I played 6 hours of Assassin’s Creed Shadows early at Ubisoft Quebec’s Studios, where in this video, I go over gameplay details you need to know as well as give you a breakdown on parkour, stealth, combat & more!
If you didn’t know though, Assassin’s Creed Shadows is an upcoming action role-playing game developed by Ubisoft Quebec and published by Ubisoft. The game is the 14th major installment in the Assassin’s Creed series and the successor to 2023’s Assassin’s Creed Mirage, as well as the first title to be included in the Assassin’s Creed: Infinity platform.
Set in 16th-century Japan at the end of the Sengoku period, the game will focus on the millennia-old struggle of the Assassin Brotherhood, who fight for peace and liberty, and the Templar Order, who desire peace through control, from the perspective of two protagonists: Naoe, a female shinobi, and Yasuke, an African samurai inspired by the historical figure of the same name. The two characters control differently and provide a unique gameplay style, allowing quests to be approached in multiple ways.
Shadows is scheduled to release for PlayStation 5, Windows, Xbox Series X/S, macOS, and iPadOS on March 20, 2025.
*Disclaimer:* All footage and topics discussed in this video have been officially shared with me by Ubisoft. All gameplay captured and footage shown adheres to the parameters set by Ubisoft in line with the UK and worldwide embargo guidelines; issued for release on the 23rd of January at 1700, 2025.
═══════════ Cool Links ═══════════
https://www.instagram.com/andyreloads/
https://twitter.com/AndyReloads
https://www.tiktok.com/@andyreloads
https://discord.com/invite/andyreloads
══════════ Credit & Thanks ═════════
*Thank you:* Thanks to the amazing @ubisoftuk for allowing me early access to make this video for the community, as well as Silvia at the UK team.
My additional thanks to the very patient, enthusiastic and welcoming Ubisoft Quebec team for taking the time to speak to me and show me their game!
🎶 @The Flight & @TEKE::TEKE – Themes of Shadows (from Assassin’s Creed Shadows Original Game Soundtrack)
═════════ Official Info ════════════
Assassin’s Creed Shadows is an action-adventure stealth game similar to its predecessors. It is developed on an upgraded version of Anvil, utilizing dynamic lighting and environmental interactions with new enhancements such as breakable props, in addition to allowing players to manipulate shadows and use a grappling hook for parkour.
The game’s open world, whose size is comparable to that from Assassin’s Creed Origins, progresses through seasons, each affecting gameplay, including frozen water and icicles in winter, long grass and blooming plants in spring. Missions are non-linear, encouraging players to track and eliminate targets freely; in a change from previous games, vantage points will exist in the world but only to help the player scan the environment for points of interest, rather than populating the player’s map with objectives markers.
One can recruit and train a spy network to gather intelligence, alongside bribing officials to ascertain the whereabouts of targets.
══════ More AndyReloads ══════
🎬 | AndyReloads | The Ultimate Update on Assassin’s Creed Shadows in 2025
https://youtu.be/NlmU1u416i0
🎬 | AndyReloads | I got to see 3x private demos of Assassin’s Creed Shadows… (New Gameplay & Impressions)
https://youtu.be/vAE9tKjXWCI
🎬 | AndyReloads | I did NOT expect this in Assassin’s Creed Shadows…
https://youtu.be/mGaTHlklIeQ
🎬 | AndyReloads | Assassin’s Creed Shadows Trailer Breakdown – Exciting NEW Details!
https://youtu.be/8UFYL18-eQg
🎬 | AndyReloads | Everything You Need to Know about Assassin’s Creed Shadows (2024)
https://youtu.be/c9JL2FH2ZeE
═════════ Timestamps ════════
00:00 |📢| Intro | Assassin’s Creed Shadows
00:55 | Playtest Breakdown | Assassin’s Creed Shadows
02:06 | Visual Impressions | Assassin’s Creed Shadows
02:37 | Session 1: Prologue & Improvements | Assassin’s Creed Shadows
03:39 | Session 1: Yasuke Combat Breakdown | Assassin’s Creed Shadows
04:58 | Session 1: Enemy AI Improvements | Assassin’s Creed Shadows
06:21 | Session 1: Naoe First Impressions | Assassin’s Creed Shadows
07:12 | Session 1: Going Prone | Assassin’s Creed Shadows
08:44 | Session 2: Stealth, Parkour, Combat & Exploration | Assassin’s Creed Shadows
09:36 | Session 2: Can Yasuke Parkour? | Assassin’s Creed Shadows
10:20 | Session 2: Black Box Missions & Scouts | Assassin’s Creed Shadows
12:02 | Session 2: Character Switching | Assassin’s Creed Shadows
12:56 | Session 2: Light & Shadow Mechanic | Assassin’s Creed Shadows
15:23 | Session 3: Hideout, Recruits & Customisation | Assassin’s Creed Shadows
17:53 | Session 3: Concerns | Assassin’s Creed Shadows
18:31 | Final Thoughts | Assassin’s Creed Shadows
19:51 | Animus Hub | Assassin’s Creed Shadows
20:12 |☕| Outro & Thanks
═════════ Hashtags ═════════
| #AssassinsCreedShadows | #ACShadows | #AssassinsCreed
source
🥷I hope this video gives you a good steer on whether it's something you think is worth your time/money, very keen to hear your own opinions and thoughts down below, good & bad! 👇🏻
Naoe looks to be infinitely more fun to play with than Yasuke. Hopefully, you can just play as her throughout.
