The game can look stunning in some cases. We’re finally getting that Assassin’s Creed dream game and it’s so good.
But it is still a map game for sure. You’re on your own after a small intro and you’re supposed to figuring it out for yourself. And the map…yeah it’s still huge.
I’m not complaining but people should be aware of that. It’s an evolution of Valhalla.
Is it a map worth exploring? Nice and dense?
Yes. It’s vast and with a lot of dense forest you’re not supposed to go through and abrupt mountains that are hard to climb. It’s Japan. It’s kind of hard to know where you’re supposed to go. I like it though. There’s a lot of high points where you can see very very far away.
Oh yeah, that was a while back. I loved the game, was a nice change of pace from the AC’s which came before it. I enjoy both the “old” and the “new” style though.
Exploring Egypt was awesome! I found myself often just walking around looking at things, as I often do when I’m into it heh. Story, gameplay and exploration was great. Main game was excellent, so was the expansions and I 100% it all. I wish we could have seen a bit more of Aya (and Rome!) but Bayek was good.
Ranking is hard, but it’s a top 3. Behind the Ezio Trilogy (which I consider one big ass game) and Odyssey which has Kassandra who is my favourite AC protagonist so far.
https://x.com/vgtgamingnews/status/1903068549591032268?s=46&t=O_AGT9SEnlptKOF_2SxtqQ
Unless there’s an achievement, I know I’m going for fast forward (with all due respect).
It is a good example of bloat and why the industry is in decline. I always roll credits - I tried on the last Call of Duty I completed and credits took about an hour. 1000s upon 1000s involved. So many 3rd party companies and translators involved. It’s nuts. GTA’s will probably take a week.
Started the game this morning because I couldn’t sleep well, am absolutely loving it. I’m going to take my time with this one.
Nice!!!
Origins is #2 for me behind Black Flag with Odyssey #3. These are the games that are a 9.5/10 for me. Protagonist wise, it’s the same as the games themselves. Edward Kenway followed by Bayek and then Kassandra. I love Aya from Origins as well and was always hoping for an expansion with her in Rome since I think that it would have made sense.
Haven’t done much in the game yet, but I have put in a surprising 8hrs, surprising because it has only felt like 3. While I’m going with the difficulty and the sneaking on expert, I decided to put on the successful assassinations kill an enemy no matter how much health they have left.
As to me it feels more immersive that unless I get caught and the enemy attacks me, I should be able to one shot them when they’re unaware. The extra health damage though will likely still apply to kunai headshots, as enemies with multiple health bars only lose one.
I am 17 hours in and I spent most of my time in the first region. I think i have seen and done most of what the game offers. I just had to go out of the first region due to the story mission and I can see lots of copy and paste activities.
I think I will just do majority of the story stuff from now on. The game is beautiful and visuals carry the game and this is not the best setting. Still think Italy, france, london, egypt are the best and most interesting.
The parkour aspect feels worse than previous games (the last one I played was odyssey). Its still assassins creed and nothing new about it. I am hoping story might get better as it did start really strong.
Just made some progress in the story with Naoe and that felt weird to me, mostly because I haven’t played much Assassin’s Creed in a while (maybe they’ve done this before), but that felt very cinematic.
Currently playing Assassin’s Creed Shadows. Over 30 hours into the game. Level 30. Playing on expert for combat, normal for stealth, guaranteed assassinations off, visibility meter/detection meter/ranged meter/perception meter all off. Aim assist off. Guided Exploration is on. I do have quick time events set to auto. Playing in “canon” mode.
Anyway, visually, arguably the best looking game of the generation. The world looks amazing and the seasons/weather just adds to it. Audio is really good thus far with some music reminding me of Kill Bill. Sound effects are good and I like all the voice acting thus far. Story and characters have all been great as of now but im still pretty early with the “main” story. Unlocked Yasuke earlier today.
Gameplay/combat is where my biggest negatives and issues are at. A few I already knew about going in based on gameplay trailers and whatnot. First and foremost is the removal of free climbing. Free climbing in my opinion IS the evolution of parkour and movement not just for Assassin’s Creed but should also be the standard for open world games. Stop restricting me when it comes to what I can or can’t climb. It’s so aggravating and frustrating.
Second is bringing back the eagle vision which replaces using an actual Eagle/Raven of the previous three games. Seeing an area or castle/outpost/etc. from the sky and being able to mark enemies and treasure chests, etc. is so much better and IS the evolution of “vision/scouting/whatever you want to call it” because it’s simply better.
3rd - the removal of way points on screen (not the shitty compass which I will get to in a minute) until you’re within 100 meters of the marker. This pisses me off because it forces me to keep the compass on the screen which I hate and have always seen as old, outdated and obsolete. Mini-map will ALWAYS be superior. Even without a mini-map like the previous three main games, I didn’t need the compass because I would just way point a quest or “?” icon (aka point of interest) on the world map and then just go there. And it takes up too much space on the top of the screen.
