Assassin’s Creed Shadows is launching on March 20 after multiple delays. However, it won’t be the only game that lets you play as the samurai Yasuke that’s launching on that day, as a very, very blatant rip-off is going live too.
The creatively titled Yasuke Simulator has appeared on Steam, also launching on March 20. Through its premise and product description, it’s clearly trying to copy Assassin’s Creed Shadows, even being set in the same year. However, this one has been thrown together with generative AI, and has that same vibe as the many other knock-offs that appear on Steam.
Assassin’s Creed Shadows ‘Inspired’ Shovelware Appears On Steam
It just so happens to have the same release date as Assassin’s Creed Shadows
One look at the trailer on the Steam page, and we can see that Yasuke Simulator is little more than some assets thrown together with some bizarre gameplay mechanics. Here, we see the player walk through basic environments with repeated assets, and even pick up vehicles and guns.
Those who have been crying about Assassin’s Creed Shadows since it was revealed that Yasuke would be one of the player characters appear to think this is a big own against Ubisoft. And while there is a chance that someone really went to this much effort to attack Assassin’s Creed for featuring a Black samurai (especially with the dog whistle-y dev name “HistoryAccurateDevelopers”), it’s not entirely clear what the joke is. After all, it looks just like any number of poorly thrown-together rip-offs that appear on marketplaces. But if your idea of owning Ubisoft is to spend money on shovelware, be my guest, I suppose.
In any case, the last we heard from Ubisfoft is that Shadows pre-orders are “solid”, comparable to Odyssey, which is the second most successful entry in the series. The studio is also said to be “confident” that it won’t be hit with another delay, meaning we should be playing it this time next month.
Assassin’s Creed Shadows
- Released
-
March 20, 2025
- ESRB
-
Mature 17+ // Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Language
- Developer(s)
-
Ubisoft Quebec