The upcoming Assassin’s Creed Shadows port for the Nintendo Switch 2 has been the subject of in-depth technical analysis following the release of its official trailer, and early impressions indicate that the game will not utilize ray-traced global illumination (RTGI)—one of the defining graphical features of the current-generation versions. According to Digital Foundry’s latest podcast, Ubisoft’s ambitious port demonstrates impressive results given the platform’s constraints, but also highlights several clear visual compromises.
The trailer, first published on Nintendo’s official channel at a modest 720p resolution, showcased Assassin’s Creed Shadows running at 30 frames per second. A higher-quality 1080p upload was later made available by Ubisoft, offering a clearer look at the game’s lighting and environmental design. However, Digital Foundry’s Oliver Mackenzie noted that “there are no visible signs of ray tracing” in any of the available footage. He further explained that outdoor areas between settlements “appear somewhat flat, with less natural light gradients and a noticeable bluish tint in shadowed regions,” likely caused by the use of baked global illumination rather than dynamic ray-traced lighting.
This finding aligns with Ubisoft’s prior approach on the less powerful Xbox Series S, which also omitted RTGI despite offering 30 FPS performance modes. Given the Switch 2’s expected lower clock speeds in portable mode, the exclusion of ray-tracing features appears to be a necessary concession for stable gameplay. The lighting model, while functional, seems to rely heavily on precomputed probes, which can result in flatter ambient lighting, particularly in natural outdoor scenes.
Beyond lighting, Digital Foundry observed additional visual downgrades. Per-object motion blur, which contributes to smoother character animations on higher-end systems, is missing from the Switch 2 version. Shadow and fog effects have also been scaled back, and the overall image quality appears somewhat compressed, though this could be attributed to the trailer’s encoding rather than the game itself. Despite these trade-offs, analysts described the visual presentation as “attractive overall,” praising Ubisoft’s effort to retain the game’s core atmosphere and artistic fidelity.
John Linneman of Digital Foundry commented that while the absence of ray tracing is noticeable, particularly in darker interior environments, the game still “looks impressive at first glance” and should deliver a strong visual experience once finalized. He also noted that Ubisoft’s track record on recent Switch 2 projects, including Star Wars Outlaws, suggests that the studio can deliver polished results even under hardware limitations. Still, the choice to release promotional material at such low resolutions was described as a “misstep in presentation,” given the growing expectation for 4K, high-bitrate footage from next-generation platforms.
Set in the late Sengoku period of Feudal Japan, Assassin’s Creed Shadows introduces players to a dual-protagonist system featuring two distinct heroes: Naoe, a nimble shinobi assassin, and Yasuke, a historically inspired African samurai. Players can freely switch between the two, adopting drastically different playstyles—stealth and precision with Naoe, or brute strength and open combat with Yasuke. The game features an expansive open world with dynamic weather cycles, changing seasons, and reactive NPCs, offering the most detailed depiction of Japan ever attempted in the series.
Originally launched for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC on March 20, 2025, the title has been praised for its deep character systems, fluid traversal mechanics, and cinematic combat. The Nintendo Switch 2 version, developed in-house by Ubisoft with technical adjustments tailored to the console’s hybrid architecture, is scheduled to release on December 2, 2025.