4th - the controller configuration. Every melee combat game is obsessed with making the right shoulder and right trigger buttons the attack buttons. Well, this shit can fuck off. X/Square and Y/Triangle should be the buttons for light/heavy attacks. And yes, I tried changing all the buttons to get it to what it was in Origins/Odyssey when using the alternate control scheme but I can’t because everything I want to do conflicts with other shit.
5th - im not a fan of respawning enemies when clearing out enemy camps and whatnot because with every season change, the enemies all respawn which means you’ll never truly clear them out. I understand if there’s a quest in one of these areas and enemies will be there but otherwise, it’s so annoying. So what I basically do now is just complete the main/secondary objective and that’s it.
6th - back to eagle vision/marking enemies, etc. for a second. Climbing to the top of a viewpoint and holding LT/L2 and going over all the icons so they appear on the map is just so tiresome and tedious. Not only that but when in a camp, while you can mark enemies that are close without using the eagle vision, it’s best to use it and then hold down LT/L2 as you’ll mark more enemies that are slightly further out and you have to use this “observe” mechanic to “tag” all the loot/resources in the area which brings me to one of my major issues that I had with Valhalla, all this stuff is a freaking yellow/white dot on the screen.
7th - why is there a cover system? And by that I mean why am I sticking to cover like im playing The Division/Gears of War? WTF? This shit was in Unity and I hated it then, still hate it now. It doesn’t belong in Assassin’s Creed.
8th - this is minor but I don’t like it and haven’t since Splinter Cell Conviction - last known position. Just UGH.
Moving now to the pure combat and related stuff. The combat itself is good and im enjoying it more than I ever did in Valhalla (or Mirage for that matter) but it’s too heavily reliant on using the deflection mechanic in order to “open” up an enemy to attacks. Combat itself isn’t hard even on expert unless you’re outnumbered 3 to 1 or more or have 1 or 2 ranged enemies along with the few enemies in your face. With that said, your weapons and gear must be equal to the enemy level or at least within 2 because if not, the damage you will take as Naoe is a lot. A few hits especially if it’s a “red” attack and you’re dead. The animations are good, however, using the Katana, the attacks and finishers simply repeat over and over. Also, while im not 100% certain, I don’t think that there’s dismemberment or decapitations when playing as Naoe because I haven’t seen one yet.
Camera wise, it’s horrible during combat. So many times, the camera is too close/zoomed in to where enemies are off-screen yet im still hitting them. The camera should be zoomed out so you have a wide view of the enemies around you. You literally have to keep rotating the camera around you during fights against multiple enemies. Also, after doing a special attack, the lock on mechanic goes off that enemy even if the enemy is still alive. This has screwed me a few times already.
Connected to the combat and weapons are the skill trees because there’s six of them for Naoe and Yasuke. While vastly better than Valhalla, im not a fan of how it’s setup. There’s 6 knowledge ranks and you need to get 10 knowledge points in order to unlock the next rank which unlocks moves/abilities/etc. in the six skill trees. To get these knowledge points, you have to complete side activities that are marked in a dark orange. Basically mediation, the path of something (forgot the name) and a few others. These are all connected to the Map Pack micro-transaction which I bought because I know how I am and im not looking for every little shit in the game especially if it’s an activity that’s required to progress. To me, this is two extra steps (if not more due to how many points you need to move up knowledge ranks) than what it needed to be.
Regarding loot itself, im playing via Ubisoft+ which gives the player the deluxe edition weapons and items. Forgot the name but I have the legendary katana, head piece, armor and trinket. It’s all I have used throughout the entire game. I don’t like the Tanto blade weapon at all. And I just got the chain weapon (forgot what it’s called) and used it twice. I don’t really care for it all that much. Basically, unlike Origins/Odyssey where I used at least three different melee combat weapons during my playthroughs, here it’s just one. The Katana. The tools are fine.
I did switch my weapons and armor today but im still exclusively using the Katana with Naoe as I don’t like the Tanto blade or the chain/ball weapon at all. With Yasuke, I simply use the long Katana. Tried using the bow but it just doesn’t have the movement and fluidity that’s in Origins/Odyssey. Also, why Yasuke has 8 weapon/gear slots and Naoe only has 6 is bullshit. She should at the very least have a bow.
However, as far as I can tell, there’s no “explosive” tool like a bomb/grenade for Naoe and guess what, I came across a dungeon or whatever that has a Legendary Chest in it but I can’t get to it because it’s caved in and you need to blow it up. You can easily know this because above the steps are two of those red barrels that you know are in every fucking game known to man that you can blow up which is great and all, however, as Naoe, there’s no way for me to place it in front of the cave in. I can’t pick it up or anything. So either this is a skill that I have missed in the skill trees or it’s for Yasuke only. Speaking of Yasuke only, he gets a bow which really pisses me off because I liked using bows and arrows in Origins/Odyssey but here, I can’t unless I play as Yasuke and I know he can’t climb shit nor does he do any stealth.
