In 2012, Assassin’s Creed 3 director Alex Hutchinson referred to as out individuals on the web for suggesting essentially the most “boring” future settings for the collection. “The three most needed [settings for Assassin’s Creed] are WWII, feudal Japan and Egypt,” he defined on the time, including “They’re form of the three worst settings for an AC sport.” Hutchinson later clarified his assertion, saying “the purpose I used to be attempting to make was that within the broad strokes and scale of historical past, that’s a theme that’s been well-mined in video video games.” He’s not fallacious and since he made his most up-to-date feedback, Ghost of Tsushima, Rise of the Ronin, Neo and extra have all shone a highlight on feudal Japan.
Fast-forward to 2025 and Assassin’s Creed is lastly going to certainly one of these “worst” settings with Assassin’s Creed: Shadows, however Shadows director Jonathan Dumont believes his workforce has discovered a brand new approach to inform the story of feudal Japan.
“I feel it isn’t boring in any respect. The setting may be very thrilling,” Dumont says when requested about Hutchinson’s quote. “I do suppose that with the ability to deliver it to life and have that steadiness of the political intrigue [of the era], the conflict and battle, and likewise the great thing about nature and supporting extra exploration inside this altering world give it one other dimension [compared to other games].”
Hutchinson wasn’t fallacious again in 2012. The setting of Feudal Japan has certainly been probably the most requested areas for the Assassin’s Creed collection. Bringing the collection’ distinctive mix of historic fiction and sci-fi to the backdrop of warring states and samurai in fierce battle appeared like a no brainer for developer Ubisoft to make occur sooner fairly than later. The solely drawback was Ubisoft selected later, maybe to its detriment.
Though Ubisoft has been praised for exploring beforehand missed historic settings like Egypt and Industrial Revolution England, different builders have crushed Ubisoft to open-world stealth-action video games set in Japan with titles like Sucker Punch’s Ghost of Tsushima. That stated, reveals like FX’s Shogun show that individuals’s appetites for samurai motion hasn’t waned within the least. Much like Shogun, Assassin’s Creed: Shadows explores how outsiders navigate the courts and politics of feudal Japan. And the Assassin’s Creed identify has a built-in repute all by itself.
Dumont highlights the battle and historic impression of the period – notably in how Japan was “opened up” to the remainder of the world for the primary time following the arrival of Portuguese retailers and missionaries throughout the late 1500s Sengoku period.
“What made the setting attention-grabbing for us to sort out was the political panorama of the time, together with the humanities and the surroundings of that period. We’ve seen different video games do it earlier than, however not within the Assassin’s Creed means that we’re doing it,” says Dumont. “We even have that huge open-world feeling with the massive cities, the wilderness, and we actually contact upon the historic arts and the reconstruction of those areas to make it actual for that point. So I do not suppose we have seen that essentially in lots of video games [covering this era] – to actually discover and convey you into that world.”
According to Dumont, the political intrigue of the period made it a very compelling setting to sort out for Assassin’s Creed. A key distinction he highlights that makes Shadows completely different from different video games is the way it brings a extra dynamic and deeper dive right into a politically troubled period stuffed with battle – one which gamers will have the ability to immerse themselves in and be taught extra about nearly from the second the sport begins.
There can also be the matter of latest know-how that Ubisoft utilized as a way to deliver its model of Japan to life.
“The workforce was very smitten by Assassin’s Creed’s tackle Feudal Japan, and we felt that the most recent technological enhancements and new consoles would assist us deliver that imaginative and prescient to life,” says Dumont. He highlights the dynamic climate and seamless open-world, and in keeping with our evaluation, the workforce seemingly succeeded in creating top-of-the-line historic areas in Assassin’s Creed historical past.
Remember, the Assassin’s Creed collection started throughout the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 period, and since then know-how has come a great distance, with 4K decision, larger open worlds with higher density, and ray-tracing now customary on consoles and PC.
“What that does is give a way more ‘alive’ feeling than what we have performed previously [with other games],” he continues. “So I feel that know-how that took a number of years to develop is omnipresent and throughout you throughout the sport. It does deliver one other dimension of with the ability to see the world in several states – which supplies it extra depth. It wouldn’t have been doable to make Shadows with out our present know-how; I do not suppose we might have gotten that feeling of shedding ourselves on this open world with out it.”
What makes the Assassin’s Creed collection so compelling is the way it takes historic settings and injects its patented stealth-action gameplay and open-world immersion to make all of them the extra engrossing. Assassin’s Creed Shadows leans into the samurai and ninja fantasy, very like different video games tackling this setting. And the necessity to one-up the competitors offered a giant problem to make sure the sport’s scope was properly realized – and given the prolonged await the collection to sort out a Japan setting, Dumont felt the wait was price it.
“It’s actually all about holding the imaginative and prescient there, and the workforce retains pushing for higher high quality in each facet,” he says. “There’s at all times a problem with attempting to fulfill individuals’s expectations, and we additionally put the stress on ourselves to do the most effective we will.”
For extra on Assassin’s Creed Shadows, try IGN’s evaluation of the sport.
