Even with required ray tracing, Assassin’s Creed Shadows is blockbuster PC performance done right

Land of the rising global illumination

Image credit:Ubisoft/Rock Paper Shotgun

Even though the Assassin’s Creed series has become something of a hooded, shifty-eyed poster child for AAA bloat and excess, its more recent editions have understood the need to keep the hardware side accessible, never over-gorging on fancy effects to the detriment of performance. That Assassin’s Creed Shadows adds mandatory ray tracing to its already hyper-detailed rendition of feudal Japan might, therefore, make it look like it’s going rogue.

In fact, that is quite literally a trick of the light. It turns out Shadows isn’t anywhere near as addicted to expensive illumination as fellow RT champion Indiana Jones and the Great Circle , and is actually quite a nifty PC port in general, coming dressed kabuto-to-toe in customisation settings and upscaling support to give lower-end rigs a leg up.

It’s still going to test your PC bits if go for higher resolutions and all the visual bells and whistles, but fair play to Assassin’s Creed Shadows: it can be tweaked and turned into something that runs well on just about any modern system. Including, as promised , the Steam Deck .

Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Ubisoft

Assassin’s Creed Shadows system requirements and PC performance

To be sure, both the minimum and recommended specs have crept up from the days of Assassin’s Creed Mirage . Expanded, too. Just look at this bonafide spreadsheet of a specs list, which is a click-to-enlarge job if ever there was one:

Image credit:Ubisoft

The abundance of extra RT-focused requirements, as well as the apparently contradictory inclusion of pre-RTX graphics cards, is down to the rather unique manner in which Shadows actually serves up its ray tracing. Which, despite being impossible to disable fully, can be left off for the most part. You do get the option to slather the whole world in diffuse and specular global illumination, but there’s also a setting to only have ray tracing on in your Hideout, a sort of separate build-it-yourself hub. Swap the quality of these effects to Low and you’ll also switch from the intensive, hardware-based ray tracing we’re familiar with to Ubisoft’s proprietary, software-based RT effects, which can just about run on the more powerful GTX 10 series and Radeon RX 5000 series GPUs. I’m not convinced that this global illumination is as essential to the Hideout as the game thinks, but hey, the system works.

After many dozens of runs though Shadows’ benchmark tool – which does seem broadly representative of real game performance – those system requirements look reliable as well. At the bottom end of the 1080p scale, the GTX 1070 averaged a playable 36fps with the Low preset, FSR upscaling set to Quality mode, and RTGI on Hideout Only. That became 30fps at native 1080p, though I’d stick with FSR to help avoid any sub-thirty drops in the open world, and to help deal with the occasional Hideout visit.

Newer budget gear fared better. My RTX 4050 -powered laptop actually skirts underneath the minimum requirements, having a meagre 8GB of system RAM, but at 1080p with Quality-level DLSS, it still scored 40fps at Medium quality with diffuse RTGI enabled everywhere. Switching that to Hideout Only raised the average just to 43fps, a heartening sign that the more premium ray tracing option isn’t actually all that demanding.

Image credit:Ubisoft/Rock Paper Shotgun

Then there’s the Steam Deck. This is a bit of a weird one, as when launched through a Lutris-aided Ubisoft Connect app – I can’t say right now if the native Steam version is different – I found almost all of the graphics and display options missing, replaced by a highly simplified version that only really let me fiddle with the dynamic resolution values. I’ve contacted Ubisoft to ask if this is intentional. Still, whatever settings the Steam Deck defaulted to, 99% of the time it runs at a steady 30fps, earning Shadows a coveted Verified status from Valve in the process. I’d prefer a full set of visual options but that’s not bad, considering Ubisoft themselves had warned that the Steam Deck wouldn’t be supported up until last week.

That said, it pays to show some restraint when tangling with the higher quality levels. Back among the desktops, the RTX 4060 can score 47fps at a native 1080p on Medium, but scoot up to Ultra and that plummets to 27fps. The RTX 3070 performed similarly, with 29fps at 1080p/Ultra, needing a combination of High and DLSS on Quality mode to reach a comfortable 53fps.

Skipping ahead a generation, the RTX 4070 Super showed how more horsepower (and Nvidia’s ray tracing optimisations) can help: it averaged 55fps at 1440p/Ultra with Quality DLSS, again lending credence to the system requirements, which put this GPU in the “RT Recommended” tier for 1440p. Using those same settings, it could also manage a decent 42fps at 4K, though staying truly smooth at this kind of rez takes an even beefier card. The “RT Extreme” listed GPU, Nvidia’s RTX 4090 , sure enough pulled 69fps with Ultra and Quality DLSS – though if you want to save a few hundred quid, the RTX 5080 did 56fps on the same settings, plus 61fps with DLSS dropped to Balanced mode.

Image credit:Ubisoft/Rock Paper Shotgun

For clarity, all of those Ultra-quality tests included ray-traced global illumination throughout, so they could have easily scored higher if it was simply banished to the Hideout. Still, I wouldn’t say these are bad results, especially since the availability of far less demanding quality settings means older and slower PCs aren’t left out.

