Assassin's Creed Shadows' 'Canon Mode' Makes Fans Ponder the Point of RPG Options | Push Square
Previously rumoured and then officially hinted at, it's now been confirmed that Assassin's Creed Shadows will ship with a 'Canon Mode' option.
As is the case with Assassin's Creed Odyssey and Assassin's Creed Valhalla, Shadows has a dialogue system that lets you make key decisions during certain quests, and, to a limited extent, shape your character's personality.
However, this so-called Canon Mode removes dialogue options entirely, and has the story play out as it's supposed to in accordance with series lore. This means that cutscenes become purely cinematic, and your choice of character (Naoe or Yasuke) is locked during main missions.
From our perspective, options are always nice to have — but some Assassin's Creed fans have been left wondering why the franchise even bothers with role-playing elements if there's a canonised (and now fully playable) version of the story to begin with.
To be fair, arguments surrounding the series' influx of RPG mechanics have been around for ages — ever since Assassin's Creed Origins introduced randomised loot and damage numbers back in 2017.
The aforementioned Odyssey often gets pulled up for making one of its two playable leads the canon choice. Again, it's a case of fans questioning why there's a choice in the first place.
No more delays (hopefully)
The choice is yours
On Shadows' Canon Mode, the developer writes: «Lore lovers! Feel fully immersed in the canon story with narrative-locked dialogue during cutscenes.»
Followed by: «RPG fans, have no fear! Toggle this mode off to continue enjoying your roleplaying experience.»
Oh, and the developer does clarify that Canon Mode cannot be disabled once it's toggled on at the start of the game — so choose wisely!
Ultimately, this is just Ubisoft giving players different ways to enjoy the game — it's trying to appeal to everyone. To reiterate, we don't think that's necessarily a bad thing, but we'd love to see the statistics on how many players opt for Canon Mode in the end.
What do you
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