One of the two most important characters in Assassin’s Creed Shadows, Yasuke, is the first character you play as, but when do you get to control him again?
It’s a strange situation that you find yourself in. You’ve spent the first 30 minutes of the game playing Yasuke, but now you find yourself unable to play as the juggernaut Assassin.
In this guide, we’ll explain why, and when you can get back into the Yasuke hot seat.
.jpg)
Assassin's Creed Shadow Yasuke - Missing in Action
After your initial time playing as Yasuke, and learning about his backstory, you are plunged into the perspective of Naoe to do the same thing. Then, you keep playing as Naoe, and Yasuke is left as an afterthought.
Fear not; you will play as Yasuke, and it might take a little longer than you expected. For our review time, it took us about 20 hours to meet Yasuke again. Considering the total main story length is about 50 hours, with the side quests adding about another 15 to 20, Yasuke seemingly misses a large portion of the adventure.
Once he does rejoin the story, however, it does make a lot of sense. We won't spoil why here, but it's worth the wait. After that point, the game truly opens up. We talked about the game being split into four parts in our Assassin's Creed Shadows Review. “The introduction of Yasuke and Naoe, an expanded section featuring Naoe, and a transition into the open-world segment where you can freely roam as Naoe. Finally, without revealing any spoilers, the fourth major part of the game, where Yasuke becomes fully playable.”
From this point on, Yasuke and Naoe are interchangeable throughout the game. Interestingly, you will need to switch to Naoe for a few side objectives, while Naoe and Yasuke both have their own unique Knowledge challenges to complete.
Do you Have to Play as Yasuke or Naoe
From the point you have access to both characters, you will be able to play around 95% of the game as whomever you want. You will be forced to play as both characters for certain quests, objectives, and a few open-world sections. However, the latter is mainly for Naoe due to her superior climbing abilities.
So no, if you don’t want to play as one of the characters for any reason, you don’t need to play as them for most of the game. But we think you’ll find that swapping between the two will get you the most out of the game.
FAQ
Is Yasuke or Naoe Better?
Both characters have their own unique abilities. In raw face-to-face combat, Yasuke is much stronger than Naoe. While he lacks speed, he will make up for it in raw power. Some of it will come down to weapons, as Naoe has access to a slightly different kit, though realistically, they both have a longer and shorter-range melee weapon, plus a ranged option.
How do you Play as Yasuke?
Once he’s unlocked, changing between Yasuke and Naoe is very easy. The easiest way is to head to the Inventory screen and simply swap with the shortcut. The other way is when you fast travel, you can choose to fast travel as the other character.
Can Yasuke do Parkour?
Yasuke is able to do parkour, in the same way that I’m able to run a 100-metre sprint. Both are possible, but I’d rather have someone else do it. If you need to climb, get Naoe, in fact, if you need to climb to the high peaks, you will need Naoe.
Yasuke is able to do a limited amount of parkour, like climb the “eagle view trees” and small walls. But, when it comes to attacking a castle or temple, Naoe is the best option.
