I'm sorry to report that the discourse around Assassin's Creed Shadows' 'historical accuracy' isn't over as a parody game is launching on the very same day as Ubisoft's Japan-set open world.
Yasuke Simulator recently popped up on Steam, and while nothing in the parody's blurb explicitly references Assassin's Creed Shadows, it's not exactly being subtle about what's going on here. You play as Yasuke, the same historical figure who became Japan's first black samurai. It comes on March 20, the very same day as Shadows. Its Steam description says that the team, called HistoricallyAccurateDevelopers, "provide a totally historically accurate depiction of Feudal Japan with Yasuke the Samurai" - an obvious reference to the multiple controversies surrounding the game.
Since the game's reveal, many commentators and bad faith actors have spammed any online discussion about Assassin's Creed Shadows with criticism questioning Yasuke's inclusion, Ubisoft's historical accuracy, or whether Yasuke was ever a samurai at all, despite historical evidence saying yes, he was. Not to mention the fact that Assassin's Creed - a science fiction series that added mythical fantasy beasts to Ancient Greece - has never been committed to accuracy above all else - prompting associate game director Simon Lemay-Comtois to come to the character's defense.
Yasuke Simulator takes direct aim at the whole eye-rolling situation by making the most historically inaccurate experience of them all. Here, Yasuke has access to assault rifles, rocket launchers, motorcycles, and a sports car that lets you run down civilians GTA-style. (Historical documents provide conflicting information on whether he did, in fact, drive a Mercedes.)
I honestly can't tell if Yasuke Simulator is poking fun at the game itself or the crowd that has a never-ending hate boner for it, but I doubt Ubisoft's legal team will let it slide either way. It should also be noted that "some Audio and Graphics where created with the help of AI." The typos across Yasuke Simulator's Steam page also make me think generative AI was used elsewhere, too.
