Fans were excited about the announced collaboration event between Assassin's Creed Shadows and Attack on Titan. However, the initial euphoria was followed by a rude awakening. Cutscenes, animations, and quest design have been poorly received by players. Now Ubisoft has also canceled the second story DLC.
The long-time fans among you probably know that since AC Origins, Ubisoft usually releases two major story DLCs for each game. For Assassin's Creed Shadows, this plan seems to have changed. It's the second huge shock for players, after the Attack on Titan collaboration flopped so hard.
The Attack on Titan Crossover Event Shocks Fans
The hype around the limited-time event was huge. However, clips spread very quickly across Instagram, TikTok, and other platforms. Users started asking whether they were looking at AI-generated gameplay, simply because it felt surreal that a studio would release something like this.
The 30-minute-long quest consists mostly out of running through a cave. The only real collaboration element is the basic tie-in with Attack on Titan within the story of the quest. According to fans, the story feels inconsistent and "forced" into the game rather than being properly integrated.
Then there are the animations, which differ massively from the rest of the game in terms of quality. Clips of the Titan went viral and were absolutely torn apart online because of how bad they looked. The Titan’s movements appear shaky, stiff, and anything but polished.
Ubisoft Breaks A Long-standing Rule
Whether the cancelled story DLC is related to the strong community backlash is difficult to say. What is clear, however, is that there won’t be a second major story DLC –at least not for now.
With AC Shadows, Ubisoft is heading in a new direction regarding future content. After the first add-on Claws of Awaji, no further DLC is currently planned. Associate Game Director Simon Lemay-Comtois went into more detail about the strategy in an interview with YouTuber JorRaptor.
The decision isn’t final. Ubisoft plans to observe the community over a longer period and make adjustments if necessary. The future updates are expected to be similar in scope to the Attack on Titan event. So it seems Ubisoft will rely more on larger content drops instead of constant hotfixes.
Whether this strategy will work long-term remains to be seen. Especially after the latest collaboration, fans are understandably skeptical.
Have you played the new quest yet? Were you shocked too? Let us know what you think in the comments!