In what feels like validation for Shadows’ multiple delays, it also has a technical stability that’s often lacking from today’s monster-budget releases. When playing normally, I haven’t witnessed any stuttering at all, nor the kind of misbehaving models and textures that sent certain past Assassin’s Creeds down in infamy. There are plenty of PC-specific comforts too, like ultrawide support, an adjustable FoV and the like. It’s a big old game, this, so I’m not going to declare it 100% bug-free on faith, but from what my own eyes and WASDing fingers have seen and felt, the only real complaint I have is that a lot of the cutscenes are locked to 30fps. That’s it. Maybe more games should be delayed twice?

Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Ubisoft

Assassin’s Creed Shadows best settings guide

Another tech win for Shadows is that its lower settings really don’t look bad at all; compare Ultra and Low in, say, some kind of convenient screenshot gallery widget, and it takes a while to spot the differences (outside of someone having taken a 16th-century lawnmower to Low and Medium).

Nevertheless, you can still leave plenty of the individual graphics turned up, as a lot of them have only a tiny or completely nonexistent impact on performance. I tested every single one on the RTX 4060, looking to improve that Ultra-only 27fps, and nearly doubled that average by cutting a mere fraction of the available options. Here’s what I settled on, and what I’d recommend you try, at least as a starting point:

• Upscaler type/quality: DLSS/FSR on Quality
• Motion blur: Off
• Raytraced global illumination: Diffuse Hideout Only
• Raytracing quality: Medium
• Shadow quality: Medium
• Virtual texture: Medium
• Hair strands: Player only
• Everything else: Ultra preset equivalent

As usual, the largely free frames granted by upscaling are just too valuable to go without, even at 1080p. Among the general quality settings, shadow quality, virtual texture, and hair strands are by far the most performance-hungry, though I found their Medium toggles to run as fast as Low, so there’s no urgent need to drop them further. Disabled player hair strands also gives leading ninja Naoe a completely different ‘do, which… I dunno, seems strange?

Speaking of input lag, frame generation – in a full trio of DLSS 3, FSR 3, and XeSS 2 flavours – is available in exchange for a small latency bump. It seems fine visually, especially DLSS 3, with zero glitches in motion. Still, to avoid that sluggish feeling to aiming and camera movements, it’s only suitable for deploying when you’re already at 60fps or above. When used in placed of settings-based improvements to traditional rendered framerates, as Monster Hunter Wilds has recently demonstrated , it doesn’t work.

Ultimately, those optimised settings took my lil’ RTX 4060 from 27fps to 50fps, with dozens of individual settings still looking their Ultra-polished best. Those closer to minimum specs might want to consider further reductions to shadow and hair quality, but by and large, Assassin’s Creed’s newfound love of luxury graphics isn’t something to be scared of.

Assassin’s Creed Shadows

PS5 , Xbox Series X/S , PC , Mac , Nintendo Switch 2

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All 75 Arc Raiders Blueprints and where to get them

These areas have the highest chance of giving you Blueprints

Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Embark Studios

Looking for more Arc Raiders Blueprints? It’s a special day when you find a Blueprint, as they’re among the most valuable items in Arc Raiders. If you find a Blueprint that you haven’t already found, then you must make sure you hold onto it at all costs, because Blueprints are the key to one of the most important and powerful systems of meta-progression in the game.

This guide aims to be the very best guide on Blueprints you can find, starting with a primer on what exactly they are and how they work in Arc Raiders, before delving into exactly where to get Blueprints and the very best farming spots for you to take in your search.

We’ll also go over how to get Blueprints from other unlikely activities, such as destroying Surveyors and completing specific quests. And you’ll also find the full list of all 75 Blueprints in Arc Raiders on this page (including the newest Blueprints added with the Cold Snap update , such as the Deadline Blueprint and Firework Box Blueprint), giving you all the information you need to expand your own crafting repertoire.

In this guide:

• What are Blueprints in Arc Raiders?
• Full Blueprint list: All crafting recipes
• Where to find Blueprints in Arc Raiders Blueprints obtained from quests Blueprints obtained from Trials Best Blueprint farming locations

What are Blueprints in Arc Raiders?

Blueprints in Arc Raiders are special items which, if you manage to extract with them, you can expend to permanently unlock a new crafting recipe in your Workshop. If you manage to extract from a raid with an Anvil Blueprint, for example, you can unlock the ability to craft your very own Anvil Pistol, as many times as you like (as long as you have the crafting materials).

To use a Blueprint, simply open your Inventory while in the lobby, then right-click on the Blueprint and click “Learn And Consume” . This will permanently unlock the recipe for that item in your Workshop. As of the Stella Montis update, there are allegedly 75 different Blueprints to unlock - although only 68 are confirmed to be in the game so far. You can see all the Blueprints you’ve found and unlocked by going to the Workshop menu, and hitting “R” to bring up the Blueprint screen.

It’s possible to find duplicates of past Blueprints you’ve already unlocked. If you find these, then you can either sell them, or - if you like to play with friends - you can take it into a match and gift it to your friend so they can unlock that recipe for themselves. Another option is to keep hold of them until the time comes to donate them to the Expedition.