That hideout feature is so good ❤, i liked that whenever we draw some animals , after drawing the picture 🖼️ of that particular animal , it will be unlocked and we could bring it in our hideout ✨🤌
Thanks for this video @andy❤
i also play on PC and the game looks so nice and smooth. i am very excited to play it. it's kinda nice that you can go for the stealth aproach or go in blades blazing! thanks for the impressions of the game and it's mechanics. it helps us, a lot, to know if the game is worth it. i was already sold when they announced it, lol . i really don't care about the drama. drama never kept me away from a game.
In every tidbit that I've seen of this game, including the published early access clips, I feel more and more confident that this game will be the best and most polished of the RPGs. There's still a little trepidation but I'm loving what I'm seeing thus far. Great video, sir.
I haven’t played the last 2 or 3 AC because of hearing pretty much bad things about them , but that has now changed for me , Ubisoft just very well have won me over with this title , genuinely looking forward to this game coming out and will be parting with my money this time round , well done folks at Ubisoft 👍
Really excited for the game
Noice game tbh
strange: your feelings were largely positive as opposed to known Italian Youtubers (known to us Italians mostly, of course) who were not at all enthusiastic about the game (they were also able to test it for few hours). In any case appreciate the amount of details and effort put in your video – is very informative.
I still think they should have left Yasuke out of this. Naoe makes sense, I like her at first impressions, but I feel Yasuke is just there because "you have to have a samurai in Feudal Japan". I definitely will play mostly Naoe.
Great info – looking forward to seeing more of your videos!
There has not beeen much info on Performance on Console, holding back until I know. Also no Family share on Steam, that's a shame. Not sure which platform to get yet.
Awesome video Andy. Glad you got this opportunity. Cant wait to play. Looking forward to the new stealth and playing with the Hideout.
I'm hoping for shadows to be that awesome breath of fresh air from the moment we start the game like odyssey n origins, Vs the unfortunate stale lethargy of yet another Unisoft open world RPG, u know, the ones with fetch quests n never ending collectibles
Game looks great except for yasuke if the game was all about naoe it would be a masterpiece and i really enjoyed watching you playing as her hope i can win a copy so i can experience playing as her 😊😊
i like they added the visual customization (transmog) back from odyssey and not needing to go to the settlement
Apart from the facial animations, bad English voice acting (Japanese is much better) and weird combat, I have no complaints about the game. I'm really looking forward to it, and the expectations are more justified.
Great video mate. ❤
Looking at parkour moves, there's still a delay, like a "superhero landing," and everyone knows freerunning is all about using and changing that moment. When you jump off, you have to roll to use that momentum and not take damage. I can tell you this from personal experience as a new freerunner, but my buddy used to be really good at it and always moved fluidly. And when i look at our female character, she have that pause time… when she jump she hold for 1-2s, that is not naatural, its not ninja movement at all, i will not talk about Our male character, i think i will not play him at all if i don;t have to. I loved Adéwalé, as character it was good writen character, we loved him and he was not forced to be there he fits, in that time. Almost every time i played ac i was playing "glass canon " builds if i could, 1 hit everything and die if they hit you. You are asassin you can;t get hit that was my way, in ac with Ezio always conters with knifes or hiden blade, or barehends vs heavy enemy. If they will not make gameplay enjoyable like fight, stelth and parkour i will not play it even for free. Even if it will be last nail in coffin, im done for with ubisoft ctrl+c crtl+v games, they stop paying atention to ther fan base, and starts to be Disney and flame everything at gamers, cuz we are ra..,na.. etc.
The game looks beautiful, polished, and "NEW." My only concern for this game is the parkour. It is an improvement from Valhalla but not from Mirage due to 2 things (hight gaining wall jumps and low buildings)
I'm really looking forward to this game. Of the recent editions, I loved Odyssey the most. Hoping that the combat isn't too complex as I'm a keyboard/mouse player.
I have a question, Can u use keyboard and mouse? because ive only seen vids where they used controller
I think it looks good but i saw some bugs here and there not a big bug that you cant play but a anoying one in my opinion (i saw some bugs animations with naoes katana when she equipped her katana or the sound when they talked and it didnt match and some facials are not good i hope they can polish some stuff and secure that it will be a hit) and with the two monthes left they can for sure clean everything up and release it it looks fun i am not gonna pre order it (maybe) but all in all fun
better cutscenes and gameplay, they definitely listen to the fans this time. i will definitely be playing
I'm hopeful 🙂 Still don't see why I would play as Yasuke, no problem with him, just doesn't look as fun as Naoe. He should've been a DLC or cool side arc.
Looking forward to this one as much as I was looking forward to Valhalla, thanks for another great preview, Andy! I also completely agree with your assessment of the need for replay-able missions!
Yes this is 1000 percent worth my time
I hope there is an option in settings to make weapons only sheath manually and not automatically after a moment.
I am quite impressed with the new parcours and all the new gameplay. For me i will definitely play this game mostly with Naoe. The game looks beautiful and so looking forward to play it! Hopefully this will stop the none sense hate toward AC and Ubisoft
I had my doubts but I am glad that it sounds like the Creed is back.
Cannot wait to spend days on this game, but I do wish the non-cinematic dialogue scenes were less robotic and more like Horizon
I really can't wait till play AC Shadows. It looks amazing
I know this focuses fairly heavily on the actual gameplay, but how are we looking for story elements? Are there people that train Naoe as an official Assassin as part of the order, or is she totally blind to it like Eivor was and just happens to be thrust into it? Since Valhalla I actually missed the official 'Assassin Order' being a focal point of the games, and I hoped we'd get a link back to the already established lore. The previous games leaned more into the 'new' Isu race stuff, and while I do welcome the inclusion of their stuff in Shadows, hope that the Assassin element is the focal point again.
Game looks great, can't wait for march 20
I hope there is a way to turn off this black and white color when using skill. Looking forward to this game
Sounds really promising… I'm already excited to play it myself