In a new series of statements, a member of the Japanese government has called for an investigation into Assassin’s Creed Shadows, the latest from Ubisoft that has numerous historical inaccuracies.
A member from the House of Councillors (the equivalent of the American Senate in the bicameral Japanese legislature), Satoshi Hamada, said he is considering having the Japanese government conduct an investigation about the negative reception the upcoming game Assassin’s Creed Shadows, over its historical revisions.
“We have received a consultation regarding the alteration of Japanese history by a French game company,” Hamada said. “We shared the consultation below with images. We have also quoted a post that we believe points out the problem with the game in question. We would be happy to receive your comments and suggestions, including specific requests.”
Hamada also delivered a scathing criticism against Ubisoft for refusing to admit historical inaccuracies, such as using Chinese buildings for Japanese ones, or how a low-ranking retainer can be seated on the same level as a high-ranking daimyo like Nobunaga.
Hamada also said that complaints he received from Japanese constituents noted how Yasuke, an African-born retainer on the service of Nobunaga, was portrayed and feared while noting the scarce historical information about him are exaggerated and presented as real.
Later, the politician shared another another tweet, saying “Thank you for your opinions about the new Assassin’s Creed Shadows game. We received another complaint about cultural appropriation and invasion regarding Yasuke, an African who served Nobunaga Oda, and share this.”
Meanwhile a parody song critical of the Assassin’s Creed controversy has been making the rounds of Japanese Youtube:
Called “Why Yasuke,” the song complains about why Ubisoft had to use a black retainer as a protagonist in Japan-centered video game and wonders what Ubisoft is up too. The video amassed 900,000 views since its upload in July 6.
Assassin’s Creed Shadows is set to launch on November 15th across Windows PC (via the Ubisoft Store), Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 5, and Amazon Luna.
