Topic: Assassins Creed shadows

@NintendoBebop I only unlocked Yasuke recently and haven't done any of the main quests since but from what I can tell:

• some conversations within quests may only be available to one character (if you find the NPC as the wrong character they will say the other character should talk to them)
• some of the activities that give you Knowledge Points (they are required to unlock new tiers in the skill trees) are unique to one character (you can, however get near them as the other, switch, do it and then switch back, and they don't take much time)
• some of the Kofuns (tombs-dungeons with a big chest at the end) may require a specific character to complete, as they may contain either platforming challenges that only Naoe can complete or require you to move some heavier stuff around, which she can't do
• killing your targets can most likely be done by either character

Personally, I'm finding both characters quite fun so I'm switching from time to time. I'm using Naoe more than Yasuke so far though.

@Ravix I think it just feels like he's in the wrong game, Naoe seems really well done and fluid in contrast Yasuke is very direct and limited.

@NintendoBebop the story is, in part, of an outsider in a world he is becoming accustomed to. He fits in just right. I really wouldn't worry about it.

One is a warrior, one is a ninja. And the game is about a warrior and a ninja, so it is definitely the right game 🤷‍♂️

I think people get a bit wrapped up in the "but, but, assasins" when the last 3 mainline games had warriors as the protagonists who kind of become assassins. But this one has a Shinobi that becomes an assassin instead, as well as some extra Warrior stuff on the side with Yasuke. It fits the culture to have both of these elements explored, too. As well as a solid link to Portugal, Europe, Christianity etc. Which is more like the themes of the original AC games that were kind of missing with the "Ancient Cult" versions.

@Voltan Thanks for the run down I think I'll be playing Naoe most of the time the stealth seems really nice and the open world looks really serene.

@Ravix It's not the story that's the issue it's that the game seems to work much better for Naoe. Better combat, better movement and parkour. I watched one review that said Yasuke was like trying to get 5 stars on gta with cheats lol. That just doesn't sound fun to me obviously I'm yet to play it so maybe I'll feel differently.

@NintendoBebop yeah, I'm just framing it as to why people may say some things, as they have a preconceived bias towards the game, so are looking for flaws in Yasuke. That's all 😃

To me, initially I quite liked the combat of Yasuke, as it is pretty brutal, but I'm definitely going to be leaning heavily into Naoe for the main assassin type stuff as I do quite enjoy the way they made the parkour flow a little better. And prone rolling into assassinations is going to be hilarious, I can already tell.

In open combat I do prefer parrying over dodge rolling, so I'm still going to be doing a fair bit of Yasuke too, I think.

It seems neither will be a chore to play, and both work at what they do.

Here's some early Yasuke combat and it is pretty handy for defeating groups.

I haven't captured any Naoe moments yet, but she is definitely going to lead to some fun, I can already tell.

I have only just got to play as Yasukes and he is a beast, as said above some parts of the game you are forced to play as one or the other but when you can play either you soon suss out which to play for every scenario, if i am going to bust up a small unmarked camp i find on the way to an objective with few guards i use Yasukes he is a tank, if the camp is big and there are too many guards i tend to use Naoe and not fight she is so much faster and quieter, i think having the choice works well.

So, I think the coolest thing thus far is how I randomly went to a prayer mat/meditation spot near the start of the game that was to the side of a path I was walking down for the main quest. I did this just to see what the minigame would be, and it turned into a little quest/tutorial with some backstory of Naoe. Very cool, very unexpected and very un-ubisoft?

How natural this happened has completely thrown me, as this kind of thing just doesn't happen in Ubi games that often 😂

And woah, it actually turned in to a full cutscene (that was almost as if Guy Ritchie made a samurai movie??? Haha) and a boss fight 😱

I feel like I can give early impressions of the game now.

The World: Looks great, but may be be a bit boring? I don't know if this is a Ubi problem or a Japan problem, as Ghost was kind of a similar feel. It looked great, but it was kind of just there and quests weren't built around it that well. My opinion might change on this one as I play more, but we shall see. I liked when I got to the first built up area and places had their own gardens and there were alleys to head down and more variety so it might be fine the more I explore. But I think open worlds definitely need at least one large settlement to really feel interesting, or have more densely packed and well designed areas. And AC games are usually built to follow markers, so taking that away requires some finesse in quest and world design, and I don't think they are quite there yet. (Please games, learn from KCD how to have guide free quest design that works logically in a world and makes you use your own eyes and brain)

The combat: probably haven't done enough to be fair, but the parry timing seems so jarring. I definitely need to get used to it and work it out. Coming from KCD2 it is a totally different style of combat. I like Naoe and her swift moves, and Yasuke and his power, but they need to add more animations for finishers, or make finishes trigger differently by command so you don't get bored of them. Maybe unlocking new weapons and weapon swapping will help, though. Enemies and NPC's are as they always are, some are bigger, some are smaller, all are stupid. They are the same in a lot of games, but it stands out when you've just played KCD2 and most humans have some form of brains and personalities in that.

Traversal: horses are what they are. Not great in most games but serve a function. Parkour is pretty much more of the same with a few flairs. Grappling hook is nice (I've turned off the hud prompt though) Prone is my new favourite function so far. Towers, it feels like there are too many to be honest and they are seemingly there only for fast travel, but fast travel changes the season if you have taken your time and maxed out the 'season meter'(?)

Seasons: Look nice. Feel realistic. But I don't particularly want the game to portray it's events having happened over 50 years if it doesn't fit the narrative 😅 but it feels like if I don't purposely avoid triggering a season change we are definitely going to see 50 winters while playing the game as a base line minimum

So all in all it is kind of a similar story. I like the newer AC games, and I'm going to enjoy clearing bases and assassinating targets and hopefully randomly sprinting after an NPC who has to move to a new place to actually start the next part of a quest (which I consider classic Ubisoft jank) I will enjoy exploring a little bit, but overall they still do things that will make the experience worse at times, and it makes you wonder why they can't improve on certain things that would make it better for everyone 😅

A few little stolen ideas from Dragon's Dogma and KCD wouldn't hurt Ubisoft (and a lot of open world games tbh)

Story: It wouldn't be fair to start to judge it until at least half way. But I like the way they have the flashback segments intertwined in side activities.
Also: Disclaimer. I'm playing in Canon Mode because I don't believe it's an RPG, it's an action game. So I don't want to be left considering pointless choices. Same as using the Animus mode in Valhalla. Eivor is a woman, Odin is a man. Mix it all up, bob's your uncle. Or whatever. 😅

"Prone is my new favourite function so far"

I forgot to mention prone its brilliant you can sneak past guards and hide in low grass and attack guards as they walk past you.
A lot of loot is hidden under the floor of buildings so you need to crawl in to get it.

@Ulverstonian yeah. And in case my write up seems a bit negative, I'm mostly focusing on the little things they could still improve. I'm looking forward to get stuck in to some large scale base clearing quests soon (hopefully)

Saw a video on YouTube with some ideas I'm going to steal as well, as there's quite a lot you can do to make bases fun to clear.

I'm also loving the Tanto that I just unlocked and have started to combo stealth into combat and back to stealth as it is so damn rapid and has a great ability that I put all my points into where you can throw it and then launch forward, which seems great as a combo with stealth assassinations when you meet a tougher foe you can't take down.