Uh-huh! So, Ubisoft goes ahead and drops the official list for how one gets Claws of Awaji in Assassin’s Creed Shadows. The players… well, let’s just say they are “expressing their views.” Now, seriously, people, some of these views couldn’t be more opposite. In a nutshell, the expansion comprises completing all the personal quests of Naoe, Yasuke, and Junjiro, killing the main targets, and then talking to Hanzo’s contact at your Hideout. Straightforward, right? Hardly, according to the commentaries.
Now let’s talk about what you actually have to do. Since the Claws of Awaji DLC is supposed to be a post-game DLC, you have to finish the main storyline first. Things get awkward here-players keep saying that they got to pay their due inside New Game+ mode to get access to the DLC. Dude Cmightybell rightly called it “slog fest” to have to go through the entire story and personal journeys a second time just to be able to play the expansion they’ve already paid for. Eh… sort of terrible.
Then, we have the technicalities. Several players have been reporting that even after meeting all requirements, said local quest giver did not show up. Bad_J0ker commented, “All done the quest giver still not there :/” in almost unanimous agreement. Then the user YesusCamacho came out from the shadows with a possible workaround: “If you’re on console, make sure you have the DLC downloaded and installed. I had to manually go and install it from the Xbox store to get Hanzo’s contact to show up in the Hideout.” For sure something to check on if you’re having difficulties.
Ta-da! There’s more. What the expansion promised for itself was a buff here and a nerf there, and players certainly are not happy about it. jacob24940799 all but rhetorically asked, “Jesus Christ you nerfed the fuk out of naoe. You clearly no longer want us to use her, but the reason no one used yasuke was HE IS NOT AN ASSASSIN. You play an assassin game to be an assassin and play stealthy.” Oof, strong words.
Next comes with the vent about the “go-ahead weapon” bo-staff. CavemanGamer pointed out the irony: “Why would you make an expansion with a new weapon that you can use in the main game not accessible until you complete most of the main game? I have been putting off the main quests so that I could use the bo staff.” That is a pretty darn good point – if the weapon is for mainstream use, the rest of the main game shouldn’t be its fairground.
There have been better experiences for some. JessieLameque stated, “i already completed all the main story quests, and now enjoying Naoe’s continuation stories. and so far, i’m loving it.😃😃👍👍👍👍” So, there is a little light at the end of the tunnel. Some folks, however, do find it useful: EddieAvina123 responded to the guide with, “Cool thank you.”
Then, however, the expansion itself has been infamously reported as glitchy as far as visuals go, with InPassing222 begging, “Could you kindly fix the headgear in cutscenes for: Claws of Awaji please 🙏”, suggesting some funny business with the cosmetics during story sequences.
Some at least wonder if it can even be worth the asking price, “I bought a few of the games on sale under $15. I’m not interested in $85 games post tax,” replied WishSpongebob, essentially casting the DLC’s price-to-value royalties as another question like that of the base game.
DoomyRei then gives the traditional Assassin’s Creed on-map-problem rant: “I wish the waypoints on the map would return as default I hate using Scouts to tell me where to go and where my objective is please ass a mode that tells you where to go and where my objectives are asap.” It’s a bit of a recurring gripe through the newer AC games and their more “immersive” versus user-friendly navigation systems.
Some players still hold hope for more to come. age46541 questioned, “Will we get more dlc in the future?” to imply that, even with all of the issues at hand, there’s still a lot of love for the game and the game world.
The community is helping with that- OlgaBaikova advised xLeRock to report bugs through the official bug reporter website, which indicates players are trying to work with the developers to improve the experience.
With all things combined, the Claws of Awaji describe a story filled with bumpy technical issues, balance changes, and accessibility problems. Still, some players reap enjoyment even now in the content and story elements. If you’re having trouble accessing the expansion, make sure you have downloaded the DLC and completed all the required content, and check out the official forums for help. It’s really somewhere there; it just might be playing very hard to get for some.
There is hope that Ubisoft might fix a bunch of these issues in a future patch; until then, though, jumping through a few hoops and dealing with some buggy situations should be in the cards for anyone wanting to get into the Claws of Awaji expansion. Still, enjoying the new PlayStation content is one thing any fan of the franchise is going to look forward to.
