Assassin’s CreedShadows is still, forgive my pun, in the shadows, as we haven’t seen any gameplay footage yet. But, despite being totallyburnt out by the enormous scopeofAssassin’s Creed Valhalla, I recently discovered that I’ve somewhat missed exploring the historical settings Ubisoft generally excels at, so Shadows seems like the perfect title to scratch that itch. Especially since I’m not playingGhost of Tsushimalike many other PC players these days. I thoroughly enjoyed that game four years ago, so I’m ready to dive into the samurai era all over again.
No One Cares About Assassin’s Creed Mirage, And That’s Bad For Gaming
I guess you could say Ubisoft’s claims about the game’s success are something of… a mirage.
Among all the discussionssurrounding the you-know-what aspectof Assassin’s Creed Shadows, it seems like there is simply no other discourse about the series' next entry so far. To me, though, Shadows seems most appealing because of the briefly teased feature: changing seasons of the year as the story progresses. Sure, we’ve yet to see how exactly it’ll work to the game’s benefit, but I feel like this should be a new standard for huge open-world titles going forward. Here’s why.
Fits Open-World Games Like A Glove
For far too long, worlds in gaming have remained too static. Seasonal changes should be just the first step in creating more immersive and dynamic environments that weren’t possible before. While we’ve seen this feature in big games of other genres, it’s still relatively novel for large-scale action-RPGs, especially those set in realistic or historical environments.
The most obvious examples areForza Horizon 4and 5, where every couple of weeks, the game worlds of Britain and Mexico change accordingly, providing various driving conditions and sometimes even extreme weather. Driving on dry, summer gravel is not the same as traversing through thick snow and dirt in winter. Additionally, the beauty of each new season transforms familiar environments into something entirely fresh.
Star Wars Outlaws Looks Like Another Tired, Open World Game
It screams ‘product’ in my face.
Another recent example that comes to mind isHogwarts Legacy, which is probably much simpler to compare with Assassin’s Creed Shadows. Due to its classic structure of the academic year, familiar to everyHarry Potterfan, Hogwarts and its surrounding areas also change as players progress through the story. It’s an effective and spectacular feature for a huge open world like Hogwarts Legacy’s, keeping the environment fresh for long hours. However, its impact on other gameplay mechanics is almost non-existent, unlike in Forza.
As far as we know, Assassin’s Creed Shadows' seasonal changes won’t be entirely dynamic; instead, they will be tied to the game’s progression and specific main missions. As for the side quests, they are seemingly not tied to specific seasons, meaning that two players can tackle the same mission either in summer or in winter. Perhaps, this approach is better suited to the game’s narrative or historical authenticity, if that seriously concerns anyone at this point in a franchise as loose as this.
Tying seasons to the story also brings to mindThe Last of Us, where Joel and Ellie travel throughout the entire year, visiting different regions of the US in different seasons. While Shadows most likely won’t adopt a road-movie structure, closing off already visited regions behind the player, different seasons in Japan might enhance the impressions of certain themes and plot lines explored in the upcoming title.
Could It Show A New Way Forward?
Given how vast open worlds in modern games usually are, developers often resort tosqueezing several seasons into one big map, with classic areas such as snowy mountains, hot deserts, and temperate zones. While this approach certainly has its merits, its repeated use across many projects over the years has made it feel somewhat stale. With Assassin’s Creed Shadows being the first entry in the series to feature seasonal changes, it could set a precedent for many open-world games to follow.
Moreover,Ubisoftclaims that these changes will dynamically affect the game world around the player, unlocking new possibilities. For instance, a pond present in the summer might be frozen over in winter, preventing players from diving in. This idea introduces new pathways while removing old ones simultaneously, allowing the team to create missions in revisited areas that play out completely differently from previous infiltrations.
2024’s Samurai Games Have A Tough Task Matching Ghost Of Tsushima
Rise of the Ronin and Assassin’s Creed Red seem promising, but can they really top Ghost Of Tsushima?
The dynamic seasons can provide many exciting possibilities beyond the already familiar day-night cycles and dynamic weather systems, especially when properly integrated with other sandbox mechanics. Exploring a world that continuously undergoes visual changes will be much more engaging. Adding unique situations, enemies, or stealth opportunities on top of that seems so natural that it’s surprising we’ve kept this diversity out of gaming for so long.
Even with the limited information we have about Assassin’s Creed Shadows' seasonal mechanics so far, it already sounds like one of the most important aspects of the upcoming game, with the potential to impact the entire genre for years to come. It’s past time for gaming to adopt this exciting feature to its fullest, presenting more dynamic and believable settings that don’t feel frozen in time.
