Assassin's Creed Shadows' "core fight mechanics are the same" for both protagonists, but some enemies will be "more aggressive towards Naoe" and "fearful of Yasuke"

Assassin's Creed Shadows' director has gone elbow-deep into the game's combat, explaining the nuts and bolts of each protagonist's unique playstyle.

Shadows is bringing back a dual-protagonist approach, but instead of having male and female options at the beginning of the game, you're instead switching between the sturdier Yasuke and the stealthier Naoe who both share "core fight mechanics," according to director Charles Benoit's explanation in Ubisoft's most recent blog post.

"In essence, our core fight mechanics are the same for Yasuke and Naoe," Benoit says, referring to how both characters have quicker light attacks, stronger heavy attacks, charged-up 'posture attacks' and access to defensive manoeuvres - "but as samurai and shinobi, respectively, they each have their own weapon types and abilities that make them feel very different from one another."

While Yasuke can strike with massive katanas and rifles, Naoe prefers subtler options like the classic hidden blade or a ball-and-chain option for crowd control. But the differences between the two characters also shine through in more subtle ways.

For instance, Yasuke's towering size means he can simply hide behind one of his weapons and straight-up block some incoming attacks, meanwhile, Naoe can only deflect her enemies' strikes with a last-minute move. She more than makes up for the lack of defensive capabilities with a more efficient dodge-roll, though, while Yasuke might need a second to recover from his side-step. "These subtle differences in attack and defense are really what makes the control of each character unique - and adaptable to your ideal playstyle," Benoit continues.

What most stood out to me in the combat deep dive was the fact that enemies will, in fact, treat each character differently. While delving into Ashigaru Soldiers - the conscripts who make up the bulk of any armies' fighting force - the blog explains that "they tend to be more aggressive towards Naoe, and are fearful of Yasuke." Whether that's due to Naoe's smaller stature or her gender isn't exactly clear, but I love that there's a little bit of world-building tucked away in the combat. It'll probably also encourage us to stay unseen while playing as the stealthy hero.

Either way, whether you like the sound of Yasuke's punchier abilities or Naoe's quieter playstyle, Assassin's Creed Shadows will let you play through most of the RPG as one character as the developers aren't interested in "strong-arming anyone" when the game launches on February 14 next year. 

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