- Sep 22, 2024
- 5 min read
Updated: Jan 9
The History of Fashion in Assassin’s Creed Shadows
Written by Emily
As the release of Assassin’s Creed Shadows approaches, I thought it would be interesting to do a bit of a deep dive into the fashion presented in the trailer and see its connection to history. As of right now, we obviously don't have much to work off of when it comes to Naoe and Yasuke’s outfits due to the game not being released. Yet their outfits in the trailer are actually quite detailed and give a lot to look at. This is now the fun part where we get to travel back in history and take a look at fashion’s evolution.
Naoe’s Shinobi Outfit
Shinobi means “one who sneaks” in Japanese, it is similar to the word ninja except the word ninja is a Chinese word. Shinobi were hired as mercenaries at first and became highly trained bodyguards in later eras. In the trailer, we can see Naoe wearing a dark blue kimono with different forms of armour, tools, and weapons integrated into her outfit. “According to the Shōninki, they were said to wear brown, persimmon, black, and dark blue. These were common and unobtrusive colors of the time.” (Kaleidoscope of Books).
Naoe’s outfit colour also makes sense when we think about the fact that she is the daughter of a farmer, who is also a former shinobi himself. These colours, as stated above, were common for this time period, especially for the working class. Anyone of higher status would have been able to access more expensive dyes such as reds and purples.
Looking closer at Naoe’s outfit we can see tiny details tying her culture together with the assassin’s culture. One main thing I noticed was the pattern on the cloth around her waist, it has a traditional Japanese swirl cloud pattern. “Clouds, or kumo in Japanese, can take many forms, from figurative to stylized. The meanings of the clouds are related to hope, change or the proximity of Gods.” (Japan Avenue) I find it intriguing that they used the kumo pattern which represents hope, almost like Naoe is a bringer of hope to her village.
The next thing I noticed was the red sash which ties in the assassins and the pattern that ties in her culture once more. The pattern is a geometric triple hexagon shape all connected. “The Kikko pattern is inspired by the hexagonal shape of tortoise shells, an auspicious animal, symbolizing longevity. … In this example, it is called kikkô hanabishi as a chestnut flower (hanabishi in Japanese) is represented in the middle of the hexagonal shape.” (Japan Avenue) This pattern is extremely close to the one Naoe wears on her red sash. I feel this was quite intentional, especially with the fact this pattern represents longevity while the colour red is associated with the Assassins.
To finish Naoe’s section, I would say her outfit is extremely historically accurate and quite detailed at that. Shinobi were known for having multiple disguises and dressing as monks to remain hidden. They were said to have seven outfits of different styles, which allowed them to blend in everywhere. I hope that when the game is released, Naoe will have even more outfits to wear and blend in with.
Yasuke’s Samurai Outfit
The word samurai means warrior or knight. The term was originally used to pay respects to aristocratic warriors, also known as Bushi. Many samurai rose to a state of power in Japan, especially during the Edo period, and became warlords. One main example presented in AC Shadows is the warlord Oda Nobunaga, who actually lived in the Azuchi-Momoyama period. We find out that Yasuke was originally brought to Japan, most likely as a slave and when Oda meets him, he is so impressed by his stature that he takes him in and trains him to be a samurai.
I feel it's only right to mention before continuing that Yasuke was actually a real person and is considered the first black samurai. He was born in Eastern Africa, it's suspected he came from what would be modern-day Mozambique, in 1555 and came to Japan as a bodyguard for a Jesuit missionary. This shocked me as I had never heard of him until I did some research into this. It’s truly a crime that he wasn't recorded better in history and wasn’t remembered properly.
Let's start with his helmet. The first thing I noticed was the bull horns. It wasn't uncommon for samurai to have horns on their helmets. It was used either to represent the clan they came from or to symbolize something about them. “Elaborate elements, such as the deer antlers on the helmet … symbolized a warrior's bravery and sometimes made it easier to identify him on the battlefield.” (Samurai: Art of Armor) Yasuke uses bull horns, representing his unending strength, which is extremely fitting given that he stands around 6’2” historically, and it seems Ubisoft has given his character a similar height. The next thing I noticed was the flower and dragon symbols. They are extremely prominent and stick out heavily. I found out through research that Oda Nobunaga was called a dragon, and the flower is his clan emblem.
The thing that caught my eye most oddly was the colour scheme of his armour. His armour consisted of a lot of common colours for this time. “A lot of samurais liked to use bold colours like red for their armour. But, the most popular colour picked was dark blue. This is mostly because lacing dyed with indigo can resist damage from ultraviolet rays better”.
(Exploring Colors of Samurai Armor) His armour is comprised of two main colours, red and a deep rusty orange. The red makes sense as it was a common colour, but the orange was confusing as it wasn't easily obtainable in Japan during this time. After reading Assassin’s Creed's X post on Yasuke, it began to make sense. They explain that the rusty orange colour represents his roots and his ties to Mozambique.
“Common patterns include parallel zigzags which are used to remind the artist and the user that the path in life is never straightforward but instead, is often difficult to travel.” (African Patterns) This gives some idea as to why the zig-zag pattern was chosen. It represents many parts of Yasuke’s own life because it zigs and zags in many different directions.
Before I end Yasuke’s section I would like to add a little side note that the amount of gold on Yasuke’s armour is a representation of just how wealthy Oda Nobunaga really was. Yasuke’s armour is extremely historically accurate and the fine details make it even better. The team at Ubisoft really did their research and it makes me so happy to see how historically accurate everything really is. I hope any other outfits Yasuke may obtain in the game are just as good.
Final Opinion
Overall I am beyond impressed so far. Seeing the historical accuracy and the attention to fine detail never fails to get me excited for new AC games. I hope that any other outfits presented in the game are just as accurate and given as much attention.
This game is truly a piece of art and I am ecstatic that the developers took time to research and correct their facts. Everything I see so far simply blows me away, from the details of Oda’s clan on Yasuke’s armour to Naoe’s colour palette and how it is accurate to historical shinobi, which just makes me excited. This is something that never fails to excite my history-loving brain and I am beyond excited to see what Ubisoft gives us next. A huge thank you to Chris for letting me write this and for letting me get all nerdy and excited!
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