Mdm_Thomas Assassin's Creed Shadows Review

Assassin's Creed Shadows is a continuity of the RPG era and pretty much every point that was lacking and/or was bad from Valhalla has been corrected here. Graphics are still a bit of a let down from the average in the industry (mainly faces details and animations) but the overall visuals (screen filters, particles, weather and lighting effects) are among the best we've seen so far (played on PC with pretty much everything maxed out). Gameplay-wise, we start as Naoe that is the typical assassin build with discretion abilities, fast movements, parkour-like animations and, of course, the Hidden Blade. It is clearly the best way to play the game. Advancing in the story, you will unlock Yasuke but as much as like the samuraïs, fighting multiple ennemies at once, with heavy mechanics (heavy slower movements, no real discretion abilities) I felt that it wasn't the way the game was designed and had the impression that Ubisoft added Yasuke as playable character "just because" feudal Japan means samuraïs and they should have gone full shinobi-assassin style and protagonist even though Yasuke is a really interesting character, only as NPC. Fighting is really enjoyable and badass with finishers but at the same time is let down by ennemies AI. You end up always doing the same thing, waiting for the ennemy to attack, counterattack with critical damage. Some ennemies will do different moves you can't counter or have to counter 3-4 times before doing a critical hit. Different abilities can add some spice to it but it doesn't really do that much to save this. The story introduction is a bit messy with flashbacks triggered with open world activities (activities that once you get all the flashbacks, are pretty much useless after that). There are multiple storylines just like the other AC with different "groups" that need to be eliminated but, unlike previous titles, you have hints on where the target is and have the ability to send scouts to pinpoint the exact location. The open world follows the classic Ubisoft formula with beautiful and rich environements. I say "rich" because it feels rich and full with differents areas, forests and mountains but overall it is pretty empty activity-wise. It could really be better with just a bit more of random encounters or more activites to do. Seasons add a little spice to exploration and changes a bit the way you play (for example, you move slower in snow can't sprint on icy surfaces) but it ends there, no real other gameplay consequences. The overall ambiance is really well done and the sound design is really good. Following Valhalla, you will unlock the hideout, where you can build everything. It is interesting at first but rapidly feels useless. It can give you some temporary perks but you won't really