from two different perspectives: that of the shinobi and the samurai.

Assassin's Creed Shadows falls in a curious place on the Assassin's Creed timeline overall. It's set in an underrepresented era we've never seen before throughout the rest of the series. Here's how its setting compares to previous games.

AC Shadows Is Set Between The Ezio Trilogy & Black Flag

The First Mainline AC Game In The 16th Century

To place it in an exact spot on the AC timeline, Assassin's Creed Shadows lands right between the Ezio trilogy (1476-1507) and Black Flag (1715-1722). Specifically, Shadows is set in the late 16th century, beginning in 1579 and spanning a handful of years during the chaotic Azuchi-Momoyama Period. If we include spinoffs, that puts it just under 50 years after the events of Assassin's Creed Chronicles: China, and the rumored early 17th-century setting of the still-apparently- Codename Hexe.

Unfortunately, you won't see any cameos by Ezio or Kenway (or Shao Jun) in Assassin's Creed Shadows. Ezio is long dead by the time Shadows begins, and Kenway is not yet born. While fan theories of cameos by other AC protagonists have been floating around, they'd have to take place off-screen, as it's more or less impossible for any other mainline protagonist to be alive during the events of this game.

AC Shadows Comes Centuries After Valhalla & Mirage

A Great Leap Forward

In of more recent entries, Assassin's Creed Shadows represents a pretty massive timeskip from Valhalla and Mirage. Both of the previous games are set in the 9th century - Mirage in 853, and Valhalla between 872 and 878. Shadows takes place 700 years in the future relative to those games.

It represents a willingness by Ubisoft to explore different time periods in the Assassin's Creed series, one that'll hopefully open up even more modern settings as time goes by. Of course, it means that Shadows takes place in a very different world from what we've seen in previous games. Intercontinental trade and travel are becoming more commonplace, and handheld firearms are replacing swords as weapons of war. That means new changes to Shadows' stealth and combat systems to cope with this more modern (and more deadly) technology.

AC Shadows Takes Place In The 16th Century

The Historical Context Of Sengoku Japan

Assassin's Creed Shadows is set during the Azuchi-Momoyama Period, the final stretch of the Sengoku Period, which lasted until the turn of the century in 1600. This was a notoriously chaotic era of Japanese history, characterized by near-constant conflict and civil war between rival warlords. The violence of the period will likely be on full display here: early previews show what's presumably Naoe's home burning to the ground.

Among the most powerful of these warlords was Oda Nobunaga, often called the Great Unifier of Japan. Over decades of conquest, Oda managed to bring most of mainland Japan under his control, paving the way for its eventual unification into a single shogunate under the Tokugawa. In-game, he appears to be Naoe and Yasuke's sworn enemy - she blames him for the destruction of her village. Although Yasuke was historically part of Oda's ranks, and is expected to fill that same role here, he presumably switches sides to forces with Naoe as the two share protagonist duties.

This period also saw increased interaction between Portuguese traders and missionaries and the Japanese population. Set almost 40 years after the arrival of the first Portuguese ship in Japan in 1543, Shadows takes place in a version of Japan with decades of Portuguese influence under its belt. This will manifest itself in at least one aspect of gameplay: the introduction of matchlock rifles. Brought to Japan by a pair of Portuguese traders, these early firearms quickly became a favorite of Oda Nobunaga's army - you can even wield one as Yasuke.

Historical context has always been important to the Assassin's Creed series. While it's always striven for entertainment and drama over dead-on historical accuracy, there's an educational aspect to these games - an opportunity for virtual tourism, not just in another place, but at another time as well. But the series also has its own in-depth chronology to consider, too. Therefore, it's important to understand where Assassin's Creed Shadows falls in both real-world history and the internal series timeline to better understand its events.