Assassin’s Creed Shadows: 9 Beginner Tips Before You Start

Assassin’s Creed Shadows gives you two protagonists with completely opposite playstyles and a Japan full of systems it barely explains. These nine tips come from a full completion run — they will save you hours of friction in the opening acts.

1. Play Naoe first, even if you prefer combat

The opening hours teach stealth through Naoe’s toolkit, and that foundation pays off all game. Yasuke’s combat is spectacular but straightforward; Naoe’s stealth is where the game’s depth lives. Learn her first, swap freely later.

2. Scout every castle before entering

The observation loop is not optional flavor — marking enemies and loot before infiltrating turns a 40-minute slog into a 10-minute clean run. High ground first, always.

3. Rush these upgrades

• Naoe: the double assassination and tool-capacity nodes — they change how every outpost plays.
• Yasuke: posture damage on heavy attacks; bosses become dramatically easier.
• Shared: inventory capacity and ration upgrades before any damage nodes.

4. The season system matters

Seasons change patrol routes, foliage density for stealth, and even which paths are climbable. Winter strips your leaf cover — plan big infiltrations for spring when the bushes are thick.

5. Do not sleep on your hideout

Hideout upgrades unlock scouting intel, crafting throughput, and fast-travel convenience. An hour invested here in act one pays dividends for the entire campaign.

6–9. Quick hits

• 6. Non-lethal takedowns on scouts keeps alarms down across a whole region.
• 7. The grappling hook cancels fall damage — use it aggressively.
• 8. Side contracts scale with your level; do them as you find them, not later.
• 9. Photo mode hides a filters-to-gameplay perk hint system — check the loading tips.