Assassin’s Creed Shadows features two playable protagonists to choose from, with compelling backstories and fascinating personalities. Yasuke and Naoe are markedly different to play as, with both being suited to wildly different playstyles. So, choosing which one to complete story missions and side quests is far from a straightforward decision.
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Contrary to what you’d expect as well, you can’t switch between using Naoe and Yasuke at will in AC Shadows’ story, at least not at first anyway. So, if you’re struggling to choose between AC Shadows’ protagonists, these are the for and against points for each of the characters.
How To Unlock Naoe And Yasuke
Despite playing as both Yasuke and Naoe during AC Shadows’ prologue, once the opening to the game’s story concludes, you’ll only be playing as Naoe for a sizeable section of the story.
Without going into story details, you’ll spend around the next six or eight hours playing exclusively as Naoe. This changes when you get to the story mission Temple of the Horsemen, and after this point, you’ll be able to switch between the two characters at will. You’ll be able to experience the game’s story and side quests from either of their perspectives.
So, if you want to have the choice of playing as either Yasuke or Naoe for non-essential side quests, it’s recommended to focus solely on the story mode until you reach Temple of the Horseman. Then, you can easily switch between them via the game’s pause menu.
Naoe And Yasuke Differences
Naoe and Yasuke’s differing gameplay mechanics showcase the two types of ways that Assassin’s Creed players tackle AC games.
Naoe allows you to play the way that AC “purists” would claim you should always play AC. She is ideal for sneaking in and around areas littered with enemies and has a plethora of options to allow you to assassinate guards without being detected and triggering combat.
Yasuke, on the other hand, is the polar opposite. You’ll already have had a taste of what playing as Yasuke is like from the prologue, and that is that he’s a tank in the truest sense of the word.
Playing as Yasuke is as close to what activating God Mode in Assassin’s Creed is like. His powerful attacks make mince meat of most soldiers, and even tougher enemies like heavies don’t take more than a few hits to get the better of. Not even doors can stop him, you can simply charge through them if you choose to.
From a pure gameplay perspective, it is refreshing to take control of Yasuke for the first time since AC Shadows’ opening after playing almost the entire game as Naoe prior to that. However, this does get a tad monotonous after a while, as much of the challenge of combat is removed, even when playing on higher difficulties.
Unless you’re on a higher difficulty, Yasuke is like activating a cheat code. So, if you’re up to the challenge or prefer playing AC Shadows the stealthy way, Naoe is your best bet.
As you level up as well, Naoe’s combat skills do get markedly better, especially if you choose to sink your mastery points in areas like your Katana. Alternatively, if you’re comfortable sticking to the shadows, levelling up stealth skills makes you even harder for enemies to spot you whilst sneaking around.
Which Character Should You Play As?
Outside of the story missions, some areas of AC Shadows are far easier to play as either Naoe or Yasuke. For example, for the Trophy and Achievement collectors, in-game collectibles are easier to find as Naoe due to her being much more agile, acrobatic, and quicker when moving. The same is true for trophies like Unseen, which is only realistically possible as Naoe.
Conversely, clearing out castles or completing combat-heavy missions is far easier as Yasuke for obvious reasons.
When it comes to the story, without going into spoilers, you definitely become attached to Naoe as her story advances. Her quest for revenge and to discover the truth behind what happens at the start of the game makes her a compelling character.
Yasuke is an extremely unique and cool concept, but the fact that we’ve only seen him for about 30 minutes before we get to play as him again, compared to Naoe’s over six hours, means you’re much less likely to be interested in playing as him than you are Naoe.
That doesn’t diminish his appeal, though, and when you take control of him again, slicing through guards like a hot knife through butter is cathartic. If you’re wanting to experience Japan more from a different perspective as well, trying out Yasuke for a while definitely freshens things up.
Ultimately, it’s your call for who you play as in AC Shadows, and while it’s fun to change things up from time to time, if you gravitate to either Naoe or Yasuke, you’re also able to continue solely as one of these two after Temple of the Horseman.
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