Assassin’s Creed Shadows (PC) review: Beauty, brutality, and the burden of bloat

Ubisoft’s Assassin’s Creed Shadows is undeniably the talk of the town, and it’s impossible not to review this game without acknowledging the surrounding conversation. Admittedly, I have never been an RPG person, barring a few fantastic exceptions, such as Cyberpunk 2077 and Elden Ring. However, I have absolutely been an AC person for as long as I can remember. Assassin’s Creed 2 was the very first AAA game I ever played — the eagle-skull AC logo was the first tattoo I ever got, and Jesper Kyd’s Ezio’s Family is still the first song on my driving playlist.