Stealth wise, im playing on normal because I don’t want to be seen while on roof tops because well, fuck that. I believe Origins/Odyssey is far better. Main reason being is that with Naoe even when crouched, enemies can still detect you if they’re close but prone they don’t unless they’re literally walking over you or some shit. The issue with this is that you’re meant to be prone more than crouched and in bushes and whatnot. The second issue besides this would be the camera. The camera is mostly behind you as opposed to Origins/Odyssey where the camera is behind above you meaning the angle allows you to see the surrounding area even when in foliage where as in Shadows, it’s not as clear or as wide of a view. And if you’re prone, you’re not seeing shit.
With all of that said, the vast majority of issues I have will be non-existsent for the majority of those who play Shadows. But like I have said numerous times, I care about what it is for me and what Shadows is for me is basically in the middle of all the AC games I have completed. For anyone who’s curious, my rankings are -
As of now, Shadows is looking like my 5th or 6th best AC game. I really enjoyed Syndicate so it will come down to how the story/characters play out for me in Shadows which thus far, im really enjoying as it along with the graphics, the world and the audio is keeping me interested and immersed enough to where I will see the game through.
Scout wise, I only use them for tagging resources since I have guided exploration on. I had two quests where I had to look for a musician and a gear vendor and couldn’t find either. Said screw that within a few minutes of each as there’s a radius you have to search and locate them. Nah, screw that. I’m not nor will ever be someone that wants to look for all this shit when instead, I could actually be doing all this shit. UGH.
Almost forgot, the Homestead is pretty cool. I’m not really into the base building and whatnot but thus far, I have all the buildings maxed out but need to add attachments to make the settlement level itself get maxed out.
Quest wise, I would say that all of them have been solid at the very least with the main story being really good and the side quests have been thus far better than I was expecting. However, this was all in the first opening region of the game. Hoping it stays at the good level for me at the very least and I will be happy.
Not a fan of there being quests/activities that are for only Naoe/Yasuke. Not into the dual protagonist setup at all because to me, it’s too limiting to both characters when playing the game. Story wise and all that is fine but gameplay wise, not into the setup.
I will say that I will at some point later this year or in 2026, replay Origins and Odyssey because they’re exactly what Assassin’s Creed should be. Excellent action RPG’s with an evolution focused on parkour via free climbing and eagle vision being an actual eagle. So good!!!
Will post my review once I complete the game by mid-April.
I’m in a vast minority but I think this ruined the Far Cry franchise after 2. Most of the reviewers complained about it so when they took out respawning enemies in FC3 it became incredibly boring to me (I thought FC3 was a huge downgrade and it never hit the highs of 2 again). In FC2 towards the last 1/4 of the game you were a god - respawning enemies were just fodder for your mercenary destructive pleasures. Taking them out meant I was just traveling between points. I hated it. I need something to murder in between point - FC2 gave you the ability to sneak around if that was your jam anyway.
Considering how big the game is and how many random combat encounters there are that repeat as well as all the repeatable contracts with copied layouts as well as the castles and whatnot, there’s more than enough of these throughout a single play through.
With respawning enemies, I don’t even look to fight in castles. I go after the Samurai Daishos and then get the main treasure chest and im out because to go through all the enemies for them to respawn again and again just isn’t any fun nor does it feel like im progressing/accomplishing anything.
To each their own and all that but as someone who prefers to “clear out” everything region by region from start to finish, the respawning enemies simply prevents me from achieving this and in turn, makes me want to avoid combat in certain aspects because I know that at some point, I will have to fight all the enemies again.
Regardless of opinions about game features I think your points were well thought out 
I also really dont like re-spawning enemies and resources especially at the castles. Makes the effort of clearing them useless. Even for the theme and story they re telling, it makes no sense.
Overall the map needs to be smaller with less bloat but I fee like they are at odds with the RPG approach and action approach. They want to extend the games length with large maps and same activities and the RPG activities boil down to bloat and finding a different gear which has different numbers.
People seem to be liking this RPG approach so they keep making them that way
I love the RPG approach but outside of the contracts which I can understand, the castles and whatnot should all be a one and done in my opinion. I would have preferred the story to include “liberating” each region because when games have this, it normally means that one you complete everything in the region, it’s “complete” with no reason to go back and the only thing you’ll encounter is the random encounters here and there which is fine.
Since where talking about other AC games, I was wondering if there’s anything that can be done on Xbox to make origins feels good to play? Because everytime I have started the game it always feels clunky to me, not as bad as Red Dead 2 but close enough.
Is the 60fps something we have to chose in the menus, Or is it default? Does that it feel beyter to play on 60fps to any whose played it in 30fps?
Wait…what?
As someone who messed around with Origins two months ago, it plays great. It’s way more fluid and responsive than Shadows and especially Valhalla.
There’s no modes. If you play Origins on Series X/S or PS5, it’s automatically 60FPS.