Assassin’s Creed Shadows Will be New Modern Day Story
Assassin’s Creed Shadows‘ executive producer Marc-Alexis Côté has admitted that the series “struggled to find its footing” following the death of Desmond Miles in Assassin’s Creed 3, while also confirming that the next title story will evolve around modern day story.
Assassin’s Creed Shadows’ Story
Ever since the release of the very first Assassin’s Creed game in 2007, fans have been begging Ubisoft to release an entry set within feudal Japan. That wish will soon become reality, but it hasn’t been without a few setbacks. Assassin’s Creed Shadows was delayed into 2025 back in September, two months before the highly-anticipated title was set to release. With a new February release date fast approaching, Ubisoft keeps revealing more information about their upcoming title, including a return to the series’ controversial modern-day setting segments.
After the death of Desmond Miles in Assassin’s Creed 3, the game’s short modern-day segments became convoluted and largely unwanted by fans. A new character, Layla Hassan, was introduced in Assassin’s Creed Origins as a replacement for Desmond Miles, but Ubisoft now says that the upcoming release of Assassin’s Creed Shadows will set the groundwork for a new direction when it comes to the series’ modern day storyline. According to Eurogamer, who attended and transcribed Côté’s comments from a recent BAFTA event, the executive producer says that the studio “faced a creative crossroads” with the death of Desmond Miles.
Côté admitted that the Assassin’s Creed series “struggled to find its footing” with the modern storyline after ending Desmond’s arc with Assassin’s Creed 3. “The continued focus on characters hunting for Isu artefacts made the narrative more predictable,” the developer said. He went on to explain that the modern day storyline had become a “secondary concern” for players as the approach became repetitive and more of a side-quest, as opposed to a vital part of the game’s story. Côté also noted that 15 years worth of lore meant that the parallel storylines made the franchise “difficult to approach” for newcomers.
After years of a somewhat confusing and convoluted modern day storyline, Côté says the aim is now to “put history back at the centre of the players’ experience.” He went on to explain that Assassin’s Creed’s new modern-day narrative “will serve to enhance, rather than overshadow, the historical journey.” The executive producer goes on to explain that Ubisoft intends to draw “meaningful contrast between past and present” and aims to restore the balance that was once the hallmark of the franchise.
With an aim to explore deeper themes of memory, identity, and autonomy, Côté said that the groundwork for this new direction will take place in Assassin’s Creed Shadows which will “lay the foundation for this narrative evolution that will grow in the years to come.”
