I wasn't having much fun with: Assassin's Creed Shadows (Hands-On Impressions)

Video Description

Thanks to Lost in Cult for sponsoring this video. Sign-up to the Legacy of Kain TTRPG + book on BackerKit: https://bit.ly/LoKTTRPG. Check out Lost In Cult's quality books and merch: https://bit.ly/SkillUpLIC and use code SKILLUP for 5% site-wide UPDATE: Ubisoft reached out to me to respond to some of the things I've raised in this video. I don't think their responses would really shift the commentary I would have made in this video, since everything I said was accurate, but their added context explains why I experienced things the way that I did. I've copy and pasted it here: "On killing civilians and not being punished for it: In AC Shadows as in previous entries in the franchise, you can't freely kill civilians. If you do, you will be desynchronized. The only non-armed characters that you can harm are servants who are working for your enemies. They can attack you too with a Tanto and alert Samurais. For a different approach, you can also decide to knock them out as you can with every enemy with Naoe and we're planning to add a non-lethal stealth attack for Yasuke too. About a "wanted" state: Whenever the player is spotted in Castles and one enemy rings the alarm bell, the Guardians will be unleashed. At this moment, Naoe or Yasuke, the one who was spotted, will be Wanted for the whole Province. Any castle in that region will have Guardians waiting for you, but also roaming on roads to find you. Also, every military archetype will now attack you on sight for the whole season. The player can decide to switch character, wait for the season to end, play in another province, or send scouts to remove the Wanted in that region." -- 5 hours with Assassin's Creed Shadows reveals a game that is unsuccessfully trying to remix the core Assassin's Creed gameplay loops, splitting them out across two separate characters in a way that feels awkward and poorly thought out. Combined with lifeless characterisation and an overly familiar approach to world design and exploration, I didn't leave this hands-on session with a lot of excitement for the final product. -- Thanks for taking the time to watch the video. If you'd like to support the channel even more, the best way is through my Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/skillupyt -- You can find all the Skill Up content (reviews, previews, This Week in Videogames & The Friends Per Second Podcast over on Spotify, where you can listen ad-free if you're a Spotify premium subscriber: https://open.spotify.com/show/2w3Injyqj2VoxOxQg6ESbl?si=b651261f52c24e58 BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/skillup.bsky.social Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/skillupyt/?hl=en -- Grab 12% off any SteelSeries peripheral by using offer code SKILLUP at checkout: https://steelseries.pbj2.net/c/2446303/1266556/2390 -- Check out my curator page on steam: https://store.steampowered.com/curator/28625128-Skill-Up-Curates.../ -- Recent vids: The best game of 2024 https://youtu.be/ShInfDuzl7A Indiana Jones and the Great Circle review: https://youtu.be/HtbtcLxJTtY STALKER 2 review: https://youtu.be/BRCLRAJkqjg PS5 Pro review: https://youtu.be/BRCLRAJkqjg Dragon Age: The Veilguard review: https://youtu.be/QF-Kd2BBpx8 Silent Hill 2 review: https://youtu.be/dBoU9SNFw9w Warhammer 40,000 Space Marine 2 review: https://youtu.be/OZ6ur9NOkpE Astrobot review: https://youtu.be/JVAEWreFU0I Star Wars Outlaws review: https://youtu.be/sKo1owZzYcs Concord review (RIP): https://youtu.be/vRrWp_MVAxU Marvel Rivals Impressions https://youtu.be/7rhAYJM-Tho Zenless Zone Zero review: https://youtu.be/r-pvw1xGmKY Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree review: https://youtu.be/d1FQ3BiL-L8 Stellar Blade Review: https://youtu.be/6NPvgtZ9pxc Dragon's Dogma 2 review: https://youtu.be/GWaPbEjjSqI Final Fantasy VII Rebirth review: https://youtu.be/_LaI5Knv4wM Helldivers 2 review: https://youtu.be/5j4TsO8vngA Skull and Bones review: https://youtu.be/z_BKf5cdV_w Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League review: https://youtu.be/reQKHNg0jh8 Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown review: https://youtu.be/-mTbCsDQitU I recommend: 2023 (This Year in Videogames) https://youtu.be/26KzkLymUb4 The Day Before - A Scam To Remember: https://youtu.be/tdQXfXm8rjg Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty review: https://youtu.be/QNKS3vkGAag Final Fantasy XVI review: https://youtu.be/PzfUardkloY Diablo IV review: https://youtu.be/_Vk7yrh_JhM The Lord of the Rings: Gollum review: https://youtu.be/E21qSEyRa88 The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom review: https://youtu.be/BQFImTqvW8E Redfall review: https://youtu.be/YTpFvYbDuqA Resident Evil 4 Remake Review: https://youtu.be/iIXQ3sospSo Calisto Protocol review: https://youtu.be/mm8pxfU9c6E God of War Ragnarok review: https://youtu.be/QdqMpAV1A1s Saints Row review: https://youtu.be/T-hsMkWHMLU Elden Ring review: https://youtu.be/gfcJv3oZNcc