Assassin's Creed: Shadows confirms Switch 2 release, but continues a worrying trend

Today, Ubisoft has officially announced that Assassin’s Creed: Shadows will be launching on the Nintendo Switch 2 on December 2nd. This confirms a long-running rumor that the latest entry in the Assassin’s Creed franchise would arrive on the new Nintendo console, and continues to prove that the Switch 2 is prepared to handle more modern releases than its predecessor. Of course, we still don’t know how Shadows will run on the Switch 2, but given the impressive reactions to Star Wars Outlaws when that released in September, it could be another win for Nintendo and Ubisoft.

Assassin’s Creed: Shadows officially confirmed to come to the Switch 2

Despite early issues with pre-orders in the U.S. and Canada, and initial calls to “drop the price,” the Nintendo Switch 2 had a strong launch. The original Switch is nearly the best-selling gaming console of all time, so given the new console's early success, it makes sense that publishers would want to find a way to bring their games to that new audience. Especially since the Switch 2 is now powerful enough to handle presentable versions of modern games. But there is one important trick that made Star Wars Outlaws work as well as it did that Shadows seems to be taking advantage of, too.

Explained in a social media post by one of the developers, Star Wars Outlaws runs well on the Nintendo Switch because its physical release is a game key card. This is a notorious new style of physical release that has become commonplace with large AAA titles on the Switch 2. Essentially, the game key card is a cartridge that provides a digital license, rather than having the full game on a physical cartridge. The social media post explaining this about Outlaws says: “…we found the Switch 2 cards simply didn’t give the performance we needed at the quality target we were going for.” It seems like Shadows will be following in the same footsteps, continuing the industry’s swing away from physical games and towards digital.

There is some good news about this port, however, as Ubisoft explained on their website. This version of Assassin’s Creed: Shadows will include cross-progression, meaning if you already own the game elsewhere, through Ubisoft Connect, you will be able to continue your experience on the go. Players will also be able to utilize the Switch 2’s touch screen “in all menus, including world map, store, and hideout.”

Unfortunately, players will have to be patient for DLC like the Claws of Awaji, which was released last month for PC and other consoles. That expansion will come to the Switch 2 “later in the new year,” according to Ubisoft’s website.

Assassin's Creed: Shadows

March 20, 2025

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• Ubisoft
• Ubisoft Quebec
• Assassin's Creed (franchise)