I think there’s a strong chance.
Although I do think the two protagonists are a split personality that doesn’tquitework for me.
Kyoto, Iga, Yamato, Tamba, countless others.
Again, if it all sounds a bit familiar - that’s because it is.
Shadows is still very much the Assassin’s Creed template overlain in a lovely Japanese setting.
Stand on a ledge.
Mark the gold glinties that signal loot.
Look for the blue glinty that signals the main objective.
Is the typical fare mind numbing?
No, actually, I found myself enjoying it.
A past me may have called it tedious for not pushing the boundaries enough.
But the current me?
All impactful and occasionally tense if you’re up against a boss, yet a bit one note.
Where Yasuke can’t scale high places with a press of the parkour button, Naoe can.
She whips out a grapple to scale those spots.
It just felt like the right way to get the most mileage out of Shadows' scenarios.
But as Naoe, those same scenarios had some depth to them.
Even just the classic bush-to-bush-and-whistle trick was a laugh.
Oh and quick note on that Hideout (see, I didn’t forget, nosiree) perk.
It was neat and played into the fantasy of Naoe having developed her band of merry assassins.
As someone with Japanese blood running through my veins, I was suitably impressed.
Workers toiling in swaying rice fields.
Quiet stone paths leading up to serene shrines.
Fisherman drying squid on racks, as the waves lap.
However, there were a couple of things to do.
Do I think Assassin’s Creed Shadows will begin Ubisoft corporate redemption arc?
I don’t know about that.
But what I do know is that they’ve seemingly got themselves a strong chance of bagging those sales.
