A screenshot from Assassin’s Creed Shadows (2024), Ubisoft

A new rumor for Assassin’s Creed Shadows claims that the game originally featured a male Japanese main character and that the game could be delayed even further after the game’s developer, Ubisoft, recently delayed it to February 2025.

A screenshot from Assassin’s Creed Shadows (2024), Ubisoft

Ubisoft delayed the game to February 2025 at the same time it announced it might barely break even during its current financial year.

In a press release the company stated, “The Company now expects net bookings of around €1.95bn, and around break-even non-IFRS operating income and free cash flow.”

It went on to announce the delay of Assassin’s Creed Shadows and why it was doing so, “Assassin’s Creed Shadows will now be released on 14 February 2025. While the game is feature complete, the learnings from the Star Wars Outlaws release led us to provide additional time to further polish the title. This will enable the biggest entry in the franchise to fully deliver on its ambition, notably by fulfilling the promise of our dual protagonist adventure, with Naoe and Yasuke bringing two very different gameplay styles.”

The company added, “We are departing from the traditional Season Pass model. All players will be able to enjoy the game at the same time on February 14 and those who preorder the game will be granted the first expansion for free. The game will mark the return of our new releases on Steam Day 1.”

Key art for Assassin’s Creed Shadows (2024), Ubisoft

Now, a new rumor from YouTuber Endymion who alleges to have spoken with a number of individuals at Ubisoft and who have worked with the company in the past claims that the game could be delayed even further and that the game originally featured a male Japanese protagonist instead of Yasuke.

Endymion shared, “My source told me, however; that they heard February 2025 is simply a placeholder release date as of now. Apparently, this is because Ubisoft is scrambling and they need certain key talent in order to assist on a Q2 game release. Which if you don’t know what that means there’s four quarters to a calendar year so Q2 means Ubisoft has something that they think will hit that is coming out later in the year that they need help on. So because talent at the studio is working to make that future release come out more smoothly, Shadows is not being given the extra hands it kind of needs right now.

“So like I said the release date may actually be pushed back even further,” he reiterated.

A screenshot from Assassin’s Creed Shadows (2024), Ubisoft

Endymion then revealed his source told him the game originally featured a Japanese male protagonist, “I was also told when they originally saw the game there was indeed a male Japanese protagonist with their own finalized art and even animations.”

“They don’t know if this character will be reintroduced to replace Yasuke, but they are skeptical that Ubisoft will actually remove Yasuke altogether due to the whole political, you know, backlash they’ll get from journalists and so on,” he added.

A screenshot from Assassin’s Creed Shadows (2024), Ubisoft

Next, he shared details about the game, “They did say that the game’s first act is heavily story driven until it eventually opens up to your more traditional open world Ubisoft experience. And that the big hurdle there, if they were to remove Yasuke, would be to practically change almost everything about act one, so to speak, if they were to remove the character entirely.”

“So could they remove Yasuke with this already done but thrown aside Japanese character? It’s a big maybe. But they said that they weren’t sure of it yet,” he said. They also told me they heard rumblings that Sweet Baby Inc. may have had a hand in Shadows, but they can’t confirm that 100% yet so take that allegation with a huge big fat shot of skepticism right now, okay?”

Yasuke executes an innocent man pressed into a fight in Assassin’s Creed Shadows (2024), Ubisoft

As for when this Japanese male protagonist was sidelined, Endymion revealed, “The game did first include a male Japanese main character, but they were swapped sometime during 2020, according to my source, for Yasuke instead.”

When asked why Ubisoft chose Yasuke over this male Japanese character, Endymion revealed, “They said that Ubisoft was heavily influenced by the sociopolitical events of the time with stuff like — and no, I’m not kidding — George Floyd dying, the riots, and Black Lives Matter exploding in support.”

He added, “Ubisoft may have opted to include Yasuke in order to pander to identity politics because of Black Lives Matter.”

Furthermore, he shared that his source informed him that Ubisoft “was horrified by the response to Yasuke from the fandom and they actually thought including him would be a really big selling point for the game. They apparently believed by inserting Yasuke that they could garner and pander to the modern audience.”

A screenshot from Assassin’s Creed Shadows (2024), Ubisoft

Interestingly, one of Endymion’s source also provided him information on why Ubisoft decided to delay the game.

He shared, “The thing that actually spooked Ubisoft more than anything else was how Japan reacted to the one-legged Troii gate figurine. Remember that that’s the merchandise product where Yasuke and Naoe are standing on a symbol of Nagasaki getting the atom bomb dropped on them yet these characters take place in Japan well before that even happens.”

“And this culturally devastating piece that proved that Ubisoft was not adequate enough to make the game or really know anything about the time period, it led to the higher ups admitting defeat and demanding that the game get a cultural do over if you will,” he continued. “They wanted things to be more authentic because the one-legged Torii gate incident was so embarrassing and baffling that they didn’t want anything else like that to happen again in their history.”

Assassin’s Creed Shadows Qlectors Yasuke & Naoe (2024), Pure Arts

Endymion then shared why Ubisoft chose February 2025, “As of now, from what I’m being told, February 2025 is being chosen because Ubisoft believes there will be a AAA gaming drought around that time period. So they’re hoping that they can capitalize by releasing Shadows then instead of November 15th, which was its original release date even though there are plenty of games coming around that time like Monster Hunter Wilds will release in that same period.

He then opined, “Which makes me believe that Ubisoft will indeed push the game even further back than intended.”

A screenshot from Assassin’s Creed Shadows (2024), Ubisoft

He also shared that sources informed him that the rap music which was featured in early promotional videos for the game is being removed from the final product.

Endymion said, “One of the things for sure getting removed from Shadows, according to my sources, is indeed the rap, hip-hop music for Yasuke. Apparently Ubisoft brought out a questionnaire and they were unanimously told that the rap music was tonally wrong and completely unneeded. And that it was actually offensive that Ubisoft believed Yasuke needed a hip-hop battle theme in a game that was set well before such music existed and it was only implemented ’cause Yasuke was black. So that’s going to be gone for sure.”

A screenshot from Assassin’s Creed Shadows (2024), Ubisoft

They are also going to be removing dialogue from the game that according to my source told me that it would actually enrage players it they heard it,” he added. “I wasn’t given concrete examples of what kind of dialogue but the source assumed it may have been Yasuke saying some sort of sociopolitical pandering nonsense about he was sold by white men or something and that he hates white men and white supremacy must be abolished and such.”

“They’re also removing this because, of course, if that were in the game it would absolutely be highlighted and used to detract even more people from supporting the game in the future,” he shared.

A screenshot from Assassin’s Creed Shadows (2024), Ubisoft

What do you make of these rumors from Endymion and his sources regarding Assassin’s Creed Shadows?