Parkour Athletes Review Assassin's Creed Shadows Movements

Assassin’s Creed Shadows’ parkour mechanics have been put to the test by two professional parkour athletes, offering insights into the game's realism and how Ubisoft has brought the setting of Feudal Japan to life.

Assassin’s Creed Shadows Gearing Up For Its Release

Assassin’s Creed Shadows Does A "Hate Crime Against Parkour"

In a detailed review featured in PC Gamer’s Reality Check video on March 15, Toby Segar and Benj Cave from the UK's STORROR team, both avid fans of the Assassin’s Creed series, shared their expert opinions on the realism of Assassin’s Creed Shadows' parkour. They are also working on their own game, STORROR Parkour Pro, which focuses on authentic parkour movements.

During the video, Segar highlighted a specific scene from AC Shadows where protagonist Yasuke uses an "alpine knee" to climb a ledge—a move that parkour experts consider impractical and potentially harmful, as it places excessive strain on the knee.

Cave also critiqued the unrealistic aspects of the series, such as the protagonists' ability to perform continuous parkour moves without fatigue and the lack of real-life safety checks before executing jumps. Despite these criticisms, Ubisoft has made efforts to refine the parkour mechanics, as confirmed by AC Shadows Game Director Charles Benoit in an IGN interview in January, citing a delay in the game's release to perfect these elements.

Bringing Players Closer to Feudal Japan

Beyond the gameplay mechanics, Assassin’s Creed Shadows aims to immerse players in the historical context of Feudal Japan. Ubisoft Editorial Comms Manager Chastity Vicencio detailed the "Cultural Discovery" feature in a March 18 post on their website, which will enrich the game with over 125 entries at launch about the Azuchi-Momoyama period, crafted with input from historians and featuring museum imagery.

The development team faced significant challenges in authentically recreating Feudal Japan, as shared in a March 17 interview with The Guardian. Ubisoft Executive Producer Marc-Alexis Coté expressed the long-standing interest in setting a game in Japan, while Creative Director Johnathan Dumont highlighted the extensive research and trips to Japan undertaken to capture the period's essence accurately. Despite technical difficulties, such as accurately depicting the unique light in Japan's mountains, the team's dedication ensured a faithful representation of the setting.

Assassin’s Creed Shadows is slated for release on March 20, 2025, across PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC. Stay tuned for more updates on this highly anticipated title.