Assassin's Creed Shadows review bombed 1-star for being "woke" 

Assassin's Creed Shadows has received several 1-star reviews, and the recurring theme is largely similar - accusations of the developers making the game too "woke", as perceived by players. A concrete definition of the word is contentious, but many recent offerings from game developers and publishers have been tagged as such and been on the short end of the stick from a section of players.

So, what else do these 1-star reviews say about Assassin's Creed Shadows other than it being "woke"? That's what we discuss in this article.

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Assassin's Creed Shadows' cultural depictions and character romances panned by 1-star reviews

At the time of writing, AC Shadows holds 2.7 on Google, with 1-star reviews complaining about "a complete disrespectful smear at Japanese history and culture", "insertion of "modern" western gender ideologies", and "so much more focused on pushing a woke narrative." We had already seen this brewing with Ubisoft's choice of a black samurai (although historical) for one of their protagonists in feudal Japan.

Assassin's Creed Shadows 1-star reviews on Google (Image via Google/Ubisoft)

With the game's global launch, players were quick to note that both protagonists' have homonormative romance options. Out of them, Yasuke's optional romance with Ibuki, a non-binary character, has seen much controversy, with many commenting about the presence of such a relationship in feudal Japan. Yasuke's romance with Lady Oichi hasn't gone down well either, given that both of them are actual historical characters.

Ubisoft has also been accused of insensitivity with players being initially able to destroy a shrine modelled after the real-life Itatehyozu Shrine. The controversy quickly spun out of control, with even the Japanese Prime Minister commenting on the matter. The developers finally fixed the matter with the Day One patch.

Assassin's Creed Shadows negative reviews on Steam (Image via Ubisoft/Steam)

Steering away from the conversations surrounding the "woke" nature of the title, top negative reviews on Steam (where AC Shadows has a 'Very Positive' rating) focus on bugs, issues with the Ubisoft Connect account, and other technical errors.

Addressing any potential harassment meted out to the team behind Assassin's Creed Shadows, Ubisoft said (to PCGamesN):

“Our stance has always been that team members’ social media channels are their own. Our top priority is the safety of our employees, including online, which is why, as a standard practice across Ubisoft, we offer guidance on navigating social media, digital safety, and support for team members’ well-being. We also share resources to help prevent and protect against online harassment, something our teams have unfortunately faced.”

Assassin's Creed Shadows currently has an 81 rating on Metacritic. Sportskeeda Gaming rated it 9 out of 10, stating it completes the "promise of a stealth and action-focused title that was made with Origins."

Check out our AC Shadows review to learn more.