Assassin's Creed Shadows is getting a prequel manga but not until after the game comes out, Ubisoft has announced.
The company revealed on X/Twitter that, while the prequel manga will arrive in Japan on the game's release date of March 20, it won't arrive elsewhere until "later."
"Discover the official prequel of the game," Ubisoft said. "Follow the story a young Assassin apprentice as she fights against the growing presence of the Templars order in Japan."
This assassin is seemingly not protagonist Naoe, however, as she's depicted in the opening of Assassin's Creed Shadows as not being aware of the era spanning battle between Assassins and Templars. It could therefore be her mother or a teacher or someone else entirely.
#AssassinsCreedShadows will get its own manga!
Discover the official prequel of the game. Follow the story a young Assassin apprentice, as she fights against the growing presence of the Templars order in Japan.
Available in Japan at the launch of the game and later elsewhere. pic.twitter.com/TLn6DyOVB7
— Assassin's Creed (@assassinscreed) February 6, 2025
It will presumably set up the background context of Assassin's Creed Shadows, however, even though it does come after the game. It's unclear if the manga will be a serialized story or if it will all come in one go, though the front cover does have a number one on it.
A lot rests on the shoulders of Assassin's Creed Shadows as not only the long-awaited Japan-set entry and the first full Assassin's Creed since 2020, but a struggling Ubisoft needs it to perform well following recent flops and investor frustration.
It's not enjoyed a particularly positive promotional period so far, however, with the development team having to apologize on separate occasions for inaccuracies in Assassin's Creed Shadows' depictions of Japan and using a historical recreation group's flag without permission.
Yet another controversy came as collectible figure maker PureArts removed an Assassin's Creed Shadows statue from sale over its "insensitive" design, and combined with the two delays, fans are growing increasingly impatient as a result.
Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelance reporter. He'll talk about The Witcher all day.
