Players and fans of Assassin’s Creed Shadows are speculating that the release version may be missing content originally planned for inclusion. These suspicions grew after a dataminer uncovered details about the upcoming DLC, Claws of Awaji .

The Hidden One shared insights from SliderV2, a well-known dataminer, who believes Claws of Awaji was initially part of the base game but was cut before release. SliderV2’s investigation into the game’s files suggests the DLC’s storyline is crucial to the main narrative of Shadows , indicating its removal may leave unresolved threads in the plot. Comparing language files with and without the day-one patch revealed that the script for Claws of Awaji was already present in the latter but absent from the unpatched version, suggesting the content was removed late in development.

SliderV2 speculates Ubisoft likely repackaged this portion as DLC to avoid another delay. By cutting the segment and labeling it as post-launch content, the company could meet its release deadline while still delivering the full story—albeit piecemeal. This aligns with reports of multiple delays during development, making the decision plausible.

The revelation raises concerns about the impact on players’ experience. If Claws of Awaji contains essential narrative elements, its absence may leave the base game feeling incomplete. While releasing it as DLC extends engagement, it also highlights the challenges developers face balancing ambitious projects with tight deadlines.

For now, fans will have to wait to see how Claws of Awaji addresses potential gaps in the story and whether it lives up to expectations when it finally releases.

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