Discover how Assassin’s Creed Shadows' parkour measures up in terms of realism, as reviewed by two professional parkour athletes. Dive into the details of how the game's developers have strived to authentically recreate the atmosphere of Feudal Japan.
Assassin’s Creed Shadows Gearing Up For Its Release
Assassin’s Creed Shadows Does A "Hate Crime Against Parkour"
In a detailed Reality Check video from PC Gamer, released on March 15, Toby Segar and Benj Cave from the UK's STORROR team provided insightful feedback on the parkour realism in Assassin’s Creed Shadows. Both athletes, who are not only fans of the Assassin’s Creed series but also working on their own game, STORROR Parkour Pro, based on real-life parkour, offered their expert critique.
In the video, Segar pointed out a specific scene where protagonist Yasuke uses an "alpine knee" to climb, a move considered impractical and potentially harmful in the parkour community because it places too much strain on the knee.
Cave also highlighted the unrealistic aspects of the series, such as characters performing endless parkour moves without fatigue and executing jumps without prior assessment. He emphasized, "In real-life parkour, you check, you measure, you prep, and it’s such a slower process."
While Assassin’s Creed Shadows is a fictional game, Ubisoft has made concerted efforts to enhance the realism of its parkour mechanics. In an IGN interview from January, Game Director Charles Benoit mentioned that the game’s release was delayed to refine these mechanics further.
Bringing Players Closer to Feudal Japan
Beyond the game's fictional narrative of Assassins versus Templars, Ubisoft aims to immerse players in the history of Feudal Japan through the "Cultural Discovery" feature. Announced on Ubisoft’s website on March 18, Editorial Comms Manager Chastity Vicencio described how this in-game Codex section will provide over 125 detailed entries about the Azuchi-Momoyama period, crafted with the help of historians and enriched with museum images.
Creating an authentic representation of Feudal Japan has not been without its challenges, as shared by the developers in an interview with The Guardian on March 17. Ubisoft Executive Producer Marc-Alexis Coté explained the long-standing desire to set an Assassin’s Creed game in Japan, a choice finally realized in Shadows. Coté reflected, "I've been on this franchise for 16 years and I think every time we start a new game, Japan comes up and we ask, is this the time?"
Creative Director Johnathan Dumont detailed the team's extensive efforts to bring Feudal Japan to life, including collaborating with historians and visiting Kyoto and Osaka for firsthand research. Despite challenges such as accurately simulating the unique lighting in Japan’s mountains, the team's dedication to authenticity shines through.
Assassin’s Creed Shadows is poised for release on March 20, 2025, and will be available on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC. Stay tuned for more updates and insights by checking out our related articles!
