This article contains spoilers forAssassin’s Creed Shadows.
While theAssassin’s Creedfranchise has been focused on an action RPG formula for a little while now, Ubisoft did take the series back to basics with 2024’sAssassin’s Creed Mirage.That game expanded upon the story of one ofAssassin’s Creed Valhalla’s assassins, letting players see his early days with the Brotherhood, and it made for a pretty intriguing adventure. With the release ofAssassin’s Creed Shadows,the series has gone back to an RPG framework, but its story has already set up the perfect nextMirage-like game.
It remains to be seen if Ubisoft will ultimately release anotherAssassin’s Creed Mirage-like experience, but if it does, thenAssassin’s Creed Shadowshas introduced a great character for it: Fujibayashi Nagato. Not only was Nagato the father and mentor of protagonist Naoe, he was also a core member of the Assassin’s Brotherhood. As of now, his story has not really been explored much past his brief appearances throughoutShadows, but that really needs to change.
Assassin’s Creed Shadows Could Have a Fantastic Prequel Adventure
Naoe’s Father Has So Much Story Left to Tell
Players areintroduced to Fujibayashi Nagatoshortly afterAssassin’s Creed Shadowsbegins. They do not get to interact with him for long, though, as he is struck down by members of the Shinbakufu who are attempting to steal a mysterious box. Of course, his death pushes Naoe to hunt down those members, hoping she can both avenge Nagato’s death and retrieve the box. As players push through that story, they learn a bit more about Nagato and his life, but for the most part, his story remains shrouded in mystery.
Players know that Nagato was a member of the Kakushiba Ikki, which arethe predecessors to the Japanese Brotherhood of Assassins. They also learn that while he initially wanted to protect Naoe from battle, he ended up being forced to train her in the ways of the hidden blade so she could protect herself against Oda Nobunga’s war. Outside of that, players only really get brief looks at Nagato’s life and what kind of person he was. But through aMirage-like game, players could learn so much more.
An Assassin’s Creed Mirage-like Game Would Fit In Nicely
Nagato is not onlyan important person in Naoe’s life, he also seems to be a major force within the Brotherhood. His brief story seemed to paint him as a leader who had spent much of his life safeguarding the lands from Oda Nobunga while also protecting the Imperial Regalia from his influence. Additionally, he proved to be a very skilled fighter and became legendary across the land. A story like that begs to be seen and experienced, and Ubisoft has the perfect way to do just that.
Assassin’s Creed Miragewas a smaller experience that really helped build outBasim’s story fromAssassin’s Creed Valhalla. Through another similar experience, Ubisoft could really expand Nagato’s story and actually let players see the earlier days of the Japanese Brotherhood. Not only could that lead to an extremely intriguing tale, it would also let players see even more ofAssassin’s Creed’s version of Japan. It took a long time for the studio to finally bring the franchise here, and now that it has, it should stick around for a bit longer.
As of now, it seems like the next mainline title will be coming in the form of a game currently known asAssassin’s Creed: Codename Hexe, and there are even more titles set to release after that one. So, while there is no shortage of titles on the horizon, Ubisoft should really consider adding one more into the mix. Even if it came as a much smaller package, seeing Nagato’s story developed further could be a fantastic treat for fans of this new adventure.
