Assassin's Creed Shadows World Premiere Cinematic Trailer Breakdown

We are pleased to release our analysis of the recently released World Premiere Trailer for Assassin's Creed Shadows, highlighting some of the things you might have missed!

Written by UbiCypher (@Kenway_Joe) from Isu_Network.

From the Shadows

The trailer begins with a target fleeing for his life through a forest. He knows that he is being pursued, but cannot see the identity of those hunting. We see the target remove a throwing star from his armour (Shuriken).

Next we get our first glance at Shinobi Warrior Naoe, who emerges from the shadows.

She looks like she is wearing light armour, so should be able to move quickly in comparison to her counterpart, Yasuke.

Iga: The land of Ninjas

The Ubisoft logo appears over a cinematic representation of Iga, the land of Ninjas. Scattered across the countryside were remote villages training the next generation of Shinobi warriors.

After coming into dispute with Military leader Oda Nobunaga over unification, Iga was attacked on two occasions, one of which occurred in 1579, the year in which the game takes place. It is said that the attacked came from three directions, giving the villagers little chance to respond.

In Assassin's Creed Shadows, Naoe is the daughter of real-life shinobi Warrior Fujibayashi Nagato.

Naoe's life is turned upside down when enemy forces bring the blade to her village, burning everything in their wake.

Dual Protagonists The Fiery Shinobi and the Giant Samurai.

It seems that the long rumored dual protagonism is due to make a comeback in this new iteration of the franchise. Missed by many and despised by others, it will most certainly blend well with the story Ubisoft seems eager to tell us in this game which revolves around unity.

This concept is on the nose brought back from Assassin's Creed Unity, in this case being an alliance that will, by the looks of it, make you go to war against the ruthless opression spawned by Greed, Power and Vengeance all of them very familiar motives to this franchise.

Naoe and Yasuke our protagonists are -according to the Game Director Charles Benoit- designed in a way that focus on their abilites is evident; Stealth for Naoe and Combat for Yasuke although "They can do a bit of both" confirming that you can even the gameplay between the two.

Naoe Fujibayashi

With a stealth & infiltration-oriented gameplay, you take on a quest of vengeance and honor that will show her cunning and skill in the Iga arts of the Ninja with a set of classic Japanese tools according to the trailer: Shuriken and a Kusarigama.

Unexpectedly, she wields a dual-action Hidden Blade similar to the blade worn by Connor Kenway in Assassin's Creed III -which could make one wonder if the hunt mechanic is back- but I digress. Described as fiery she will probably leave her mark on the community.

Yasuke the Samuari

If you followed my thread on Yasuke a month ago and the countless videos out there that emerged ever since the first rumor leaked, then you should know who he is by now. If not, well, let's do a quick recap!

Either from Ethiopia or South Africa, Yasuke was a slave or mercenary -depending on the sources- that was brought on board a ship with Alessandro Valignano a Jesuit that sought to extend the will of Catholicism across Japan in 1579.

Due to his appearance and uncommon stature, he impressed the Shogun Oda Nobunaga who made him his vassal. With this in mind, we can understand his status as Samurai in this story and the possible motives behind his actions due to his turbulent past.

He's evidently the action/combat oriented character with the ability to crush his enemies with ease, break doors and armor from tougher enemies and such, while the trailer did not show much of his weaponry we can but assume that he will carry what you would expect of a Samurai.

Assassination Contracts or Theft missions Oldschool contracts might be back...

At some point in the trailer, you can see Naoe passing on a piece of paper to Yasuke, if you translate the note it says "There is Tono Hakeda Catle" which can possibly be read as "It is at the Tono Hakeda Castle" possibly referring to a target or an object to steal.

Since the Brotherhood has been established for 14 years by 1579 and many prominent members have been recruited into the Assassins as well, it would be safe to assume that a network of Assassins is already deeply rooted across the Islands, which would explain this informant here.

Absence of Templars

Nothing in my crosshairs for now...

There is no trace of Templar activity in the trailer whatsoever, even though we know that the Tokugawa Clan and Nobunaga Clan have been fighting with Templar-backed clans in the past such as the Takeda Clan.

I should add that according to the lore, the Templars were all but exterminated in Japan by 1615, having struggled against the Assassins during all their continued activity in the country ever since the Assassins arrived in between 1565 and 1571, maybe not entirely being present.

Personal Commentary

As far as I'm concerned, I found this trailer intense and different from other AC trailers, there is something I quite can't get a hold on but I like where this is going, at least according to the official Ubisoft website the game won't be RPG stating "Action/Adventure".

Here are a number of other breakdowns of the trailer!

Let us know your thoughts down below!