Highlights

  • Assassin's Creed Shadows introduces two distinct playable protagonists, each with their own unique playstyle for a more diverse gameplay experience.
  • The dual protagonist approach in Assassin's Creed Shadows could potentially bring an end to the ongoing debate between stealth and action gameplay in the series.
  • The franchise should consider adopting the approach of featuring two playable protagonists in future installments to offer players both stealth and action playstyles in balance.

In 2007, Ubisoft released the first Assassin's Creed game and set a new standard for stealth gameplay. The series continued to push the stealth genre forward for another eight years until the release of Assassin's Creed: Origins changed everything. AC: Origins started a new trend that saw the series' iconic stealth gameplay steadily pushed aside to make way for a more action-oriented role-playing experience and fans have been divided about this change ever since. Now, the latest announced installment in the series, Assassin's Creed Shadows, is arriving on the scene with a significant change to the franchise's familiar model.

Almost every Assassin's Creed game has featured only one playable protagonist, and now Assassin's Creed Shadows is changing the game by featuring two. It's not the first game in the series to do so, as Assassin's Creed Syndicate allowed players to control one of two protagonists at any time during the game. However, Assassin's Creed Shadows is taking an approach even AC: Syndicate didn't take by featuring two distinct playable protagonists, each with their own playstyle. This accomplishes much more than simply diversifying its gameplay, as it could potentially see the now age-old war between Assassin's Creed 's stealth and action brought to a much-needed conclusion.

Assassins Creed Shadows Scenic Shot
Related
Assassin’s Creed Shadows Can Leverage Its Dual Protagonists To Create a Special Villain

If Ubisoft plays its cards right with Assassin's Creed Shadows' two protagonists, it can create one of the most complex villains the series has seen.

Assassin's Creed Shadows Protagonists Could Solve the Franchise's Playstyle Dilemma

Assassin's Creed Shadows' Protagonists Offer Both Stealth and Action Gameplay

In a first for the Assassin's Creed series, Assassin's Creed Shadows features two playable protagonists who each have their own unique approaches to combat and gameplay. There's Naoe, who excels in stealth-based gameplay, striking at her foes from the shadows using Assassin's Creed Shadows illumination stealth system. Then there's Yasuke, who prefers a direct approach to combat as a powerful samurai. This means Assassin's Creed Shadows' gameplay should be similar to Ghost of Tsushima's, only instead of playing as one protagonist who can freely swap between stealth and action, players will be in control of two. As such, the Assassin's Creed franchise's ongoing playstyle dilemma might finally have a solution if it plays its cards right.

The Assassin's Creed Shadows Protagonist Approach Should Be Applied to Future Installments

Rather than attempting to appease one side or the other when it comes to featuring either stealth or action-oriented gameplay, the Assassin's Creed franchise should just apply the Assassin's Creed Shadows approach to its games from here on out. Of course, this would mean that each installment would have at least two playable protagonists who are unique in their playstyle, so it would need to work from a narrative standpoint. However, it could finally bring an end to the debate about which form of gameplay is better for the series because it would always offer players both playstyles, and it would work as long as both playstyles were in balance with each other.

One would think applying a Jin Sakai (Ghost of Tsushima) approach to the Assassin's Creed series would work in giving players one protagonist who can function well in either stealth or action gameplay. The only issue is that Ghost of Tsushima was a brand-new IP, so there are no qualms with having the option of either path in the game. Assassin's Creed, on the other hand, is a stealth series at its roots, so making one protagonist a melting pot of playstyles ultimately overshadows the franchise's established stealth gameplay. In light of that, the only option may be to feature two different playable protagonists in future Assassin's Creed games who can offer both stealth and action playstyles.