Since day one, Ubisoft has made it clear that Assassin’s Creed Shadows is an ambitious undertaking. Between the introduction of the long-requested Japanese setting, the arrival of ray-tracing, and multiple delays for polishing, the game looks to be one of the publisher’s biggest projects.

Another interesting detail regarding the scope of Assassin’s Creed Shadows was recently revealed by Ubisoft. Following a slew of positive previews, the team confirmed a whopping 700 cinematics for its latest title.

Why it matters: This figure brings the Ubisoft RPG close to the scope of titles like Baldur’s Gate 3, which boasted around 174 hours of cinematics.

During a recent interview, realization director David Nibbelin discussed the significance of cutscenes and cinematics in Assassin’s Creed Shadows, highlighting how they shape the overall tone and narrative of the experience.

He states that the cutscenes won’t be reserved solely for the story beats or dialogue. Instead, Ubisoft has made it a point to utilize these 700+ cutscenes for various moments of introspection.

The team wants players to reflect on their actions and recognize their actions through these moments. Ultimately, the developers hope players connect to the characters through these cinematics.

We want you to feel these scenes. We want you to think of them as a moment to recognize consequences so that you can connect with the characters.

-David Nibbelin

This also means that Assassin’s Creed Shadows will likely boast the highest production values of any entry in the series. Assassin’s Creed Shadows Arrives In Just A Few More Weeks
While the focus on effective storytelling through these cinematics sounds incredibly exciting, it should be noted that the RPG won’t offer mocap for all of these cutscenes. This may lead to varying levels of quality, but Ubisoft is still hopeful the overall message conveyed to players will be quite strong.