Assassin's Creed Shadows: Who Are Naoe and Yasuke?

Assassin’s Creed Shadows takes place in 16th century Japan during the Azuchi-Momoyama era. Players will play as two distinct characters, a Japanese shinobi, Naoe, and – in a series first – a real-life historical samurai, Yasuke.

Game Director Charles Benoit and Associate Narrative Director Brooke Davies dive deep into who these characters are, how they differ from a gameplay and narrative perspective, and why they were the perfect fit for Assassin’s Creed Shadows.

About Assassin’s Creed Shadows:
In Assassin’s Creed Shadows, you will live the intertwined stories of Naoe, an adept shinobi Assassin from Iga Province, and Yasuke, the powerful African samurai of historical legend. Against the backdrop of the turbulent late Sengoku period, this remarkable duo will discover their common destiny as they usher in a new era for Japan.

From chaos to purpose, from darkness to light. A new Creed rises over Japan.

About Ubisoft:

© 2024 Ubisoft Entertainment. All Rights Reserved. Ubisoft and the Ubisoft logo are registered trademarks in the US and/or other countries.

[saulitix]

Ubi has balls of steel for asking people to pre-order their game without showing ANY gameplay.

[Mataniel]

UBI: "We can't have both of shinobi and a samurai in one character."
Jin Sakai: "Hold my sake."

[SuperAvhishek]

“We blend in the shadows” says the towering 6’5” black man during the medieval Japan.
That’s insane

[Lord_Deimos]

Ubisoft be like "you can't be a samurai and a ninja at the same time because muh historic accuracy" and then they'll make you fight onis and spirits while riding dragons.

[KysiusGod]

knowing ubisoft we’re going to ride nine tails as a mount and keep spamming rasengan instead of assassinations

[kinkinrock]

I’m Japanese and minor in history.


Yasuke was not a samurai.
This rumor was caused by the fact that Nobunaga's body was not found at Honnoji.

[ういうい-do]

UBI「日本人ではない私たちの目になれる人物を探してた」
やはりとんでもない日本差別主義者でしたね

[YorchVicAstronautR]

I don't care what they tell you in school

Cleopatra was a Samurai

[garywood]

What are the odds that a game set in Nigeria would have a Japanese man as the lead character?

[Deathsoul]

3:36 “who was able to come to Japan” bro he was brought as a slave what do you mean, he didn’t chose it💀💀

[HyperEwok]

"Ubisoft is comitted to bold, new ideas for Assassin's Creed, like a stealthy woman and a fighty man"

[thebyrdman]

Ubi: We can't have a samurai and ninja at the same time.

Hattori Hanzo: ...

[marcoapg]

They found a black guy on the history of japan and they simply cant hold themselves

[舐めジ]

The basis for some people's assertion that Yasuke was a "splendid samurai was even asked to assist Nobunaga in Harakiri at the Honnoji Incident" is probably based on Thomas Lockley's book "Nobunaga and Yasuke: Black Samurai Who Survived Honnoji, " but it is simply his own over-interpretation based on the little data he has available, and has no historical basis.
Furthermore, the story that Yasuke fought in the Honnoji Incident is also based on the "History of Japan" written by Luis Frois, a Jesuit missionary, but we know that Luis Frois was traveling to Kyushu with his patrolman Alessandro VALIGNANO at the time of the Honnoji Incident, and did not encounter the Honnoji Incident.
In other words, the idea that he was a super samurai is only a delusion of those who wish it were so.
If he really was a good samurai, his subsequent military exploits would have been well known, but the fact that his whereabouts are unknown after the Honnoji Incident is also evidence of this.

[buccaneercat]

Fun fact: Yasuke was never a full blown Samurai. He was never given any banners, or decorated armor. He was in fact a Koshō, which was a weapon bearer for the Daimyō… essentially the Japanese equivalent of a European Squire. He acted as a bodyguard who also held the weapons for the Samurai when they weren’t in use.

He owned only a short sword, and had his own living quarters. He was respected, but he was never an actual Samurai like Ubisoft wants you to believe. He was never “able to come to Japan” it wasn’t his choice. He was a servant (or slave) for the Italian Jesuit Missionary: Alessandro Valignano. They’re perpetuating the modern internet theory that he was a highly regarded Samurai Warrior who almost blended into traditional Japanese culture, and heritage. Or even worse, they’re perpetuating the other modern internet theory that states that Oriental people’s of Japan (as we know them today) were in fact “colonizers” who stole ancient Japan from Africans. But HEY please buy our game anyway right?

They used to stretch history before to accommodate the fictional Assassin’s Creed storyline… but this is a new kind of stretch. It’s rewriting history to make it more digestible for *modern audiences* … typical. Way to go well out of your way to pinpoint the one known African resident of Japan’s history, when you had ages and ages of actual Japanese heritage to shine a light onto..

This is basically the equivalent of Ubisoft finally releasing an Assassin’s Creed game set in Africa, but instead of naturally having an African male lead, they decided to pinpoint the first Portuguese settler of South Africa: Bartolomeu Dias, to help lead the story… set in historic Africa. Ya see the problem? You should.

[hardwarex]

Of all the historical figures in Japanese history, you chose not to feature a Japanese man as a main character. Why?

[TAKEHIRO_SAMURAI]

As a Japanese, I can confirm that Yasuke is not even mentioned in the Daimyoki(大名記) which record the names of all samurai and retainers under control, including those who made no notable contributions. Yet, they still declared him a samurai.
Our culture is rich, with many stories and notable figures known only to the Japanese. This game could have been a bridge to share that richness, but instead, they chose to focus on a figure like Yasuke, who is barely known and not mentioned in our historical texts, seemingly to serve their own agendas.
We are already aware that other cultures have started casting black individuals in roles that are traditionally preserved by other countries, seemingly just for propaganda purposes, such as the mermaid and Cleopatra. Now, it seems our culture is not being spared; they are merely using Yasuke to push a specific narrative, which is simply common sense.

[Charlemagne]

So it’s like Evie and Jacob frie. Where one is stealthier and the other stronger I bet

[ジェラシー侍-mc]

Cherry blossoms blooming in spring and silver grass growing in autumn exist simultaneously in the village landscape. That alone shows that UBI has not studied Japan at all.

[CaptainDope]

>game set in Syria, play as Syrian
>game set in Italy, play as Italian
>game set in the American Colonies, play as both a British and Native
>game set in the Caribbean, play as a Welsh privateer
>game set in France, play as a French
>game set in England, play as English twins
>game set in Egypt, play as an Egyptian couple
>game set in Greece, play as Greek siblings
>game set in Norway and Viking-invaded Europe, play as Norwegian
...
>game set in Feudal Japan, play as an African man