Assassin's Creed Shadows' stealthy combat and samurai weapons detailed

Ubisoft has laid out how Assassin's Creed Shadows' combat systems will work, including how its attack types, enemies and arsenal of weapons will differ between its dual protagonists: shinobi Naoe and samurai Yasuke.

The update comes a week after a similar deep dive into Assassin's Creed Shadows' stealth, as the game's marketing schedule begins ramping up once more following its previous shock delay.

Shadows is now set to arrive on 14th February 2025 as a pivotal title for Ubisoft - which is currently in the middle of talks with Chinese giant Tencent around the company's future.

As you'd expect, combat once again offers light and heavy attacks, but also new, charged "Posture Attacks" that can be held indefinitely (by holding down the attack button) while you adjust your target.

Defensive manouveres once again include dodges (Naoe pulls off a directional roll, Yasuke has a directional dodge-step), parries (Yasuke forces enemies to step back, Naoe pivotes around them) and blocks (unique to Yasuke).

The stealth-focused Naoe can become outnumbered when surrounded by enemies, while Yasuke can last longer and pull off a guard-breaking final attack at the end of a combo without pulling off a Posture Attack.

Both characters can carry two weapons, though Yasuke can also switch between them mid-combo. He can also pull off a unique Sheathed Posture Attack, where he's able to charge up an opening attack while his katana is still sheathed.

Naoe has a katana blade, the extendable kusarigama ball and chain, and the tanto dagger - which can be dual-wielded with her Hidden Blade to pull off double assassinations.

Yasuke has a long katana, naginata pole arm and kanabo war club for close-up combat, as well as the yumi bow and teppo flint file for ranged fighting - with the former quieter than the other.

Who will you be using all this weaponary against? Well, the game boasts basic outlaws, Ashigaru conscripts and volunteer army footmen (more aggressive towards Naoe, fearful of Yasuke), roaming samurai ronin, the Samurai Daisho found in military castles, and finally the Guardians - described as "an elite group of badass samurai used as reinforcements".

As in past games, flurry attacks will show a blue weapon glint, meaning you'll need to defend an entire sequence in quick succession, while unstoppable attacks again have a red glint.

Last month, Ubisoft's Assassin's Creed boss Marc-Alexis Coté discussed the "devastating" impact of Shadows' diversity and inclusivity backlash, and explained the reasons for Shadows' delay to ensure it arrives with another layer of polish.