Assassin’s Creed Shadows’ Parkour: Perfect or Problematic?

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Back in 2007, when I first dived into the world of Assassin’s Creed, three essential gameplay elements captivated me: stealth, action, and parkour, all seamlessly blended within a historically-rich open environment. For nearly a decade, these three foundational aspects held the franchise together, regardless of where it ventured next or what fresh mechanics it introduced. However, in Assassin’s Creed Shadows, things are shifting.

In 2017, Assassin’s Creed Origins marked a significant shift for the franchise, introducing a revised gameplay structure. Although elements like stealth and parkour were still incorporated in Assassin’s Creed Origins, they took a secondary role to the game’s action and newly introduced RPG aspects. Over time, these RPG elements have become a key foundation for the series, towering over the other components. Assassin’s Creed Shadows is the fourth installment in this RPG-centric phase of the series, and while stealth features more emphasis than before, it continues the trend when it comes to parkour.

Assassin’s Creed Shadows’ Parkour Gets The Job Done

Assassin’s Creed Shadows Adds Some Fun Features to Parkour

In essence, the parkour movements in “Assassin’s Creed Shadows” align perfectly with its Feudal Japan backdrop. As you play as Naoe, you can scale walls, leap from rooftop to rooftop, and move effortlessly up and down towering castle structures. The parkour animations for Naoe appear swift and smooth, and they’re adorned with distinctive flourishes that reflect her shinobi training, including intricate midair flips and jumps.

In this new installment of the game franchise, which hasn’t been seen since 2015’s “Assassin’s Creed Syndicate”, the character Naoe now possesses a grappling hook. This handy tool allows for swift climbing of buildings and swinging from specific structures and vegetation to bridge environmental gaps. The use of the grappling hook is generally enjoyable, as it combines both functionality and flair.

In summary, the parkour system in Assassin’s Creed Shadows is generally enjoyable to navigate. However, there may be occasional hiccups due to collision issues, but overall, the movement mechanics function effectively and often perform exceptionally well.

In Parkour, Yasuke seems less fluid and more limited in comparison to Naoe’s movements, yet this is a deliberate choice by the developers to make the characters appear unique from one another.

Parkour Is Far From The Focus in Assassin’s Creed Shadows

Despite the fact that Assassin’s Creed Shadows has some notable improvements in parkour, it’s clear that it isn’t the main emphasis of the series anymore. Although the animations are smooth and elegant, the parkour in Shadows feels more simplified than before, as players only need to press one or two buttons to either climb up or down structures they’re on.

Streamlining in “Assassin’s Creed Shadows” has made the parkour easier for players, but it seems to be moving increasingly far from the original games of the series. The times when you could confidently do a wall-eject are long past, as players now have minimal control over how they climb buildings or navigate the environment. Interactions with the environment like those in “Assassin’s Creed Mirage,” such as poles, are scarce in “Shadows,” which enhances the sensation that its parkour feels less engaging despite the new features it introduces.

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2025-03-26 14:06