Here is another example of funny moments and interactions you can find in the Hideout in Assassin’s Creed Shadows! pic.twitter.com/dQJ1fqgJq1
— Access The Animus (@AccessTheAnimus) March 4, 2025
https://x.com/AccessTheAnimus/status/1896984784704077925?t=Cd7fFWhCVOxSQG2eSUlgUQ&s=19
This game has been the subject of various controversies, but this particular video contains a clear mistake.
In Japan, there is basically no culture of displaying skulls.
In battles, enemy heads were taken because they served as proof of achievement. These heads were inspected and then respectfully buried. There is no cultural practice in Japan of displaying them as decorations.
They may have misunderstood the concept of “sarashikubi” (exposed heads).
This was a punitive act in which the heads of criminals or enemy commanders were displayed outdoors as a warning.
However, this was only for a limited period, and the heads were never displayed in private homes.
The important point here is that I am not trying to claim that “Japan in the past was not barbaric!”
From a modern perspective, the samurai code of ethics can seem almost insane.
Many aspects of past cultures were unscientific and discriminatory. From today’s viewpoint, they are completely unacceptable.
However, that does not justify claiming the existence of cultural practices that never actually existed. Doing so is a distortion and destruction of historical culture.
Of course, in the context of games and fiction, such portrayals are acceptable. However, if a work claims to depict historical facts, simply being a game or fiction does not excuse misrepresentation.
