Ubisoft has made a clarification on a little controversy around Assassin’s Creed Shadows, that was really built around a misunderstanding.
The official Assassin’s Creed Twitter account shared this message:
“Hey everyone,
We wanted to share some early information on the upcoming launch of Assassin’s Creed Shadows, following some questions we’ve noticed in the community.
Assassin’s Creed Shadows will not require a mandatory connection at all times.
An online connection will be needed to install the game, but you will be able to play the entire journey, offline, and explore Japan without any online connection.
We are super excited to bring Assassin’s Creed Shadows to feudal Japan on November 15 when the game releaseds, and cannot wait to show you more along the way!
- The Assassin’s Creed Team”
Fans were right to be concerned about an online-only requirement, because Ubisoft frequently released games with those conditions. In this case, it certainly doesn’t seem like it should be necessary, but Ubisoft had made this happen to other single player only games before.
Fans were also likely worried because Ubisoft was also launching a new Assassin’s Creed platform, called Assassin’s Creed Infinity. We have heard a lot of rumors about Assassin’s Creed Infinity, but so far Ubisoft has withheld from sharing more official information.
Given the silence, it’s possible that Assassin’s Creed Infinity isn’t quite ready to reveal yet, and it’s not unreasonable to question if it will even be ready in time for the launch of Assassin’s Creed Shadows itself.
Ubisoft recently gave itself a PR black eye when they had delisted racing game The Crew from all systems. The 2014 title from Ubisoft Reflections and Ubisoft Ivory Tower had an online-only requirement.
That requirement also allowed them to delist the game in such a way that it is not longer possible to play the game today. They revoked all licenses so that no one could even start a game now. The Crew was even sold on disc, but those discs are now no longer playable, although some fans may want to find ways to get around that now.
Anyway, Ubisoft knew they could potentially hurt the chances of Assassin’s Creed Shadows, which looks like it will be Ubisoft’s real big AAA release for the year. After the disappointing sales of both Skull and Bones and Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown, they will want to make sure they get this game’s launch exactly right.
Assassin’s Creed Shadows will be released on November 15, 2024, on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and Windows, on Ubisoft Connect and Epic Game Store. It will not be available on Steam.
