Assassin’s Creed Shadowsseems to have faced every kind of criticism imaginable during its development.
Some of it was fair, such as concerns over potential historical inaccuracies raised by Japanese players, while other attacks were more reactionary—like people calling the game “woke” simply because it features two protagonists who aren’t white men: Yasuke, a black man, and Naoe, a Japanese woman.
Now, as the game is rolling out and streamers are creating content around it, trolls are also showing up, attacking both the game and content creators covering it. The latest example happened during FightinCowboy’s livestream when he played the opening moments ofAssassin’s Creed Shadowson YouTube.
FightinCowboy shuts down trolls attacking Assassin’s Creed Shadows
Within the first 13 minutes of hisAC Shadowsstream, FightinCowboy had to pause the game to address negative comments about Yasuke being a black character in a game set in Japan.
“If you’re just coming here to get into this weird race s* about a historical figure that existed in Japanese history, I’m just going to remove you,” Fighting Cowboy said. “I don’t care, your opinion is worthless to me […] When I was a kid, guess what? If a game came out and I didn’t want to get involved with it, I didn’t f* play it, I didn’t go on the internet and cry like an entitled little child.”
He made it clear that he would ban or time out viewers spamming his chat with these comments so he could focus on playing the game.
“I’m here to play a f* game, not listen to you cry about a Black dude that existed in history. […] If that upsets you, if that makes you not feel like you’re in your special place, that’s not my f* problem, go talk to your therapist about it.”
Indeed, Yasuke was a real historical figure, a Black man taken to feudal Japan in the late 1500s. While Assassin’s Creed Shadows takes some creative freedom, such as portraying him as a full-fledged samurai, which is debated among some people, his existence in Japan is a historical fact.
Other than the samurai debate, there has been no pushback against Yasuke’s inclusion, especially not from longtime fans of theAssassin’s Creedseries.
The harassment won’t stop, but the game is already selling
Unfortunately, FightinCowboy’s experience won’t be the last. Trolls frequently target games and content creators, and race-based criticism is something that some toxic gaming communities and streamers even encourage, directly or indirectly.
At this point, it’s about seeing how other streamers will handle the same toxic behavior while continuing to cover the game. However, despite the negativity,Assassin’s Creed Shadowsis selling extremely well,including in Japan, where some originally thought it might struggle.
The game has already become a top seller on Steam, receivedvery positive reviews, and this loud minority of players trying to hate on the game based on its setting and protagonists seems to have little influence over the broader gaming audience—most of whom, as FightinCowboy said, just want to play a game and have fun.
