Assassin's Creed Shadows News

Hello Assassins,

Tomorrow, May 6, we will be releasing Title Update 1.0.4 Assassin’s Creed Shadows @ 2 pm UTC / 10 am EDT / 7 am PT.

Thank you to everyone who has taken the time to report these issues to us via the Bug reporter. As always, you can reach out to our support team if you run into any trouble.

Check out what’s coming to Shadows tomorrow.

Make sure to also check out our Year 1 Roadmap for more information on what’s coming next for Assassin’s Creed Shadows!



PS5: 4.67 GB
XBS: 20 GB
MAC: ~9 GB
PC: 17 GB
Steam: 8.5 GB




[h2]New Free Story Pack: The Works of Luis Frois[/h2]


An encounter with Luis Frois at a Jesuit Mission turns into an opportunity to help an old friend. Retrieve lost notes, protect Lady Satoko and learn more about the Jesuits in this new Free Story Pack playable with both Naoe or Yasuke.

To meet with Luis Frois and start the quest arc, head to Azuchi. Luis will be located south of the Merchants’ Quarters. The quest will be available upon completing “The Path he Walks”, in Yasuke’s Board.


[h2]Codex Update: Character Entries [/h2]


As requested by many, we have added character bios in the Codex database to help you keep track of the many allies and foes you will meet throughout your journey in Japan.




[h2]General[/h2]
• Fixed an issue when pressing "Go to board" for "Complete Yasuke's personal journey" does not redirect the player to Yasuke's quest board.
• Fixed an issue where some trinkets could not be accessed in the Forge.
• Fixed some issues where visual customization could not be applied to certain weapons.
• Fixed a visual issue with the Red Bull trinket swapping between Yasuke and Naoe.
• Addressed several AI issues.
• Addressed several audio issues.

[h2]World[/h2]
• All props near an altar or a religion building will now be static, preventing any destruction.
• Fixed an issue where too many deer spawning and running on main roads. Oh dear, watch out!
• Merchants will no longer offer multiple instances of the same item in shops.
• Fixed an issue where buying and equipping head gear would kick you from the merchant menu.

[h2]Quests [/h2]
• Fixed an issue where in the quest “Astray”, players could not talk To Nakamura Tadashige.

NOTE: Players will need to step away from Nakamura Tadashige (+500 meters) and then come back to speak with them.

• Fixed an issue where Nagato would sometimes not follow the correct path in the prologue during the "Fight of the Kakushiba Ikki" quest.
• Fixed an issue where Momochi Sandayu does not attack during the objective "Kill the Soldier" in the "Fight of the Kakushiba Ikki" quest.
• Fixed an issue where Nagato would despawn after a save/load during the quest "The Onryo Samurai".
• A prompt will now properly appear to Observe during the objective "Reach a high place to observe the Onryo Samurai" in the quest "The Onryo Samurai".
• Addressed an issue with enemy NPCs fighting each other after talking to Shotei during "Against the Koga-ryu".
• Fixed an issue where Tokubei would start attacking anyone that enters conflict with the player during the "Confront Tokubei" objective of "Losing Hand" quest.
• Fixed an issue where quest directions do not match the quest location during the "Meet Katsuhime" objective of "Against the Koga-ryu" quest.
• Addressed an issue where Yasuke would recover all of his health upon receiving a killing blow from Marume Nagayoshi during the duel from "Nobutsuna's Students".

[h2]Stealth[/h2]
• Fixed an issue where Improved Ground Assassination (Assassin passive skill) would not work properly.
• Fixed an issue where Assassinations would not remove any health from knocked-out enemies.
• Fixed an issue where, after performing a Double Assassination, Naoe could not swap weapons if she was using the Katana as primary weapon.
• Fixed an issue with Yasuke’s Brutal Assassination not triggering at a certain distance with NPCs.
• Fixed Guaranteed Assassination not working with the kunai.
• Fixed an issue where Naoe could use smoke bombs to trigger Guaranteed Assassination opportunities on bosses.
• Fixed an issue where crouching during a Sprint Dodge would increase the speed of the crouch state.
• Fixed an issue where Naoe had a delay when crouching after moving while aiming a tool.
• Fixed an issue where corner cover camera would not always trigger.
• Fixed an issue with alarm bells respawning after cutscenes. Please don't ring. Please don't ring. Please don't ring.

[h2]Combat[/h2]
• Adjusted the Igan Sunset Tanto perk (i.e. slow down time on Escape Strike) to prevent endless slow-down when using Escape Strike repeatedly.
o The perk now works as follows: “Slow down time after Escape Strike interrupts enemies”
• Fixed an issue with the Snake Bite ability (Kusarigama) costing more than one chunk of adrenaline. Two fangs. But one bite.
• Fixed an issue where the "Crescent Strike” ability (Naginata) did not deal any damage on its first hit.
• Fixed various issues with perks not functioning correctly.
• Fixed an issue where letters displayed on screen would not automatically close when the player would enter conflict. Listen I’m just trying to read here.
• Fixed an issue where Naoe cannot dodge if she first attacks the Ashigaru Swordsman with a posture attack during "Fight of the Kakushiba Ikki" quest.
• Fixed an issue where the ability wheel would still display the abilities from the previously equipped weapon when being unarmed.

[h2]Visuals & Graphics[/h2]
• Fixed several animation, visual or misplacement issues.
• Fixed various rendering issues.

[h2]UI & HUD[/h2]
• Addressed various UI/HUD issues.
• Addressed localization issues.
• Fixed an issue with the tutorial explaining how to use boats. How do you row this thing?
• Fixed an issue where the four targets of the Pirate Alliance were not aligned on the Objective Board.
• Fixed an issue where the drop-down list is missing for "Text Color" and "Background Color" options in the Captions menu.

