Assassin's Creed Shadows Devs Address Criticism from Japanese Fans (2024)

Ubisoft has responded to some recent fan criticism concerning Assassin's Creed Shadows. Among other things, the company addressed complaints over the game's historical accuracy, and elaborated on the creative liberties taken during the development of Assassin's Creed Shadows.

The game's May 2024 reveal prompted some backlash over its representation of feudal Japan. A lot of that criticism was directed at the inclusion of African samurai Yasuke as one of the two protagonists of Assassin's Creed Shadows. Despite the fact that he's the first-ever playable character in the franchise to be based on a real person, some vocal social media users argued that his presence robbed the Japanese audiences of better representation in a game that was perfectly suited for it. Meanwhile, others have taken issue with his depiction as a warrior, pointing out that the rank of samurai that he held was not solely bestowed upon soldiers in premodern Japan.

Ubisoft Responds to Assassin's Creed Shadows Yasuke Criticism

A July 23 statement from Ubisoft saw the company respond to some of that backlash coming from its Japanese fans. Among other things, the developer defended the inclusion of Yasuke by labeling him as "an ideal candidate" for telling the story of Assassin's Creed Shadows. It said that while the real-life Yasuke's role at lord Oda Nobunaga's court was indeed a matter of debate, it chose to depict him as a traditional samurai warrior for the purposes of telling a compelling narrative. On the subject of Japanese representation, Ubisoft insisted that Assassin's Creed Shadows is not lacking in it, not least because Japanese shinobi Naoe is "equally important" to its story.

The statement also saw the company apologize to the Japanese community over some of the game's promotional materials. While this sentiment wasn't expanded upon, it was likely referring to the fact that some previously shared Assassin's Creed Shadows concept art featured a banner of a Japanese reenactment group. Ubisoft Japan had already apologized for this mistake back in mid-July 2024.

Assassin's Creed Games Have Always Been Historical Fiction, Ubisoft Says

Regarding general authenticity complaints, Ubisoft noted that Assassin's Creed games were never intended to be "factual representations of history," but merely historical fiction. Shadows is no different, as it was primarily designed to be a compelling and entertaining experience, the company said.

Even so, Ubisoft confirmed that the creative liberties it has taken with the upcoming game have all been informed by its extensive collaboration with historians, researchers, and other consultants. But the company is taking full responsibility for all of its creative choices, having hence pleaded with fans not to direct their Assassin's Creed Shadows criticism at its collaborators.

Assassin’s Creed Shadows

Previously known as Codename Red, Assassin's Creed Shadows is an upcoming game in Ubisoft's open-world franchise. Set in Feudal Japan, Shadows includes two playable characters, a ninja assassin specializing in stealth and a samurai who focuses on power.

Franchise

Assassin's Creed

Platform(s)

PS5 , PC , Xbox Series X , Xbox Series S , Amazon Luna

Released

November 15, 2024

Developer(s)

Ubisoft Quebec

Publisher(s)

Ubisoft

Genre(s)

Open-World , Action-Adventure , RPG

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