Hopping on a horse and letting the vibes tell me where to go while I hear people discuss the Nintendo Switch 2's current pricing issues has made me fall in love with Assassin's Creed Shadows.
I know that may be a sin to Assassin's Creed fans deeply invested in the lore, but I feel the naturalistic approach of its open world blends well with some external audio feedback.
If you still haven't played Assassin's Creed Shadows, the elevator pitch for it is straightforward: You can play as a ninja or samurai in feudal Japan. That alone makes for a fascinating concept, especially if you're invested in the country's culture.
As you explore the open world that covers the ever-popular Kansai region in the 1500s, where tourists flock to visit cities such as Osaka, Kyoto, Nara, and Kobe in the present day, the game does its best to set you off on a choose-your-own-adventure type of free-roaming.
click to enlargeIt may be negative to those who want more consistent storytelling (not even considering the initial fragmented sections exploring Naoe's past), but for me, being let loose relatively fast in the open world was a godsend.
You still have to deal with a regional-level variance that prevents you from fully exploring the map, but unlike Assassin's Creed Odyssey, the previous AC developed by Ubisoft Quebec, these initial regions have captivated me and pushed me to go off the beaten path—with some YouTube on the background.
The game does its best Breath of the Wild/Tears of the Kingdom impression by leaning more into the atmospheric type to represent the calmness of the lush scenery seen in the game's early hours. You still have those big, bombastic, and shockingly modern tracks playing during intense cutscenes, but for the most part, it's essentially like listening to lo-fi beats to chill and loot castles.
To be fair, the team nails it. It does a lot for your immersion, and when a battle against a tougher opponent kicks off, you can feel that sense of urgency and intensity rise up. Having said that, constantly running around as Naoe, hiding in the shadows, and assassinating dozens of unsuspected enemies tends to get dull after a few hours with no cool audio feedback.
It's why games like Persona have built their identity around stellar music as much as they have. It's a way to keep players engaged even if the gameplay is on the more static side of things.
Tackling the bigger landmarks, such as the iconic Osaka Castle, started to feel less like a chore and more like a relaxing time once my favorite podcast played in the background. I treated it more like a puzzle than an obligatory "enemy camp base" I needed to clear to get more XP and better gear. That was just the cherry on top. I have a similar feeling while doing my weekly Destiny 2 grind.
AC Shadows is a game I can boot up to enjoy a scenic ride across feudal Japan, and that's all I want from it.
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