The Best Assassin’s Creed Game in Years Just Came to Nintendo Switch 2
Nothing is true, everything is permitted.
In the absence of new games from legendary series like Splinter Cell and Metal Gear Solid, Assassin’s Creed has staked its claim on the top spot of stealth games. But it’s undeniable that more recent games, like Odyssey and Valhalla, have strayed wildly away from the series' roots, embracing more of an action-RPG approach. And despite the great elements of those games, it’s easy to feel disappointed by that shift — which is exactly what makes Assassin’s Creed Shadows feel like it reinvigorates the series. Despite some lingering issues, Shadows does an admirable job of combining the series’ stealth origins with the RPG mechanics, all while providing a jaw-droppingly gorgeous recreation of Japan to explore. It’s a good Assassin’s Creed game in its own right, but also provides a fascinating glimpse of where the series could go next. Now that it’s on Nintendo Switch 2, it gives the series a strong and much-needed foothold to build on with Nintendo systems.
Shadows takes place in 16th-century Japan, near the end of the renowned Sengoku period. Taking a page from Syndicate’s book, this entry sports two different protagonists who each factor into the overarching narrative in a different way and lean into two distinct gameplay styles.
Both Naoe and Yasuke have roles to play in the story, but it’s also a smart way to try and combine the two different eras of Assassin’s Creed.
Naoe is the successor to a long line of elite shinobi from Iga Province, whose entire family is killed when Nobunaga Oda’s forces invade the region. Meanwhile, Yasuke is an African slave who becomes a Samurai for Nobunaga, after the warlord witnesses his immense power. Yasuke initially stands opposed to Naoe, helping with the invasion of Iga. But as different powers vie for control of Japan, and the age-old Templar and Assassin conflict rears its head, the two heroes find their paths inexplicably linked.
While Shadow’s overall narrative feels a bit meandering and unfocused, Naoe and Yasuke are both genuinely fascinating characters, especially in how their own morals and ethos play into the overall themes of the game — those being revenge, control, personal identity, and the long-running series’ themes of freedom and choice.
You can swap between Naoe and Yasuke at any time, and play as either one for virtually any mission in the game. Naoe heavily leans into stealth and subterfuge, while Yasuke is a hulking tank all about running into the thick of battle and slaughtering enemies. These differences are especially interesting, because it essentially lets you choose which style of gameplay you want — the traditional stealth or action RPG.
Shadows finally makes meaningful advances to the series’ stealth mechanics, almost feeling like a throwback to Splinter Cell in some ways.
Even though each character has their own skill tree and can do both stealth and action, they’re quite clearly designed to embrace the two disparate parts of Assassin’s Creed. And perhaps most surprising is that it works, adding some fantastic options for variation throughout the experience. This is meshed with a more exploration-focused form of completing assassinations, giving you a vast web of targets to take down in any order you see fit, leaving you free to take the entire game at your pace.
But where Shadows really shines is in its fantastic world and setting, and the two gameplay styles that tie into that. This game’s rendition of Feudal Japan is staggeringly gorgeous; reeds and grass blow in the breeze, frozen peaks peer down at you like giants, and wildlife darts into the undergrowth as you ride through the dense forests. Shadows has a marvelously detailed world that feels alive in so many ways, from bustling towns to a robust selection of emergent sidequests. A lot of these sidequests have interesting little side stories or main narrative implications, but as is Ubisoft’s style, there’s also a handful of minigames and activities repeated ad nauseam.
Shadows never stops giving your eyes a visual feast.
Really, the main complaint you can weigh against Shadows is that it’s simply too big and too long. The black box assassination targets are fun for a while, as is exploring the world and uncovering secrets. But the game doesn’t shake things up enough across the roughly sixty hours it takes to beat it.
But despite that key flaw, Shadows is the best Assassin’s Creed game we’ve seen in years, especially in terms of that core gameplay experience. Shadows has a formula that works well, and packs in a few surprises to boot. This expedition to ancient Japan is well worth taking, but the more exciting aspect is thinking about how Ubisoft could really refine what’s in Shadows — for something truly special.
