A petition created by Shimizu Toru, as translated by Google’s machine translation, calls for the cancellation of Ubisoft’s forthcoming game ‘Assassin’s Creed Shadows.’ The petition states, “Recently, lack of historical accuracy and cultural respect …
A petition created by Shimizu Toru, as translated by Google’s machine translation, calls for the cancellation of Ubisoft’s forthcoming game ‘Assassin’s Creed Shadows.’ The petition states, “Recently, lack of historical accuracy and cultural respect has been a serious problem for game developer Ubisoft, which is scheduled to release Assassin’s Creed Shadows. This game is based on the samurai of Japan, ignoring the fact that the samurai are the upper class of the warrior class and should be [my family] or a person who serves you.”
The petition further explains, “In fact, William Adams (Miura Anjin), the first European to receive the title of Samurai, served Tokugawa Ieyasu as a hatamoto for 250 koku.” It continues, “In such history, Ubisoft continues to misunderstand the essence and role of samurai. This is a serious insult to Japanese culture and history and can lead to racism in Asia.”
The petition demands, “We call on Ubisoft to immediately discontinue the launch of Assassin’s Creed Shadows and show sincere research and respect for Japanese history and culture.”
As of now, the petition has received over 16,000 signatures. This backlash comes after numerous Japanese gamers criticized Ubisoft and the game following comments by Associate Narrative Director Brooke Davies, who described the game as “fiction.”
In a video uploaded to IGN Japan in mid-June, Davies confirmed the game’s fictional nature. She stated, “The story that we’re telling is historical fiction. So to take the events of history and what we know of the history and then I think it kind of like as a palette. Then the story that we write based on these events and what is known needs to fit within that palette. So we can’t bring stuff from outside of this. We’re trying to work within this palette. But the story is very much fiction and what the writing team has imagined based on these historical figures and events that we’ve learned about working with our researchers and historians and consultants.”
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