Assassin’s Creed Shadows Switch 2 Review

Assassin’s Creed Shadows Switch 2 Review
Version Reviewed: Nintendo Switch 2

The Assassin’s Creed series swooped into gamers’ hearts with Altair, bringing the age-long battle between Templars and Assassins out of the shadows. Characters like Ezio Auditore and Edward Kenway have continued to drive these sweeping epics, hooking players with stories that span generations. Black Flag on the Wii U was the last game in the series I played, and despite revisiting the high seas on Switch with its rerelease, I thought I had hung up my hidden blade for good.

That was until Assassin’s Creed Shadows was announced for the Nintendo Switch 2, transporting us to Feudal Japan, promising warlords, shinobi, and samurai. What’s it Like?  Find your best gear, sharpen your blade, and stick to the shadows as we review of Assassin’s Creed Shadows on Nintendo Switch 2.

Before we begin, I’m well aware of the discussions around the game’s portrayal of Yasuke and the historical context. This review focuses on Assassin’s Creed Shadows as a video game. I’m evaluating the story, gameplay, performance, and overall experience, not debating historical accuracy or cultural controversies.

Japan at War

Assassin’s Creed Shadows transports players to Feudal Japan, a land of warring clans, hidden agendas, and political turmoil. You step into the slippers of two protagonists: Yasuke, a servant turned Samurai, and Naoe, a skilled shinobi balancing stealth and survival. Their paths intersect as clan tensions rise, forcing them to confront both external enemies and personal challenges.

The narrative unfolds through main missions and side contracts, each adding depth to the characters and the world they inhabit. Yasuke’s journey emphasises duty and combat, while Naoe’s missions focus on infiltration and strategy, which also heavily impacts the gameplay. Side stories and regional arcs enrich the overall world, offering context for feudal conflicts and local politics.

Thankfully, the Animus aspect of the Assassin’s Creed Universe takes a back seat to Shadow’s story, and while it’s still tied into the game, it doesn’t tear you away from the action as it did in previous games, which, in my opinion, really broke immersion.

A Tale of Two Swords

At the start of Assassin’s Creed Shadows, you mostly play as the shinobi Naoe, whose gameplay revolves around stealth and subterfuge. Head-on confrontations rarely end well for her. Her strength lies in sneaking and performing assassinations with the hidden blade. You can fight if you want, and her weapons are effective, but combat is less forgiving and more challenging.

Eventually, you unlock Yasuke, who plays as a tank. He overpowers foes with sheer strength, forcing confrontation rather than stealth. Sneaking isn’t really an option for him as he clumsily climbs walls or barges through doors, making combat unavoidable. If Naoe is the scalpel, Yasuke is the sledgehammer, hitting foes so hard he sends them flying and executing savage finishers. As Yasuke is a tank, you can afford to make mistakes in combat, as well as take on multiple foes.

The contrast between these characters is Assassin’s Creed Shadows’ greatest strength, encouraging varied approaches. In one castle, I crept around as Naoe, using gear that automatically threw a kunai at the nearest enemy after an assassination, silently clearing the area and earning upgrades. In another, I played as Yasuke, smashing through everything in my path. Switching between characters takes only seconds, similar to GTA’s character switching. Small touches, like Yasuke hinting that Naoe would enjoy climbing a particular building to reach a collectible, make the dual-protagonist system feel connected and alive.

A Whole New World

The world of Assassin’s Creed Shadows is large and divided into several zones, each designed for different character levels. Many objectives require the use of scouts to locate targets and gather information, which adds a layer of strategy to exploration. While tracking objectives with scouts, I also randomly discovered crime bosses who ran small syndicates, providing extra challenges beyond the main targets. These encounters added variety and made the world feel alive, and running into these characters felt like when you would find a nemesis in Shadows of Mordor, creating a sense of excitement.

Assassin’s Creed Shadows gives you a personal hideout that you can develop over time. Constructing and upgrading buildings unlocks new features, from better training areas to crafting stations. These improvements directly support your progression, allowing you to enhance gear that complements your playstyle.

Gear upgrades are well designed. Early on, my “tools of the trade” gear, such as the kunai that automatically hit nearby enemies after an assassination, made combat feel really slick. As I levelled up, I was able to upgrade my gear while keeping those perks, ensuring progression did not come at the cost of losing key stats. I really liked this approach to levelling gear, as there’s nothing worse than losing a good perk to outlevelled gear.

Sightseeing

Assassin’s Creed Shadows presents a detailed and vibrant vision of Feudal Japan. Character models are well-defined, with armour, weapons, and clothing showing clear textures and attention to detail. Environmental design is varied and immersive. Villages, castles, forests, and temples all feel distinct. The lighting is particularly well done, with sunlight breaking through trees and glinting off Yasuke’s armour, creating visually impactful moments that enhance immersion. Time of day and weather effects add further depth, from misty mornings to sun-drenched battlegrounds.

Combat and stealth sequences are visually clear, even during chaotic encounters. Effects like smoke, sparks, and blood splatter are crisp and contrast with the world, helping players track action without confusion. Overall, Shadows delivers a visually rich experience that makes exploring its world engaging and rewarding.

All this visual detail sometimes comes at a cost. Assassin’s Creed Shadows aims to maintain 30 frames per second, but I noticed occasional dips to around 24 frames, particularly in the Osaka area near the docks. Loading times are generally quick, and fast travel and switching characters are smooth. Open world level of detail is handled well, with minimal pop-in or texture issues in towns, while more noticeable speeding through the wilderness on horseback.

Unfortunately, I also experienced several crashes to the home screen throughout my playthrough. Thankfully, the auto-save system meant I rarely lost progress, but it was still frustrating to have crashes at key moments in the game that broke the immersion for me.

Tools of the Trade

For my Shinobi and Samurai looking into accessibility options, I’m pleased to report that Assassin’s Creed Shadows has many options to make your time in Feudal Japan more enjoyable. These include HUD tweaks, auto movement, camera shake and adjustments, HUD colour, combat binds, and customising difficulty and VFX. It’s great to see a larger array of accessibility options here, and as always, I recommend further research to see if Assassin’s Creed Shadows suits your needs.

At just under $90 AUD, Assassin’s Creed Shadows is excellent value for gamers looking for their next immersive adventure. While the pack doesn’t include the DLC, which is slated to release early next year, it does include a very lengthy 30-40 hour campaign, as well as stretching that out to over 100 hours for completionists. I rushed through a lot of the game in order to get my review sorted, but I’m hoping to head back when things quieten down and explore more of the world.

Verdict

Assassin’s Creed Shadows is an outstanding addition to the series and a strong showcase for the Nintendo Switch 2. Its dual-protagonist system offers varied gameplay, balancing stealth and combat in ways that keep each encounter fresh. The world is large, visually striking, and full of discoveries, from hidden objectives to mini-syndicates that reward exploration.

Sure, there are a few crashes and framerate issues that hold it back from being an exceptional title, but I have no doubt many of these issues will be patched in a future title update. For both returning fans and newcomers, Shadows delivers a rich, immersive, and highly enjoyable adventure that proves the series still has plenty to offer.

So What’s it Like? Assassin’s Creed Shadows is like Tenchu Stealth Assassin, crossed with Black Flag.

In the interest of full disclosure, a review copy was provided by Ubisoft, but this doesn’t influence my score.

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