It may have taken years to get to this point, but were finally getting anAssassins Creedgame set in Japan- and though things did look hairy for a while, after multiple delays,Assassins Creed Shadowsis now looking increasingly promising with each new showing. From its setting and renewed focus on stealth and parkour to the way its approaching exploration and world design, the action RPG is making plenty of promises that have turned our heads. Theres a lot that we cant wait to experience ourselves whenAssassins Creed Shadows,and here, were going to talk about a few such things.CLAMBER OVER THE ROOFTOPS OF JAPANParkour is always right up there as one of the biggest attractions of every newAssassins Creedgame, and you an bet your bottom dollar that its up there as one of the biggest reasons were looking forward toAssassins Creed Shadows. The prospect of a period Japanese setting that you can parkour all over is an exciting one as it is, but add to that significant improvements such as nimbler movement or an added emphasis on actual handholds, with all surfaces no longer being climbable and our excitement grows manifold.MESS AROUND WITH THE GRAPPLING HOOKNaoe one of two protagonists thatll take centerstage inShadows is going to have access to a grappling hook as one of several exclusive tools, and we cant wait to get our hands on it in particular. Its going to be fully physics-based, and is promising to add an interest layer to the parkour mechanics- which, as we just went over, are looking plenty enticing as is.EXPLORE THOROUGHLYThe idea of exploring another gargantuanAssassins Creedopen world that feels almost procedurally generated in its design would have been a daunting one, but thankfully,Shadowsis seemingly distancing itself from that kind of bloat. Touting roughly the same size asOriginsAncient Egypt map,ShadowsJapan is looking like it might just strike the right balance between being large and being sufficiently restrained. More importantly, the game is also approaching exploration in more organic fashion than pastAssassins Creedaction RPGs have done, with the focus being on immersing players in the world rather than keeping them caught in a loop of checklists and collectathons.CHECK OUT ALL THE NEW WEAPONSA new setting means a new roster of weapons.Assassins Creed Shadowsis bringing plenty of those to the table, from katanas and shuriken to arquebuses, naginatas, and more- and were itching to get our hands on every single one. Be itOriginsorOdysseyorValhalla,this is one area where the series has yet to disappoint ever since it adopted its new action RPG formula, so our expectations are high forShadows. Oh, and yes, were absolutely going to get our moneys worth out of Naoes hidden blade.BATTER ENEMIES AS YASUKEBetween the two protagonists, its Yasuke the samurai who will grab the spotlight when its time to be involved in a duel mano-a-mano, with Naoes skillset being much more focused on stealth and agility. And honestly, the idea of playing as an elite, supremely skilled samurai is an exciting one. The game will also tout flourishes such as an added focus on environmental destructibility to give combat more of a punch- heres hoping that has the desired effect.SNEAK AROUND AS NAOEMany who come toAssassins Creedwant stealth more than combat, and thankfully,Shadowswill let you do things that way, courtesy of Naoe. The shinobi is a trained stealth specialist, and her moveset will reflect the same. Going prone and crawling around, squeezing through gaps, hide in tiny spaces and even boxes, and more similar moves will allow Naoe to stealth around much more effectively. For all stealth fans whove been hoping for the series to start getting back to its roots a bit more, thats excellent news.USE NAOES SHINOBI TOOLSNaoe will complement her nimble and agile natural moveset with a number of specialized tools thatll help her sleuth around more effectively- being the trained shinobi that she is. You can expect the regular stuff, like smoke bombs to hide yourself, or bells to distract enemies with. Some of the other tools get a bit more creative- like a bamboo pipe that Naoe can use to breath through while she hides underwater in shallow water bodies.TRY QUESTS WITH VARYING APPROACHESThough both Naoe and Yasuke will each have some exclusive quests, Ubisoft has confirmed that players will have the option to play most of the games quests as any of the two characters- and we fully intend to put that to the test. The two characters clearly have very different play styles and abilities, and were curious to see, for instance, how differently the same quest could be played depending on which of the two youre playing as.PLAY AROUND WITH THE LIGHT AND SHADOW MECHANICSAs part ofShadowsconcerted effort to put stealth back in the front seat, the game is also introducing a new, dynamic light and shadow system. Shadows will now serve as hiding places, which means destroying light sources to dynamically create new hiding spots will play an important role. Such systems have been done in stealth titles many times over in the past (Splinter Cellprobably being the example that comes to mind first), and when done well, they usually make for a much more engaging gameplay experience- so heres hoping Shadowsdoesnt disappoint.REJOICE IN THE RETURN OF EAGLE VISIONSomething else that Naoe is going to have access to is Eagle Vision, which veteranAssassins Creedfans will likely be ecstatic about. A staple of the series for the longest time, the mechanic was dropped in favour of a fully controllable avian companion inOrigins, Odyssey,andValhalla. Like Mirage,however,Shadowsis bringing Eagle Vision back, once again as part of its renewed focus on stealth gameplay. Were curious to see how the mechanic will have evolved, and how effectively the game uses it to enhance its stealth systems.EXPERIENCE THE CHANGING SEASONSAssassins Creed Shadowsis promising to bring its world to life in a number of ways, but none more promising than the seasons system. As the game progresses, the seasons will change, which, in turn, will bring about significant changes in the environments themselves. Of course, you can expect that to impact gameplay as well- like stealth becoming more difficult in snow (what with your footsteps being louder and more visible), or verdant, overgrown fields turning into perfect hiding spots when spring arrives.RECRUIT A NETWORK OF SPIESAssassins Creedfans whove been around a while tend to have fond memories of recruiting underling assassins that you could then call on for aid inAssassins Creed Brotherhood.Shadowsis set to feature a similar (sort of) system, which will see players recruiting and training an entire network of spies. And what exactly will these spies do? Their primary purpose will be gathering intelligence and feeding you information about the world, which could potentially feed the games exploration loop in intriguing ways.MESS ABOUT WITH THE EXPANDED BASE BUILDINGExpanding and customizing Ravensthorpe inAssassins Creed Valhallawas easily one of the games highlights, so yes, were excited about the features return inShadows. Players will once again have a central hub, this time a shinobi Hideout, that youll be returning to time and again. Promising greater control over how the Hideout takes shape thanks to a Sims-style grid and a larger range of options, the base building mechanic is looking quite interesting.HAVE FUN IN PHOTO MODEAssassins Creedalways knocks it out of the park with its photo modes, and our hope isShadowswill be no different. If the game can capture the beauty that its period Japanese setting has the potential to deliver (which its looking like it will, based on whats been shown so far), were going to be spending a lot of time in photo mode.TRY AND MAKE SENSE OF THE MODERN-DAY STORYWere dreading this and are excited about it simultaneously. On one hand, modern-day storylines inAssassins Creedgames have been a hot mess for several games running at this point. At the same time, we alsodoremember a time, back in the Desmond Miles days, whenthe series present-day plots actually used to be good.Shadowsis meant to kick off a new modern arc for the series, and werehoping (perhaps foolishly) that itll be more like the Desmond stuff than the not-Desmond stuff.