A major Assassins Creed Shadows update (1.1.1) was released earlier today, September 11th, by French publisher Ubisoft—and the sooner you can download it, the better.
The reason for this is that this patch specifically paves the way for the game’s first DLC expansion: called “Claws of Awaji”, the piece of content is set to arrive next week, but some of its necessary files are already contained within today’s update.
That’s not to say this patch is without merit: according to Ubisoft, there are a bunch of neat features you can start using right away, and most of them don’t even require activation or manual steps—it’s simply a matter of downloading, installing, and enjoying.
Assassins Creed Shadows Update: here’s the tea
Patch Details & Launch Dates
- Title Update 1.1.1 Release: September 11, 2025 at 2 pm UTC / 10 am EDT / 7 am PT.
- “Claws of Awaji” Expansion Launch: September 16, 2025.
- “Go with the Bo” Free Quest Launch: September 16, 2025.
Patch Sizes
- PS5: 12.94 GB
- Xbox Series X|S: 33 GB
- MAC: 24 GB
- PC: 42 GB
- Steam: 17 GB
Version 1.1.1 main highlights
This Assassins Creed Shadows update introduces a variety of new features, many of which are directly related to the upcoming expansion but will be available for all players as of now.
These include the following:
- New Animus Project: Sanctuary: This project, accessible from the Animus HUB, allows players to complete Anomalies to earn rewards themed around Ezio, including his gear, a kusarigama, and more.
- Level Cap Increase: The maximum player level has been raised from 60 to 100, offering more room for player progression and build customization.
- Uncapped Cutscenes (PC Only): A significant quality-of-life improvement for PC players, as cutscenes are no longer limited to 30 FPS.
New Features & Enhancements:
- New Hideout Upgrades: Each unique building in the Hideout now has two additional upgrade levels, bringing a total of 20 new enhancements. These upgrades, along with three new Hideout levels, provide valuable bonuses that accelerate Hideout growth, improve crafting, and directly enhance Naoe, Yasuke, and their allies.
- Advance Time of Day: By upgrading the Nando to level 2, players can now meditate in a safe location to fast-forward time to the next 6 o’clock (AM or PM). This new feature helps players prepare for night assaults or other time-sensitive events.
- Improved Scouts: The Scout system has been enhanced with new upgrades. Upgrading the Study to level 4 allows Scouts to reveal both Viewpoints and Safehouses. Additionally, upgrading the Kakurega to level 4 will automatically reveal the entire province on the map once all its Viewpoints are uncovered.
- Enhanced Gear Quality: A new feature that provides long-term progression goals. Upgrading the Forge to level 6 unlocks the ability to enhance gear to new quality tiers:
- Mythic: Epic items can be transformed into Mythic items, which improve their stats, add a Boosted Stat, and increase the effectiveness of non-legendary perks by 50% at level 5 and 100% at level 9.
- Artifact: Legendary items can be evolved into Artifact items, which also increase stats and receive additional Boosted Stats at levels 3, 7, and twice at level 9.
Extensive List of Bug Fixes
The patch includes a comprehensive list of fixes across various aspects of the game:
- General: Crashes, localization issues, and recurring sound effects.
- Gameplay: Bugs with abilities, trinkets, aiming reticles, persistent notifications, and a horse archery quest.
- Difficulty Options: Fixes for issues with the Nightmare difficulty setting and the Canon Mode.
- Hideout: Corrects problems with duels, building rotation, moving stables, and NPC behavior.
- Skills, Abilities & Upgrades: Addresses issues with the Shadow Piercer ability and a health recovery perk.
- Visuals & Graphics: Fixes various visual glitches, including lip sync, character appearance with certain gear, and armor visuals.
ATTENTION FOR THE FOLLOWING UPDATES AS IT MAY CONTAIN SPOILER-ISH INFORMATION ON ASSASSINS CREED SHADOWS NEW DLC! We’ve placed the image below for you in case you want to finish your read here, so if you want to avoid this part, click here to jump straight through the next safe section, “Bugs and fixes”.
New Expansion: “Claws of Awaji”
The new expansion won’t come until September 16, but a lot of its necessary files are contained within this Assassins Creed Shadow update. That also goes for the new quest that will give you a new weapon toplay with.
Here’s the core content of both
- Story: The expansion takes Naoe and Yasuke to a new island region to face the “Sanzoku Ippa” faction in search of a hidden blade-wielding shinobi and a long-lost relic. The storyline is designed to be a direct continuation of the main game.
- Content: The expansion offers over 10 hours of additional content, including new legendary gear, skills, and abilities. It also introduces the Bo staff as a new weapon type for Naoe.
- Note for macOS users: The DLC content may not be immediately available. Players on Mac must launch the game while online, then close and reboot it to access the content.
New Free Quest: “Go with the Bo”
- Originally developed for the expansion, this quest will now be available for all players for free.
- It allows players to join Junjiro to meet a legendary Bo Master and, upon completion, receive the dynamic new Bo staff weapon for Naoe to use in the base game.
Quest-related fixes
- A Critical Encounter: Fixes an issue where players could not interact with Rufino.
- Broken Horn: Fixes a progression blocker where players could get stuck by the Animus wall.
- Face the Oshiroi Baba: Corrects an issue where Yokai objective member rewards were not granted.
- Feast For Thought: Addresses an issue where quest requirements were automatically completed.
- Man Behind the Curtain: Fixes a bug where Gaspar was incorrectly shown as dead after Ermigo’s death.
- My Name Is Yasuke: Resolves a progression block where players could be stuck outside the Animus wall.
- Of My Enemy: Fixes an issue where Hiromichi’s man would stop moving during a combat sequence.
- Out of the Shadows: Corrects a game crash that occurred after a specific cutscene.
- Silver Smugglers: Addresses a bug that allowed Yoshisada to be assassinated early.
- Tea Bowls for Rikyu: Fixes a bug in the Hideout where tea bowls could not be placed after the quest was completed.
- The Tournament: Resolves an issue where players could not interact with Gyoji.
- A general fix was also implemented for an issue where players were unable to speak to Katsuhime in the crop field.
Platform-Specific Fixes (PC):
- Fixes an issue with the heavy attack function (LMB+Shift) on keyboard and mouse.
