Ubisoft has released a statement addressing the Japanese community and tackling the controversy around Assassin’s Creed Shadows and the inclusion of black samurai Yasuke. The statement, which was released on July 23, attempts to explain the creative decision making process behind the latest Assassin’s Creed game.
The statement comes after months of controversy surrounding the upcoming Assassin’s Creed Shadows, where Ubisoft’s decision to select historical figure Yasuke as a main character drew the ire of both Japanese and international players.
Yasuke, a black retainer to Oda Nobunaga, has a reportedly controversial historical status, with various historians disagreeing from his position in society. The main issue regards his position as a samurai, something disputed by critics, and confirmed by several historians.
The controversy came to a head in the last few days, as Thomas Lockley, an associate professor at Nihon University, was reportedly ousted from his role amid questions to the veracity of his scholarly work. Lockley, who is seen as one of the main proponents of the Yasuke samurai camp, was accused of editing both Encyclopedia Britannica and Wikipedia entries to support his work.
Beyond this, the controversy has caused a stir in Japan, where it has been discussed on television, made fun of in pop songs, and has even been raised with some government officials. All this prompted Ubisoft to make a statement.
However, Ubisoft’s statement has seemingly not softened the blow. The issue with the statement may come from issues of inconsistencies and perceived ‘double speak.’ Ubisoft opens up by saying that it doesn’t present Assassin’s Creed games “as factual representations of history.” A paragraph later, it explains that it extensively collaborated with “consultants, historians, researchers, and internal teams at Ubisoft Japan,” seemingly counteracting their initial statement.
Yasuke and Naoe from Assassin’s Creed Shadows. Image Credit: Ubisoft
Assassins Creed hasn’t exactly been shy in incorporating historical elements with fictionalized details, although none of these have managed to stir controversy. Leonardo Da Vinci, Queen Victoria, Benjamin Franklin, Socrates, King Leonidas, Blackbeard, Charles Dickens, and Cleopatra have all appeared in the game series during its numerous entries.
Beyond this, the game has represented elements of British, North African, Italian, Greek, Iranian, Native American, and dozens of other cultures, without issue. Even the game’s central organization, The Assassin Order is based on the real-world Order of Assassins.
This is new ground for controversy over the Assassin’s Creed games. Typically, the games have just garnered criticism for being broken, like the Assassin’s Creed Unity, dull, as in Assassin’s Creed Origins, or the boat being the best part and tricking Ubisoft into making a horrible pirate game for five years (Assassin’s Creed: Black Flag).
For doubters and critics of Ubisoft’s upcoming game and inclusion of Yasuke, they’ll not be swayed by a milquetoast response. And for those who supported Ubisoft’s creative decisions, the choice to make a statement at all legitimizes the criticism, while undermining the message.
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