168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Assassin's Creed Shadows itself had a crucial task ahead of it. Between a online discussions over🎉 the protagonists, a delay, and all sorts of random, negative things that happened while we waited for the release like people getting their hands on the game before launch. All that while Ubisoft has been in need of a win for some time now.

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Let's take a step back from all the game's behind-the-scen𝔉es drama and look at it fo♓r what it is. Is the game a good entry to the Assassin's Creed series? Is it a good game in general? We finally got our feudal Japan Assassin's Creed, so now, let's see if it's worth the purchase.

Review

A close up shot of Naoe looking at her hidden blade.

Shadows finally feels like a good intermediate between the old Assassin's Creed games and the RPG entries they've released as of late. It combines its key stealth mechanics with more fleshed-out combat gameplay, and it even uses two protagonists to reiterate such points, as Naoe🍃 focuses on stealth, and Yasuke focuses on combat.

As stated by our Executive Editor, 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:George Foster, in his review, the game offers a great mix of these mechanics, a story that starts amazingly, a lot of focus on the political turmoil Japan faced at the time, and one of the best scenarios Assassin's Creed has ever had in the series. It's also worth noting that both Naoe and Yasuke are qui✱te well-written and likable characters, which makes them shine even more.

It’s refreshing to see a more grounded approach, and the inner workings of Feudal Japan’s culture remain interesting throughout the 40-hour story, but the end r🍎esult is a little mixed.

The negatives are some you may expect if you've been following the recent entries in the series: its objectives can get repetitive after a while, and the main narrative loses its steam as the game goes on.

Time Expenditure

Yasuke smiling in Assassin's Creed Shadows.

It's always hard to give an exact number of hours, especially on games like this, because it really depends on how you play the game and how much you want to complete. If your focus is to mainly enjoy the story and go through the major arcs, you'll likely take somewhere around 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:40 hours to complete the game.

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That said, if you want to enjoy everything the game has to offer you, your journey will likely reach 80 or even 100 hours. A🅰fter all, the game has a lot of side activities scattered across the map.

You can also potentially have multiple playthroughs by trying different choices, doing certain missions with a different protagonist compared to your first run, seeing how the plot goes in 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:canon mode, or even trying immersion mode if you haven't to have a more authentic experience. Still, none of these will make major changes to the game.

Cost

All cosmetics that come from the deluxe edition of Assassin's Creed Shadows.

The standard version of Shadows costs $69.99 USD, which is the expected price for new Triple-A releases nowadays. Still, the game has a deluxe edition for $89.99 USD, which includes cosmetics for both characters, the horse, and items to decorate 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:your hideout. It also lets you start with a few mastery points already, so your character will be slightly stronger ri🏅ght away.

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If you are 𒆙subscribed to Ubisoft+, then you'll already have access to the game, including a bonus mission; a future expansion, Claws of Awaji, is also gu💖aranteed without additional cost.

It's also worth mentioning that the game has microtransactions, so you can buy certain things instead of grinding for them. That said, none of these in-game purchases are necessary for you to enjoy the journey.

What Players Are Saying

It Can Be Really Fun For People Who Enjoy Exploring - Sanyam Jain

Assassin's Creed Shad꧃ows starts off with a bang, and even though the prologue is long, it sets the tone for something big. The music, in certain instances, specifically, was the main reason I got hooked on the game. One of the main reasons for me to enjoy it was the mysterious nature of every quest where, if you're not playing on Guided Exploration Mode, you'd have to find your targets by the clues given to you and not simply follow the tracker on the map.

I thoroughly enjoyed discovering the map🔯 and being able t𒁃o go to high-tier areas even when the story isn't quite there yet. Unfortunately, one thing that disappointed me is that the story didn't quite live up to the standards they set in the prologue.

A Surprisingly Enjoyable Journey Across Japan – Andrew Scariati

Assassin's Creed Shadows draws upon the formula the series has relied upon for years now but injects new life via the sprawling world around you: Japan. While this isn't to say that feudal Japan was full of sunshine and rainbows, the setting is captured beautifully with incred🎀ible attention to detail, from stunning architecture to elegant clothing. Aside from its overwhelming amount of style and wonder, AC Shadows is a solid game at its core, offering a fun gameplay loop, smooth combat that you can tailor to suit you, and plenty of g෴orgeous loot to hunt.

Shadows opens up a sandbox based around exploration and experimentation, as the two protagonists, Yasuke and Naoe, offer incredibly distinct ways to play, whether you pre🦹fer stealth or swords. If you love the setting, then AC Shadows will deliver a fun, immersive experience that will have you coming back for well over 60 hours to finish it all.

A Step In The Right Direction - Lucas Olah

Admitting my bias right away, I'm a long-time fan of the series, and I much preferred it when it wasn't trying to be an RPG series. Still, Shadows actually managed to be the best of both worlds to some extent, with assassination skills that evolve properly, allowing you to grow into a powerful assassin while also keeping the RPG style and using itꦰ in a way that ben🧜efits the series rather than having us play as non-assassins in an assassin world.

And even then, the combat mechanics improved to the point that playing the game for its hack n' slash mechanics is actually fun. Add to that beautiful scenery, Japanese culture, and a good pair of protagonists, and the𝔍 game went well above what I expected. It's an even better return to the series' roots than Mirage promised and failed to be, and it's a good benchmark for how the series can progress moving forward.

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Your Rating

Assassin's Creed Shadows
Action
Stealth
RPG
Systems
14
8.5/10
Top Critic Avg: 81/100 Critics Rec: 81%
Released
March 20, 2025
ESRB
♛ Mature 17+ // Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, La♓nguage
Developer(s)
🧸 ✨ Ubisoft Quebec
Publisher(s)
Ubisoft
Engine
AnvilNext

WHERE TO PLAY

DIGITAL
PHYSICAL