Assassin's Creed Valhalla's extensive playtime and numerous optional tasks drew criticism from fans, a concern Ubisoft has directly addressed in the upcoming Assassin's Creed: Shadows. Improvements include more compact and easily visible shadow rendering.
Game director Charles Benoit stated the main Shadows campaign will take approximately 50 hours to complete, with full exploration and side quests adding another 50 hours. This contrasts with Valhalla's 60+ hour main story and potential 150+ hour completion time. Ubisoft aimed to reduce optional content to avoid overwhelming players, creating a more balanced blend of narrative and optional activities. The goal is to maintain a rich world and deep story while making the gameplay less tedious. The developers intend to satisfy both players who value extensive gameplay and those prioritizing the narrative, avoiding excessively long playtimes.
Game director Jonathan Dumont highlighted the team's research trip to Japan as a major influence on Shadows' development. The scale of the castles, mountainous terrain, and dense forests proved unexpectedly impressive, leading to a commitment to enhanced realism and detail.
This commitment manifests in a revised world geography. Travel between points of interest will require longer journeys, reflecting the open landscapes, but each location will boast increased specificity and nuance. Unlike Assassin's Creed Odyssey's densely packed points of interest, Shadows features a more natural, open world with greater distances between locations, resulting in richer, more detailed environments. Dumont emphasizes Shadows' significantly higher level of detail, promising a truly immersive Japanese experience.
