Assassin’s Creed Shadows launches on Mac today alongside its PC and console counterparts. The game is the latest sequel in the long-running Assassin’s Creed franchise from developer Ubisoft and features open world RPG gameplay set in feudal Japan.
Assassin’s Creed Shadows lets players take control of one of two protagonists, each with their own unique play style and abilities. Naoe, a shinobi Assassin from Iga Province focuses more on stealth gameplay, and Yasuke, a formidable African samurai based on historical record utilizes a more direct, action-heavy combat style. Naoe and Yasuke possess their own stats, skills, and gear but players can swap between the two characters at any time to undertake quests as they see fit.
Assassin’s Creed games have featured a day/night cycle for years, but Assassin’s Creed Shadows builds upon this with the addition of changing seasons and weather. For instance, a bush that offers cover in spring becomes bare in winter, making it harder to hide. Snow makes it more difficult to run and might slow down your escape. While climbing a structure, icicles could fall and alert nearby enemies. These changes introduce more dynamic gameplay, prompting players to reevaluate their approach to specific missions or targets.
Fans are divided on what constitutes a good Assassin’s Creed game. Some prefer smaller worlds with more stealth-focused gameplay, while others favor the open-world RPG approach that has become more common in recent Assassin’s Creed titles. Personally, I belong to the latter category. I enjoyed Origins, absolutely loved Odyssey and all its DLC, and tolerated Valhalla. Assassin’s Creed Shadows aims to bridge the gap between these two gameplay styles by introducing an open world that emphasizes stealth, catering to fans of both styles.
Assassin’s Creed Shadows is built on the latest version of the Anvil Engine and is a native Mac port. It’s also one of the few flagship Mac games to support HDR and ray tracing—provided you have the hardware that can handle it. PC is still the best way to play the game if maxed-out eye candy is your thing, but it’s nice to see more advanced gaming features come to Mac and on the same day as PC and console.
Assassin’s Creed Shadows requires an Apple Silicon Mac (sorry, Intel Mac users), and even then entry-level M-processors don’t make the cut. You’ll need an M1 Max or better to play the game at 720p at low settings and an M3 Pro or better to play with the best graphic settings. Here are the minimum system requirements:
- Operating system: macOS Sequoia 15.0, or higher
- Processor: M1 MAX chip, or higher
- Memory: 16 GB
- Video card: M1 MAX chip, or higher
- Hard drive: 130 GB available storage
You can see what kind of performance you can expect with your Mac based on Ubisoft’s chart below:
Assassin’s Creed Shadows is available in the Mac App Store today for $70. It will be available for iPads with M-series chips at a later date.
To celebrate the release of Assassin’s Creed Shadows, we’ve created some exclusive new wallpapers. The wallpaper showcases the game’s two protagonists, Naoe and Yasuke, and is available for Mac, iPad, and iPhone. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to go plug into the Animus.
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