[h2]Photo Mode[/h2]
• Fixed various visual issues with Photo Mode.
• Fixed an issue where the last known position visual effect remained visible in Photo Mode.
• Fixed an issue where the Codex Orbs remained present in Photo Mode.
• Fixed an issue where the vignette effect size increases when decreasing the value in Photo Mode.

[h2]Hideout[/h2]
• Fixed an issue where the blacksmith was missing from the hideout. I must upgrade my weapons!
• Fixed an issue where some trinkets could not be accessed in the Forge.
Stability & Performances
• Addressed various crashing and stability issues.



[h2]Xbox[/h2]
• Fixed an issue where the "Balanced" mode was missing in the Performance options.

[h2]PC[/h2]
• VRAM usage is now added to the performance overlay when using the benchmark tool.
• Improved description in the Scalability options to better reflect the impact on CPU and GPU.
• Addressed an issue with conflicting bindings for mouse & keyboard on PC.
• Fixed an issue where the VRAM meter doesn't accurately update the VRAM usage when settings are individually changed.
• Addressed an issue with PC using Photo Mode with the Ultra-wide screen settings .

[h2]STEAMDECK[/h2]
• Addressed an issue where there was a heavy loss of FPS in the opening animation before arriving at the Animus HUB (memories).

[h2]MacOS[/h2]
• Fixed an issue where the resolution options are all "Custom" when the game is in windowed mode on macOS.
• VRAM usage added to the performance overlay.
• Addressed an issue with the PS5® DUALSENSE® controller lightbar not emitting the correct light on macOS.

Hello Assassins,

It’s already been a month since the launch of AC Shadows! It’s been thrilling to see millions of you enjoying the game. But now, it’s time for us to look towards the future and reveal a little more about our post-launch plans.

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

Beyond the usual stability and balancing updates, we plan on dropping free updates on the regular with the goal of continually enrich the experience. Along with the ever-changing Animus content, you can expect new immersion customization options, new difficulty settings, new modes, the highly requested New Game+, free quests showcasing fan-favorite characters, a few very special collaborations, and we are at hard at work on community-driven improvements.

1. New Ally, abilities, activities, and additional backstory that will permanently impact the game
   
2. Optional paid content
   
3. Free if pre-ordered the game
   

[h2]CLAWS OF AWAJI [/h2]

First and foremost, we have our first expansion - the Claws of Awaji - coming later this year. Free to all players who pre-ordered AC Shadows, this expansion opens up the island of Awaji – a brand-new region for you to explore which continues Naoe and Yasuke’s story right after the end of Shadows’ epilogue. You can expect new enemies, new abilities for both characters, and a new weapon specific to Naoe – the Bo staff. Stay tuned as we reveal more! Until then, let's have a look at what else you can expect!

[h2]NEW STORY DROPS [/h2]

The coming months of post-launch will also include multiple free content additions we're calling Story Drops. These new free quests will introduce new player abilities, new allies, new world activities, and provide deeper looks and backstories for some of your favorite characters, each new piece of content expanding on the main game. Our first story drop will be part of the Early May update and is called “The Works of Luis Frois”: it will give you a deeper look at the titular historical Jesuit scholar who’s work about the Sengoku period of Japan endures to this day.

[h2]PARKOUR UPDATES [/h2]

For all you deep parkour enthusiasts, we’ll be adding new parkour interactions and optimization, with the first update coming later in May. In this first update, we’ll be adding the often-requested height-gaining back-ejects, fully re-animated height-gaining side-ejects, and a brand-new parkour move called the Vertical Ledge Jump, allowing both characters to jump and grab onto awnings and lower overhangs – a move that is particularly handy when wall-runs are not an option. We’ll be adding more little parkour tricks and improvements over the course of the year as we perfect them to keep you on your toes!

[h2]PHOTO MODE UPDATE[/h2]

Alongside Parkour, we’re expanding the Photo Mode with new filters and stickers, new character poses and facial expressions, and even adding ambient music for you to enjoy. All targeted at giving you more options and comfort when it comes to capturing the beauty of Feudal Japan.

[h2]COMMUNITY FEEDBACK UPDATES[/h2]

Community feedback has been a core focus of the team throughout development and that’s not stopping now that Shadows is released. On April 8, we have deployed our first major patch, which has fixed a number of bugs and brought numerous quality-of-life improvements, such as Horse-auto follow, urban speed improvements, single mastery nodes reset, and multi-item selection at merchants and at your forge. See the full patch notes here: AC Shadows Title Update 1.0.2 - Release Notes.

We’ll be dropping our second Community Feedback Update in June, which will allow you to toggle your Head Gear on during dialogues and cutscenes, as well as customize your immersion further: you’ll be free to disable individual visual effects such as weapon glints during combat, black-and-white (and red) ability filters, target assassination celebration effects, and disabling stealth outlines when your characters is vanished. We are also expanding the Alarm System and are bringing it to the Open-World to give you even more challenge!

[h2]MORE TO COME ON THE REGULAR[/h2]

Future updates will bring more free Animus Hub content, a pretty fleshed-out New Game + mode, which will also raise the level cap, and for those of you looking for a challenge, we are hard at work on an even tougher difficulty setting for both combat and stealth that should leave none of you unscathed…

Our plan is to drop these free updates on a regular basis, keeping the experience fresh, enjoyable, and always improving. Not to be coy, but we’re also keeping a bunch of surprises under wraps and will be revealing special collaborations and other cool updates soon.

Be sure to follow and subscribe to our channels to keep up to date on all the newest info about what each new update will contain and join our official Discord server and tell us what you want, how you feel, and drop your wildest suggestions for things we should tackle in the near future!

Thank you so much for being part of this incredible journey in Feudal Japan! We’re excited to bring you even more over the coming year. See you around!