How Long AC Shadows' Main Campaign Is Compared To Previous Assassin's Creed Games
Assassin's Creed Shadows, the latest entry in the long-running Assassin's Creed franchise, is bringing players to a brand-new, long-requested setting: 16th century Japan. Players will switch between the roles of dual protagonists Fujibayashi Naoe and Yasuke in their continuing struggle against the Templar Order. Each character promises a unique playstyle, with Naoe wielding the traditional hidden blade and stealth skills, while Yasuke will be more aggressive and destructive.
Aiming to encapsulate more RPG elements like prior games Origins, Odyssey, and Valhalla, AC Shadows promises plenty of exploration and content to keep players entertained for hours. These more recent AC entries have become long, engaging affairs, and Shadows is set to be no different.
AC Shadows' Main Story Will Take 30–40 Hours To Beat
Expect Quite A Bit Longer For Completionists
According to a recent interview Jonathan Dumont, the creative director of both AC Odyssey and AC Shadows, did with VGC, players looking to complete Assassin's Creed Shadows' main story can expect to spend anywhere between 30–40 hours doing so. He also noted that those who want to explore every nook and cranny of what the game has to offer will likely spend upwards of 80 hours to achieve full completion.
Assassin's Creed Shadows Announces Prequel Ahead of Launch: What You Need to Know
Assassin's Creed Shadows is coming out soon, but upon its release fans can look forward to a prequel manga.
A 30–40-hour campaign, some of which has leaked on Twitch ahead of launch, is nothing to sneeze at and a fairly standard length for open-world RPGs. AC Shadows is sure to contain many side quests and collectibles to hunt down, similar to previous games. By all accounts, Shadows appears to be well in line with the more modern AC games, Origins, Odyssey, and Valhalla, which are all much larger than the series' original slate of games.
How AC Shadows' Campaign Length Compares To Other Games
Does The New Adventure Measure Up?
The Assassin's Creed franchise is well known for lengthy adventures that take players all over recreations of historical environments and cities. The table below outlines how long you can expect to be playing each of the entries in the mainline Assassin's Creed series of games if you're looking to replay some past titles.
Game | Main Story Time | Completionist Time |
|---|---|---|
Assassin's Creed (2007) | 15 Hours | 30.5 Hours |
Assassin's Creed 2 (2009) | 19 Hours | 35.5 Hours |
Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood (2010) | 15 Hours | 41.5 Hours |
Assassin's Creed: Revelations (2011) | 12.5 Hours | 34.5 Hours |
Assassin's Creed 3 (2012) | 16.5 Hours | 55.5 Hours |
Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag (2013) | 23.5 Hours | 61 Hours |
Assassin's Creed Rogue (2014) | 10.5 Hours | 39.5 Hours |
Assassin's Creed Unity (2014) | 17 Hours | 79.5 Hours |
Assassin's Creed Syndicate (2015) | 18.5 Hours | 55 Hours |
Assassin's Creed Origins (2017) | 30 Hours | 85 Hours |
Assassin's Creed Odyssey (2018) | 45.5 Hours | 144 Hours |
Assassin's Creed Valhalla (2020) | 61 Hours | 148 Hours |
Assassin's Creed Mirage (2023) | 16 Hours | 30 Hours |
All the statistics above are pulled from HowLongToBeat, which collects user data on various games. Mileage may vary depending on individual experience, but the site is generally a very reliable metric for playtime.
Is AC Shadows The Longest Assassin's Creed Game?
There's Already More To Come
Despire Assassin's Creed Shadows' length putting it in the upper echelon of the series' games by amount of content, AC Valhalla still firmly holds the record for longest game in the franchise at around 61 hours for the main story and 148 hours for total completion. This newest entry is similar in length to AC Origins in both categories. However, the slightly shorter playtime should not be seen as a negative. AC Shadows is still achieving roughly third place in length, at least as far as the main story is concerned, and promises plenty of action and adventure in store.
Odyssey and Valhalla were both criticized for excessive open-world bloat, and the latter also received years of post-launch support with numerous DLC expansions, though those have their playtime calculated separately on HLTB.
Keep in mind, the developers are already considering the addition of other content, including a New Game Plus mode. That opportunity to revisit the game, along with an already planned 10-hour-long Shadows DLC, will add plenty of content moving forward. There's a lot to be excited about in this exploration through Feudal Japan.
Assassin's Creed Shadows' Huge DLC Has Me Excited For One Reason
Assassin’s Creed Shadows is getting a huge 10-hour DLC that is adding an exciting new feature I feel will completely change the game.
With Assassin's Creed Shadows right around the corner, excitement is building for the release of this latest addition to the historical action franchise. With two historical protagonists for the first time and a new time period to explore, there is plenty to look forward to. The game launches on March 20, 2025, and players are in for yet another lengthy campaign from the famed franchise.
Sources: VGC, HowLongToBeat
Assassin's Creed Shadows
- Released
- March 20, 2025
- ESRB
- Mature 17+ // Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Language
- Developer(s)
- Ubisoft Quebec
- Publisher(s)
- Ubisoft
Set during Japan’s Sengoku period, two distinct protagonists—Naoe, a shinobi, and Yasuke, a historical African samurai—must navigate political intrigue and violent clashes between the Assassins and Templars. Players can switch between stealthy, shadow-based gameplay with Naoe and Yasuke’s direct combat approach, exploring the duality of their missions in a beautifully rendered open world.
- Franchise
- Assassin's Creed
- Platform(s)
- PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, PC
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