Highlights
Assassin’s Creed Shadows features a dual protagonist system with unique gameplay styles and abilities for Yasuke and Naoe.
The game has revamped stealth mechanics, drawing inspiration from Splinter Cell with lighting, cover mechanics, and a grappling hook.
Assassin’s Creed Shadows may fill the void left by the absence of a new Splinter Cell game, offering stealth gameplay fans a new experience.
Based on its recent gameplay reveal, Assassin’s Creed Shadows looks like a genuine evolution for the franchise, something the series hasn’t really experienced for almost a decade. One of the most major forms of evolution in Assassin’s Creed Shadows is its dual protagonist system, a feature that allows players to harness two completely different gameplay styles, equip two completely different arsenals, and have access to two sets of unique abilities.
A focal point of the recent Assassin’s Creed Shadows gameplay trailer, Yasuke’s gameplay is going to differ greatly from Naoe’s. While Yasuke is a hulking force to be reckoned with, equipped with heavy-hitting weapons and capable of lethal Ghost of Tsushima-like parries and counters, Naoe takes a much more traditional Assassin’s Creed approach to combat, opting to sneak behind enemy lines and use gadgets to thin the herd. But stealth has been given a major glow-up in Assassin’s Creed Shadows, and it now features some mechanics that could feel a little familiar to long-time Splinter Cell fans.
Related Assassin’s Creed Shadows: How Open Combat Differs for Naoe and Yasuke Assassin’s Creed Shadows features two different protagonists with distinct builds, meaning combat has to contrast accordingly.
Assassin’s Creed Shadows’ Stealth Is Borrowing a Lot From Splinter Cell
From the look of the recent Ubisoft Forward gameplay trailer, it seems as though Assassin’s Creed Shadows is taking some heavy inspiration from the Splinter Cell franchise when it comes to crafting its stealth mechanics. One of the most obvious points of inspiration can be found in Assassin’s Creed Shadows’ titular lighting mechanic, whereby players can now hide themselves in darker areas of the environment, and extinguish light sources to remain hidden. It doesn’t look like Assassin’s Creed Shadows’ lighting mechanic will feature a sliding scale of visibility like in classic Splinter Cell, but it still bears a close resemblance.
Assassin’s Creed Shadows is also adding a Splinter Cell-like cover mechanic, where the player-character will automatically hug a wall if in close proximity to it. From cover, players are able to peek out, observe their surroundings, and mark any foes they can lay eyes on. For the first time in Assassin’s Creed history, players will also now be able to go prone and crawl across the floor, allowing them to better blend in with foliage and other environmental objects.
A big new addition in Assassin’s Creed Shadows is the grappling hook. In the recent Assassin’s Creed Shadows gameplay trailer, this grappling hook was shown off a few times, being used in a new way in each instance. Players can use this grappling hook to swing over an enemy and perform an aerial assassination and to grab enemies from behind and drag them around for a short duration, just like Sam Fisher is wont to do. This grappling hook can also be used to quickly escape a patrolling enemy by letting Naoe fling herself up to the ceiling, again, just like in Splinter Cell.
Splinter Cell Was a Big Miss for Ubisoft’s 2024 Showcase
It’s been over a decade since the last Splinter Cell game was released, and fans are desperate for a new entry. For years now, Ubisoft has teased new Splinter Cell games only to have them get canceled or for them to turn out to be collaborations with games like Rainbow Six Siege. Back in December 2021, Ubisoft announced that a remake of the first Splinter Cell game was in development, but fans haven’t really heard anything about it since, even despite rumors suggesting that it would appear at the recent Ubisoft Forward showcase. There’s a strong desire to see Splinter Cell’s stealth gameplay return to the gaming world, and Assassin’s Creed Shadows might actually be the one to do that.
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.Released November 15, 2024 Expand