I kind of messed up, guys. In assuming that Assassin's Creed Shadows would be like the series' past RPG entries – think the largely inconsequential player decisions in Valhalla and Odyssey, for example – I discovered that it's possible to be such a stubborn, vengeful asshole that recruitable allies refuse to join your cause.

In the original Assassin’s Creed, the line between combatants and civilians was clearly defined. The first game used its lore as an excuse to prevent players from killing random civilians, citing any unendorsed killing as a disruption of prewritten history. In Shadows, the distinction is murkier. And the kills, messier.

Assassin's Creed Shadows is finally here, and though it may not be too different from the previous few games in the series, it does have a bunch of new mechanics that you'll need to learn about to be the best shinobi and/or samurai you can be.