Ubisoft No Longer Plans to Release a Second Assassin's Creed Shadows Expansion

Ubisoft has confirmed it nary longer plans to motorboat a 2nd large Assassin's Creed Shadows expansion, thing that antecedently would person formed portion of the game's now-abandoned play pass.

Shadows' archetypal — and now, it seems, lone — large enlargement launched successful September. The 10-hour Claws of Awaji had antecedently been described arsenic the "first expansion" included successful Shadows' play pass, an connection that was formally scrapped a twelvemonth agone erstwhile Ubisoft delayed the game's motorboat from November 2024 to February 2025.

As an apology to fans for the game's delay, Ubisoft said it alternatively would acquisition Claws of Awaji for escaped to each pre-order customers. But fans inactive assumed a 2nd enlargement would travel astatine immoderate point, arsenic has go customized for each different large Assassin's Creed rubric implicit the past decade.

"As of now, astatine this infinitesimal for Year Two, determination is nary enlargement connected the size of Awaji that is planned," subordinate crippled manager Simon Lemay-Comtois said successful an interrogation with JorRaptor.

Lemay-Comtois caveated his reply by noting immoderate exceptional examples successful the past wherever Ubisoft had changed its plans to marque much add-on contented than it had primitively envisioned (such arsenic with the caller Saudi-funded DLC that arrived 2 years post-launch for Assassin's Creed Mirage). But, currently, it seems wide that nary 2nd enlargement is connected the cards, and there's nary proposition that Shadows' post-launch plans volition widen into a Year Three.

It's an highly astonishing determination by Ubisoft, which followed up the motorboat of 2017's Assassin's Creed Origins with 2 expansions (The Hidden Ones and The Curse of the Pharaohs), 2018's Assassin's Creed Odyssey with 2 expansions (Legacy of the First Blade and The Fate of Atlantis), and 2020's Assassin's Creed Odyssey with 3 expansions (Wrath of the Druids, The Siege of Paris, Dawn of Ragnarök) alongside galore different smaller DLC drops. 2023's smaller-scale Assassin's Creed Mirage was itself primitively planned arsenic yet different Valhalla expansion, earlier it was yet released arsenic a standalone game.

"We're inactive moving connected contented for post-launch and supporting it, but it's not a full-on DLC the mode a play walk would person had successful the erstwhile years," Lemay-Comtois said, confirming astatine slightest that Ubisoft inactive had plans for smaller additions to Shadows wrong 2026.

"We're trying to re-adjust for Year Two a small bit," helium continued. "There's learning from Year One we tin use to Year Two. Any contented we privation to bash successful Year Two volition astir apt beryllium much sparse, not a drip-feed... but chunkier updates that shingle things up a small more. I'm not announcing thing astatine this constituent but our strategy for Year One was to beryllium speedy and reactive, truthful it means smaller drops often, but for Year Two we don't request to enactment fires retired oregon anything, truthful it's much what good, chunky small portion of meat... we tin driblet and person radical travel backmost and bask it."

Digging into Lemay-Comtois' comment, the proposition present is that Ubisoft's determination to alteration people connected Shadows pursuing its pre-release reception impacted the company's plans for post-launch support, with precedence placed connected warring contiguous "fires." And indeed, Shadows has enjoyed a bid of caller patches that person added galore fan-requested features, successful a wide bid to crook sentiment around. Going into further detail, Lemay-Comtois besides suggested Shadows had been a tougher crippled to make technologically, further complicating plans to get post-launch contented ready.

"I deliberation with Shadows, we had a large leap successful generations," helium continued. "The motor enactment that we had to bash connected Shadows took a batch of clip and a batch of our resources. So the readying for the station motorboat was not truly wide arsenic soon arsenic it would person been connected different [game] wherever the exertion was much unchangeable and good known.

"We started reasonably precocious connected Shadows... due to the fact that I retrieve during pre-launch we had the Season Pass," helium admitted. "And the concern changed erstwhile we pushed backmost connected the merchandise date. That program changed rather a spot and past we had to benignant of accommodate to the situation. So due to the fact that of the caller tech, due to the fact that of the caller generation, due to the fact that of the pushes we had successful production, we chose an attack that was mode more, let's enactment our receptor to the crushed erstwhile the crippled launches... and react."

For 2026, Lemay-Comtois suggested Shadows would person updates "not to the size of a DLC oregon expansion, but similar yesterday's update plus," referencing the escaped update that arrived this week that added a caller communicative quest, the game's Attack connected Titan crossover, arsenic good arsenic a important Isu Easter egg. "At minimum this size," helium emphasized, without stating whether these updates would proceed to beryllium provided for escaped oregon not.

"And whether oregon not this is the close mode to go, oregon a bully learning, I deliberation it's much of an acquisition we're trying with Shadows, to support things tiny and reactive and spot however the assemblage feels astir it and reacts to it," helium concluded. "And the learnings that travel retired of that volition beryllium applied to immoderate different projects we bash next."

Of course, it's to beryllium expected that Shadows' pb developer Ubisoft Quebec is already readying its adjacent large Assassin's Creed task (and indeed, it was antecedently reported that the workplace had begun aboriginal pre-production enactment past twelvemonth connected a now-scrapped introduction acceptable successful the post-U.S. Civil War period). But the notation present of those projects is interesting, alongside confirmation of what sounds similar smaller plans for Shadows successful 2026 than fans person seen this year.

And past there's what other fans expect is coming: a remake of Assassin's Creed: Black Flag reportedly waiting successful the wings, arsenic good arsenic galore different Assassin's Creed projects that Ubisoft has already confirmed, including a multiplayer spin-off and the witchcraft-themed Assassin's Creed: Hexe. Amongst each that, and coupled with Shadows' hold drama, Ubisoft seems to person simply decided a 2nd Shadows enlargement isn't necessary.

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Tom Phillips is IGN's News Editor. You tin scope Tom astatine [email protected] oregon find him connected Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social