Assassin’s Creed has been an integral part of gaming history, with a long run filled with games that range from the greatest of all times to some of the most mediocre out there. It’s like fast food—sometimes you get the tastiest stuff you’ve ever tasted, and other times you end up contracting diarrhea.
Whichever side of discourse one may lie on, it’s difficult to deny the excitement and anticipation another entry in this series generates. With the upcoming Assassin’s Creed Shadows, though, some are questioning whether today’s games in the series can even be called Assassin’s Creed or not.
Assassin’s Creed Shadows’ Latest Leak Has Left Many Excited and a Few Understandably Unhappy
Assassin’s Creed has evolved since the days of Altair and Ezio, diverging quite a bit from its origins in the process. Now, with the latest leaks surrounding Assassin’s Creed Shadows, people continue to question whether the game should even be called Assassin’s Creed or not.
The leaks in question introduce the dual protagonists of Shadows, Yasuke, and Naoe, who’ll take on “The Order,” the Japanese Templars of the game:
Assassins Creed Shadows protagonists and information:
— Rebs Gaming (@Mr_Rebs_) May 14, 2024
•Yasuke: He starts off as a slave on a ship that’s invaded by a group of men and everyone-including his wife–is killed. He’s left for dead before he's found and brought to a temple in Japan. There, he learns about the… pic.twitter.com/3iosZz8HcR
With this leak, fans have begun to discuss theories on what awaits them once they set foot in what looks to be the Sengoku period. Initially, many also questioned the inclusion of Yasuke, who, as a notable historical figure, barely resembles anything related to the Assassins and very much deserves a separate adventure.
This, in turn, devolved into the discussion of why this game is called Assassin’s Creed Shadows in the first place.
Another assassins creed game we're the protagonists have no connection to the assassins guild at all, why do they still insist on calling these games assassins creed when the assassins have little to no involvement in the story and stealth is an after thought
— lee robinson (@leerobi08433142) May 14, 2024
While the Shinobi of the Sengoku era can easily be categorized as assassins, a Samurai, let alone someone who was historically a simple sword-bearer for Oda Nobunaga, is as far away from the underworldly stories that the battle between Assassins and Templars revolves around as it gets.
To be fair, though, Ubisoft has always made some massive creative decisions when it comes to portraying real-world events accurately. There is, after all, the possibility that they may be able to walk the tightrope of portraying a somewhat realistic picture of Yasuke.
The more important discussion then, it seems, is to identify what specific mechanics of a game must be there for the game to truly be called Assassin’s Creed.
Assassin’s Creed Shadows Will Not Be a Return to Assassin’s Creed of Yore
Here’s a harsh pill to swallow: Assassin’s Creed Shadows will most likely not be a return to the series’ roots as a stealth-first title. Despite the attempts made to do exactly that with Assassin’s Creed Mirage, it’s only money that speaks to Ubisoft these days, and the RPG-esque trilogy that came before it made loads of money.
Ubisoft previously clarified that Mirage was a simple one-off, and Shadows will follow in the footsteps of Valhalla and Odyssey. For some, this is disheartening, but at the same time, for younger fans of the series, this may come as a sigh of relief. This is, at the end of the day, what has become of the Assassin’s Creed fan base after all, divided by their love for two very different halves of the series and unable to decide which half they love more.
One thing is clear, however: the battle between Templars and Assassins needs to be a central premise of the game, not something sprinkled across the game in the form of fan service. That premise, at the end of the day, is what the series is about. Whether Ubisoft can accomplish that with Assassin’s Creed Shadows, only time will tell.
With that said, what do you think of the latest leaks? Are you excited about Assassin’s Creed Shadows? Let us know in the comments below.
