Assassin’s Creed Shadow’s tatami error not in the full game, says Ubisoft 

Assassin’s Creed Shadow’s director Charles Benoit recently addressed viral complaints from Japanese users about architectural inaccuracy in the game’s trailer. Speaking in a recent interview with Game Watch, Benoit discusses the team’s position on historical accuracy and reveals that the tatami matting will likely look correct in the actual game. 

The announcement of Assassin’s Creed Shadows last month prompted a flurry of varied reactions to its Sengoku-era Japan setting and its choice of Yasuke as one of the lead characters. In Japan, however, eagle-eyed viewers homed in on more subtle cultural and architectural aspects. The complaints centered on the indoor scene in which warlord Oda Nobunaga is meeting with his vassals. A viral post on X and accompanying screenshot highlighted how the architecture of the room doesn’t really make sense. Receiving particular focus were the square-shaped tatami mats. Tatami mats should be rectangular with uniform-sized borders around the edges- as many Japanese users pointed out.  

Among the various other issues in the trailer that Japanese users picked up on (detailed in our previous article),  the strangely-shaped tatami mats garnered the most attention, leading Game Watch to ask Benoit directly about them. Benoit states “As for the tatami, I think they are correct in the actual game.” 

Benoit explains that “We have been working with experts on Japan from day one of development” and adds that they also work closely with Ubisoft’s Japanese teams in Tokyo and Osaka. He acknowledges that the team does their best but sometimes mistakes can happen, “We always try to correct mistakes as much as possible.”  

In the interview, Benoit also revealed that Assassin’s Creed Shadows will have a collecting element like in Assassin’s Creed Mirage, which will allow the player to learn more about culture and society in Sengoku period Japan as they explore the world.  

Assassin’s Creed Shadows is scheduled to be released on November 15 for PS5, Xbox Series S|X, PC and Mac.