candles and torches — to move in and out of enemy territory. As Naoe, I utilized distractions, vegetation, haystacks, and ledges to methodically take down everyone in my way.

Interestingly enough, the entire game seems built around stealth gameplay and, by extension, around Naoe’s capabilities. It is exclusively Naoe who truly feels like an assassin here — her hidden blade gets dirtier as she uses her cat-like agility, swift movements, and grappling hook. These stealth elements aren’t as challenging as those in the Metal Gear series, but when utilized correctly, they make you feel more in charge than any combat encounters as Yasuke.

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Exploration in Assassin’s Creed Shadows is a mixed bag

It’s the same old formula, just refined

Once the prologue was done, and I got going, the first thing to take in was the size of the map. Divided into nine huge regions, the map is certainly a lot to take in, but clearly smaller than AC Valhalla, which I was immediately thankful for. While the open world here is tighter and more condensed, it’s still filled with viewpoints to synchronize, hideouts to unlock, and points of interest to reach for XP — par for the course for an Assassin’s Creed game.

I can confidently state that this is the least bloated Assassin’s Creed game since the series pivoted into the diet-RPG genre. The regions on the map are built in such a manner that I didn’t really have to go anywhere outside my current region until the plot demanded it, which ensured that I had leveled up sufficiently before moving to another city or region.

Shadows also boasts a new way of exploring the map, where, if I wanted to find out exactly where my objective or target was, I had to follow clues to pinpoint where I thought I had to go, and either go there looking for an NPC, or send a scout to return with information about whether or not I was right in my guess. While I see the case for it, it felt like an extra hurdle to cross before knowing where to go, especially since the mission it would lead to would likely be a fetch quest or assassination quest, anyway. As such, just a few hours in, I resorted to having my objective markers laid out for me, which made for a smoother experience, rather than staring at the map, throwing Hail Marys as I ran out of scouts, and silently wishing to go back to my Elden Ring run.

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The new Assassin’s Creed game isn’t a second job

The RPG bloat and side fluff have been cut back

While Ubisoft has attempted to trim the excessive side fluff from previous games, what remains in Assassin’s Creed Shadows feels all too familiar. Nearly every NPC interaction, whether a side quest or a main story mission, boils down to either a “go-here-and-kill-them” or a “go-here-and-fetch-this” objective — often both. Worse still, there’s little to no reward for actually doing these tasks, as it almost always leads to returning to the quest-giver to progress the plot.

That’s not to say all side activities are a wash. Shrines, Kuji-Kiri sequences (where Naoe reconnects with her past), and other short encounters kept me immersed in the time period, and I certainly appreciated those moments. However, Shadows also introduces Knowledge Points — an artificial way to nudge you toward map exploration with minimal payoff. While Yasuke and Naoe’s past flashbacks offer meaningful insights and a few Knowledge Points, they are few and far between. The rest of them feel like forced sightseeing tours, making you traverse long distances for little narrative reward.

This experience starkly contrasted with something like Elden Ring, where everything on the map called out to me. Elden Ring — easily one of the best RPGs ever made — makes me want to go to anything interesting on the map, confident in the knowledge that it would come with a narrative reward, strengthening the lore or adding to the experience. That feeling is something I found missing in AC Shadows as I rode from one quest marker to another.

After the second or third time, I had to ride halfway across the map just to kick-start a new quest, and the open-world fatigue set in. Sure, there were distractions along the way — vistas to paint, shrines to pray at for XP, rogue factions to take down, the occasional NPC encounter, and viewpoints to synchronize. However, there are only so many times I can climb the same-looking building to open up the map some more before the experience becomes more of a chore than an adventure.

Thankfully, the true hero here is the objective board, which helps alleviate some of this. By neatly compartmentalizing major quest lines and providing recaps for each, it ensures that even if I take a long break from the game, I can jump back in without feeling lost. It’s a small but much-needed quality-of-life feature in an otherwise bloated journey.

Should you play Assassin’s Creed Shadows?

You should play Assassin’s Creed Shadows if:

• You are a fan of the newer, RPG-style Assassin’s Creed games
• You enjoy stealth gameplay and methodical assassinations
• You want one of the best-looking open-world games ever

You should not play Assassin’s Creed Shadows if:

• You expect a deeply compelling story
• You don’t have 90–100 hours to invest in a game
• You hate repetitive exploration and gameplay loops

Unfortunately, in today’s gaming landscape, most titles often settle in the 7-8 range, a score that’s become almost meaningless, thrown around casually without any real critique.

On the one hand, Assassin’s Creed Shadows really is a 7 out of 10 game — a title that does so much right with its visuals, setting, and refined gameplay. On the other hand, that very score could easily be misinterpreted as Ubisoft receiving credit for simply introducing Yasuke and Naoe as fresh faces in the franchise, rather than evaluating the game on its true merits.

Ultimately, though, Shadows shows immense promise for the future of this franchise, but it also exposes the areas where it still needs to work hard to improve. While it’s an enjoyable experience, it’s far from perfect. Regardless, playing Shadows has renewed my hope and investment in the franchise, which I am now almost certain will be just as refined and enjoyable going forward, if not more.

The latest entry in Ubisoft’s Assassin’s Creed series, Shadows puts you in the shoes of a legendary Samurai and a lethal shinobi Assassin in feudal Japan, as they put their differences aside to discover their common destiny.