AC Shadows Actually Just Got Better?? (New Update & DLC)
Some people love the new DLC for AC Shadows, but others say it’s a total waste of time. But if you’re like me and haven’t touched a game in quite a while, or if you’re still on the fence about picking it up, you probably want to know what you’re getting into. So, instead of a generic DLC review, here is my brutally honest thoughts on whether Shadows has actually improved overall and whether the new chapter is truly worth your time. So, right off the bat, you can only start the DLC once you have fully completed the main story. And I can see how this would annoy some of you, especially if you never got around to finishing this lengthy story in the first place. Forcing players to complete the story just to access new content really isn’t that ideal right from the start. But this DLC does take place on a brand new island, which does look impressive on the surface. And while it’s not a massive land mass, it feels like a good size. And there are some unique environmental elements to help keep things fresh. But we have to talk about now’s new weapon, the bow staff, as this has given various players uncontrollable rodons, and it really sparked my interest. The separate high and low stance attacks add a genuine layer of depth to combat encounters, and the animations are fluid and incredibly well done. And I was honestly surprised by how much effort was clearly put into making this weapon feel more unique compared to the others. Yes, it’s not exactly groundbreaking combat I’m suddenly addicted to, and personally, call me a freak, but I do prefer seeing a load of blood and guts during combat, which this weapon just doesn’t deliver. But it is far more fun and satisfying than I ever expected. And it became my number one weapon of choice almost immediately. And the fact you’ll often be randomly ambushed by enemies whilst exploring, a feature meant to make the world feel more alive made things even better in a way, as it meant I had more opportunities to absolutely annihilate gobshits with my dog dick red stick. But unfortunately, the excellence of this new weapon only enlarges one of the game’s biggest existing flaws, which I haven’t really seen that many people talk about. Yaske’s dumpy ass will be getting neglected even more. Now, don’t get me wrong, I’m not a massive Yas hater like some people are. I can appreciate his heavier brute force fighting style and how it does add variety instead of just playing as another agile silent assassin you’ve done many times before. But at the same time, he still feels like a chore to play as with his slow and sluggish movement and his limited parkour abilities that we all saw at launch. And by introducing the bow staff for now way just makes me neglect this poor [ __ ] even more. So if you didn’t like playing as him before, you definitely won’t now. However, during this mission, it was cool to actually see both characters on screen at once instead of just choosing one and never seeing the other again till after the mission is completed. And this particular mission didn’t feel like a typical filler segment. It actually felt meaningful to the story and it used both characters strengths pretty well. While the game play definitely has some great additions, the real test is whether the open world and story can carry the experience. So, it starts off strong with now looking into her mother’s whereabouts, which feels a bit more grounded and increases the possibility of you actually giving a [ __ ] which then leads her to this new explorable island. And the sidescroller mission is quite a unique opening for the DLC. And it heavily reminded me of AC Chronicles. And it might not look all that good to watch, but I actually quite enjoyed this change of pace. And the art style suited the game surprisingly well, and it was a unique and creative intro. The story does feel short and the new villain is completely lackluster and forgettable with her demented henchmen being far more interesting. So don’t expect some Shaw Shank Redemption level storytelling, but it is good enough to make you want to see how it ends. Although I will admit there are some standout missions like mentioned earlier, and I do appreciate the ones that focus on stealth and add boss fights, but it is hard to ignore the openw world RPG fatigue that does set in. And maybe it is just me, but the DLC once again really struggles to keep the fatigue at bay, which may make you think twice about playing this. And let me give you some examples. After completing one mission, you are frequently forced to hike about 69 mi up north on your horse to the next one. And it seriously feels like missions are spread out on purpose to rack up playtime hours. certain repetitive copy and paste segments like picking off multiple targets before you can proceed are a thing once again to draw things out even further. And I don’t know about you, but after completing god knows how many shrines, temples, and viewpoints in the main game, the last thing I want to do is complete a dozen more just because they’re on a new island for Christ’s sake. Yes, there are new skills for both characters, which I guess makes this a bit more attractive, but if you do respect your time, it’s just not enough to warrant doing another massive checklist of [ __ ] I feel they needed to add some different ones here rather than just rehashing the same bollocks from the main game. And I do have to mention performance. My FPS would often struggle, especially during cutscenes for some reason. And for this to be happening on a high-end system is a bit concerning for a paid expansion, but it did only happen during cutscenes mainly and not really the gameplay. And I did encounter one hard crash, but luckily the game’s autosave feature is pretty solid, thank god. So although performance isn’t terrible, it definitely needs some tweaking. So, with all that in mind, does this $25 DLC really improve AC Shadows like some people say, or is it really a total waste of time? Maybe some of you won’t agree, but there is no doubt that this DLC feels massively drawn out at times. And for me, it fails to make the openw world RPG fatigue feel any less painful. Yes, it does have a new setting to explore, and yes, it does look great visually, but unless I open the map when exploring, I couldn’t tell you if this was the base game or not. Trying to make it feel more immersive by having enemies set up traps and be more aggressive is a nice touch, and it does help make endless horse riding to your next objective about 100 miles away a bit less suicidal. But it does get old after you’ve ridden through the 12th trip wire of the day, and I feel like it needed more unique scenarios instead. The bow staff is by far the best addition, and it made me enjoy the momentto- moment combat a whole lot more. But there is one thing you need to know before you buy. Despite being designed for the DLC, the bow staff is actually a free update for everyone, even if you didn’t purchase the DLC. So, this is technically great, but at the same time, it makes paying for the DLC even more questionable. Ultimately, I think I was just expecting a bit too much after seeing so many comments hyping this up. Whilst there are elements I definitely liked, this update just extends the same cookie cutter RPG template for another 10 hours. And if you found the ending of the base game a bit lackluster, maybe you will find some satisfaction here. But if you’re not interested in playing another RPG grind that feels more of the same, dropping 25 bucks on content you’ve basically done before just isn’t worth it. However, I still believe despite its flaws, AC Shadows isn’t anywhere near as bad as some people say. It just hasn’t been able to reach the potential it so clearly has. Definitely give the free bow staff a try. It’s absolutely worth checking out. And with Shadows dropping in price since launch, if you like what you see, now is the perfect time to try it for yourself. And let me know your honest thoughts in the comment section down below. I am very interested to know what you think. And to see whether Minds Eye has made the best comeback in gaming history or whether it’s still absolutely shite, just click the video on screen. You definitely don’t want to miss this. Thank you guys for watching as always and I’ll see you next
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