Ghost of Yotei and Assassin’s Creed Shadows Suffer From Being “Twin Games” (But One Is Better)

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Ghost of Yotei and Assassin’s Creed Shadows share a lot of similarities, but one is noticeably superior. Ever since Ghost of Yotei was announced last fall, people have pointed out the irony of its release timing so close to Assassin’s Creed Shadows. It was almost inevitable, really. For over ten years, fans requested a Japanese setting for an Assassin’s Creed game, but Ubisoft didn’t deliver. This created an opportunity for Sucker Punch to release Ghost of Tsushima, which, surprisingly, may have been the push Ubisoft needed to finally create a ninja-focused Assassin’s Creed game.

It’s now 2025, and both games have been released. The connections between them go beyond simply being stealth-action titles set in Japan, hundreds of years in the past. There are much more significant similarities, and in my view, one game clearly stands out. I’ve reviewed both Ghost of Yotei and Assassin’s Creed Shadows, which means I’ve spent a considerable amount of time analyzing them in detail.

Ghost of Yotei and Assassin’s Creed Shadows Are “Twin Games”

In the movie industry, there’s a phenomenon called “twin films.” This happens when two films with very similar ideas come out around the same time-sometimes within just a few months of each other. Good examples include White House Down and Olympus Has Fallen (both released in 2013), Armageddon and Deep Impact (from 1998), and even two biographical films about Steve Jobs that were released close together. This also occurs with video games, but it’s more common and predictable with franchises like Call of Duty and Battlefield, which frequently release around the same time, creating direct competition.

Assassin’s Creed Shadows and Ghost of Yotei offer a particularly interesting case, sharing a lot of similarities in their plots. In Shadows, the story centers around Naoe, a young woman who is brutally attacked and left for dead by a group of masked swordsmen called the Shinbakufu. Tragically, her father is also killed during the attack, driving her to seek vengeance against those responsible. The narrative unfolds in a non-linear fashion, using flashbacks to reveal Naoe’s history, and allows players to defeat the game’s primary villains in any order they choose.

Ghost of Yotei tells the story of Atsu, a woman who witnessed her family’s brutal murder as a child. She was then cruelly bound to a burning tree by masked samurai. After healing and living in self-imposed exile, Atsu returns to her home country seeking vengeance on those who harmed her. As the player, you have a lot of freedom in how you defeat her enemies, tackling them in a non-linear order. The game also features flashbacks that gradually reveal the details of Atsu’s traumatic past.

Naturally, the two games have many similar gameplay elements. You can silently eliminate enemies, but also get into intense sword fights. Both main characters have access to lots of useful items like throwing weapons and armor that can be customized, making them feel personal to each player. You can travel through both worlds on horseback or by using parkour, letting you reach high viewpoints to discover and mark places on your map.

Similar to many twin films, these games have almost the same basic idea, but the stories themselves develop quite differently. Shadows is particularly interesting because Yasuke, a supporting character, is portrayed as more of a powerful fighter than a stealthy hero, and it continues the established conflict between the Templars and Assassins. However, in a way, both games are somewhat held back by the existence of the other.

Starting up Ghost of Yotei felt strangely familiar, and at first, this actually made me less interested in the story. Similarly, Shadows doesn’t quite work as a traditional Assassin’s Creed game, despite being the type of game many players have requested for a long time. The initial idea isn’t unique anymore, and another series has completely surpassed it.

Ghost of Yotei Is Much Better Than Assassin’s Creed Shadows

From a storytelling perspective, I believe Ghost of Yotei develops the initial idea in a more effective way. First, I found Atsu to be a much more interesting character, and the actor delivered a strong performance. Unlike some characters, she doesn’t struggle with self-hatred and isn’t particularly interested in being a hero. She’s simply a spirit seeking revenge, and that’s all. Naturally, she still undergoes growth and change throughout the story, but Atsu remains true to her core personality.

Naoe felt somewhat flat and simple in Assassin’s Creed Shadows, especially when compared to the more complex character of Yasuke as the story progressed. But this also highlights a bigger issue: the story in Shadows feels unfocused. It tries to cover too much ground at once and doesn’t connect everything smoothly, making it hard to fully enjoy. The story is quite lengthy and feels overly drawn-out, and its uneven pacing is partly due to the way it jumps around in time.

I encountered a few problems with the way Ghost of Yotei jumps around in time, but these were handled better than I expected. Each of the Yotei Six characters has a unique storyline involving Atsu that adds a lot to the overall narrative, although these stories don’t really come together until later on. Naturally, being a PlayStation game, Yotei also looks and feels very polished and cinematic, which really enhances the presentation.

I had a good time with both games, but honestly, Ghost of Yotei just did the Ubisoft-style open world thing *better* – which is a little sad to say. Even though Shadows came out first, Yotei really stuck with me; it’s just more deep and kept me way more engaged. But hey, I get that some of you might feel differently and really enjoyed Assassin’s Creed’s take on a Japanese revenge story. I’m curious, what are *your* thoughts? Drop a comment below and let’s chat about it in the ComicBook Forum!

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2025-10-03 20:13