Assassin's Creed Shadows is one of the most controversial entries in the series to date, and the massive backlash the game received not only threw Ubisoft off, but also had an impact on the game's development.
As reported by Game File, during a meeting of video game industry insiders held last week at Paris Games Week, Ubisoft addressed the controversy surrounding the latest entry in the series, starting with a video that recapped how the game evolved into one that everyone loved to hate. At the end, the video revealed Ubisoft's approach to the controversy: it stopped focusing on the haters. This caused the game to be delayed for additional polish, as the publisher focused on appealing to the series fan that would, in turn, defend the game in the culture war that stemmed from its controversial choices.
"We were initially surprised by the extent of the attacks," Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot added after the short video ended. "And we quickly realized that it was a battle, a battle with our fans, to demonstrate that we were, in fact, more of a video game than a message."
If Ubisoft indeed managed to convincingly demonstrate that Assassin's Creed Shadows is more a game than a message, it's not yet clear at this moment, as no official sales data for the game has been provided by the publisher. It definitely seems to have done well at least in Europe, as it was reported back in August that the latest entry in the series was the best-selling new game of 2025 in Europe, beating competition like Monster Hunter Wilds and Mario Kart World.
Although some of the controversies that surrounded the game before launch were justified, and the choice of protagonist and historical inaccuracies can be a turn-off, Assassin's Creed: Shadows is not a bad game at all. You can learn how it refines the formula of its RPG predecessors by checking out my review.
About the author: Francesco De Meo has been covering video games and technology since 2012, starting his career at small outlets like Gamersyndrome and GeekSnack. After joining Wccftech gaming section in 2015, he quickly expanded his video gaming coverage with in-depth reporting, interviews with iconic industry figures such as Grasshopper Manufacture founder and No More Heroes creator Goichi "Suda51" Suda, Resident Evil series creator Shinji Mikami, Team NINJA's president and Nioh series director Fumihiko Yasuda, and Silent Hill creator Keiichiro Toyama, reviews and on-the-ground coverage of major industry events such as Gamescom and E3. When he's not reporting or reviewing, Francesco can be found playing the genres he loves most, spending time with his six cats, reading, writing music, playing guitar and drumming for his progressive rock band.
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