Honestly, while Ghost of Tsushima may have a bit more of the authentic samurai atmosphere and immersion in Sengoku-era Japan, Assassin's Creed: Shadows' story has immersed me -- and impacted me -- to a much greater degree. The prologue alone had me feeling genuine emotions that I wasn't really expecting from an Assassin's Creed game, particularly regarding Naoe's story. Without spoiling anything, there's real narrative weight in her intro and emotional development that caught me off guard. The dual protagonist approach does indeed work remarkably well. Naoe's storyline is incredibly compelling, weaving personal loss with themes of honor, rememberance, and resistance in a way that feels earned. Yasuke's storyline is quite strong, as well. It's authentic to the time period, a little over-the-top in some ways -- but still grounded -- while bringing a fresh and interesting viewpoint to the setting. I don't really want to wade into the culture war nonsense, but if any of those controversies have stopped you from enjoying this game or led you to downrate it -- you're doing yourself a disservice. Judge it on its actual merits: strong writing, two fully-realized protagonists, and period-authentic stories that complement each other beautifully.
Assassin's Creed Shadows Review: Beauty Hiding Monotony Note: This review is based on 50 hours of gameplay. The main storyline and DLC have not yet been completed, so this opinion may be updated in the future. [h1]Overall Impression[/h1] Assassin's Creed Shadows leaves you with mixed feelings. On one hand, the game is impressive with its incredible technical and visual execution. On the other, it suffers from design decisions that prevent you from fully enjoying its world. The plot seems quite interesting, but my engagement with it was severely hampered by the Asian setting; the abundance of unfamiliar names for characters and cities makes it extremely difficult to keep track of the narrative, which breaks the immersion. [h2]Pros[/h2] [list] [*][b]Visuals and Atmosphere.[/b] This is the game's greatest strength. The graphics are magnificent and perfectly convey the mood through weather. The day/night cycle, fog, dawn, rain, and snow are all implemented at the highest level. With headphones, the sound effects, especially the rain, create a stunning atmosphere. [*][b]Animations.[/b] The character movements, especially parkour, look gorgeous. Jumping, climbing, dodging, and hiding are all a pleasure. Everything is very smooth and responsive. [*][b]Enjoyable Stealth.[/b] The stealth mechanics don't aim for realism, but they are perfectly balanced. It's a casual yet engaging stealth system that doesn't get boring even after dozens of hours. Clearing out castles while hiding in the bushes is a relaxing and interesting activity, despite the occasional stupidity of the enemies. [*][b]Progression and Mechanics.[/b] The game features several interesting systems: [b]- Character Progression:[/b] Balanced and intuitive, without unnecessary elements, although experience gain can feel quite slow. [b]- Spy Network:[/b] An interesting mechanic that makes exploring the world and completing missions more engaging. [b]- Camp Development:[/b] The system is interesting, although it requires grinding for resources. However, the grind itself doesn't feel boring as it's organically woven into the enjoyable gameplay loop. [*][b]Combat System.[/b] Responsive and pleasant. While the variety of weapons isn't really felt in practice (for example, I only used the katana), the combat is still enjoyable. [/list] [h2]Cons[/h2] [list] [*][b]The Two-Protagonist System.[/b] For me, this is a huge drawback. Playing as Yasuke is completely uninteresting. In a world where assassins are supposed to be light and agile, he feels slow, clumsy, and completely out of place—a true "Donkey Kong among Assassins." The need to constantly switch to, level up, and complete activities with a character I don't enjoy is very frustrating. [*][b]World Monotony.[/b] Despite the beautiful graphics, the cities and castles look like they were assembled from the same set of building blocks. They lack unique features, are not memorable, and quickly start to feel identical. Yes, their internal layouts are different, but their external appearance is almost indistinguishable. Only the natural landscapes stand out. [*][b]Artificial Padding.[/b] The world is overfilled with activities: question marks, outposts, towers. There are far too many of them, and due to the general lack of variety in the locations, clearing the map quickly becomes a chore. This point is ambiguous: on one hand, it's a negative because the content is artificially stretched. On the other hand, the process of clearing castles remains interesting thanks to the good stealth mechanics. But the sheer quantity is clearly excessive. [/list] [h2]What I Would Suggest to the Developers[/h2] The game's main problem is its gigantic but empty world. I would advise making it three or even four times smaller. The freed-up resources should be directed toward creating truly unique and memorable locations. Every castle, every city should have its own "gimmicks" and features that would require the player to use different tactics and approaches. Quality over quantity. [h2]Conclusion[/h2] Assassin's Creed Shadows is a game with a fantastic presentation and an enjoyable gameplay core, but it is let down by questionable decisions in its world design and narrative. Its visuals and mechanics can provide a lot of fun, but be prepared to put up with monotony and, possibly, a main character you dislike.
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