Full Blueprint list: All crafting recipes

Below is the full list of all the Blueprints that are currently available to find in Arc Raiders, and the crafting recipe required for each item:

Note: The missing Blueprints in this list likely have not actually been added to the game at the time of writing, because none of the playerbase has managed to find any of them. As they are added to the game, I will update this page with the most relevant information so you know exactly how to get all 75 Arc Raiders Blueprints.

Where to find Blueprints in Arc Raiders

Below is a list of all containers, modifiers, and events which maximise your chances of finding Blueprints:

• Certain quests reward you with specific Blueprints .
• Completing Trials has a high chance of offering Blueprints as rewards.
• Surveyors have a decent chance of dropping Blueprints on death.
• High loot value areas tend to have a greater chance of spawning Blueprints.
• Night Raids and Storms may increase rare Blueprint spawn chances in containers.
• Containers with higher numbers of items may have a higher tendency to spawn Blueprints. As a result, Blue Gate (which has many “large” containers containing multiple items) may give you a higher chance of spawning Blueprints.
• Raider containers (Raider Caches, Weapon Boxes, Medical Bags, Grenade Tubes) have increased Blueprint drop rates. As a result, the Uncovered Caches event gives you a high chance of finding Blueprints.
• Security Lockers have a higher than average chance of containing Blueprints.
• Certain Blueprints only seem to spawn under specific circumstances: Tempest Blueprint only spawns during Night Raid events. Vulcano Blueprint only spawns during Hidden Bunker events. Jupiter and Equaliser Blueprints only spawn during Harvester events.

Raider Caches, Weapon Boxes, and other raider-oriented container types have a good chance of offering Blueprints. |Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Embark Studios

Blueprints have a very low chance of spawning in any container in Arc Raiders, around 1-2% on average. However, there is a higher chance of finding Blueprints in particular container types. Specifically, you can find more Blueprints in Raider containers and security lockers.

Beyond this, if you’re looking for Blueprints you should focus on regions of the map which are marked as having particularly high-value loot. Areas such as the Control Tower in Dam Battlegrounds, the Arrival and Departure Buildings in Spaceport, and Pilgrim’s Peak in Blue Gate all have a better-than-average chance of spawning Blueprints somewhere amongst all their containers. Night Raids and Electromagnetic Storm events also increase the drop chances of certain Blueprints .

In addition to these containers, you can often loot Blueprints from destroyed Surveyors - the largest of the rolling ball ARC. Surveyors are more commonly found on the later maps - Spaceport and Blue Gate - and if one spawns in your match, you’ll likely see it by the blue laser beam that it casts into the sky while “surveying”.

Surveyors are quite well-armoured and will very speedily run away from you once it notices you, but if you can take one down then make sure you loot all its parts for a chance of obtaining certain unusual Blueprints.

Blueprints obtained from quests

One way in which you can get Blueprints is by completing certain quests for the vendors in Speranza. Some quests will reward you with a specific item Blueprint upon completion, so as long as you work through all the quests in Arc Raiders, you are guaranteed those Blueprints.

Here is the full list of all Blueprints you can get from quest rewards:

• Trigger Nade Blueprint: Rewarded after completing “Sparks Fly”.
• Lure Grenade Blueprint: Rewarded after completing “Greasing Her Palms”.
• Burletta Blueprint: Rewarded after completing “Industrial Espionage”.
• Hullcracker Blueprint (and Launcher Ammo Blueprint): Rewarded after completing “The Major’s Footlocker”.

Alas, that’s only 4 Blueprints out of a total of 75 to unlock, so for the vast majority you will need to find them yourself during a raid. If you’re intent on farming Blueprints, then it’s best to equip yourself with cheap gear in case you lose it, but don’t use a free loadout because then you won’t get a safe pocket to stash any new Blueprint you find. No pain in Arc Raiders is sharper than failing to extract with a new Blueprint you’ve been after for a dozen hours already.

One of the best ways to get Blueprints is by hitting three stars on all five Trials every week. |Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Embark Studios

Blueprints obtained from Trials

One of the very best ways to get Blueprints is as rewards for completing Trials in Arc Raiders. Trials are unlocked from Level 15 onwards, and allow you to earn rewards by focusing on certain tasks over the course of several raids. For example, one Trial might task you with dealing damage to Hornets, while another might challenge you to loot Supply Drops.

Trials refresh on a weekly basis, with a new week bringing five new Trials. Each Trial can offer up to three rewards after passing certain score milestones, and it’s possible to receive very high level loot from these reward crates - including Blueprints. So if you want to unlock as many Blueprints as possible, you should make a point of completing as many Trials as possible each week.

Best Blueprint farming locations

The very best way to get Blueprints is to frequent specific areas of the maps which combine high-tier loot pools with the right types of containers to search. Here are my recommendations for where to find Blueprints on every map, so you can always keep the search going for new crafting recipes to unlock.

Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Embark Studios

Dam Battlegrounds

The best places to farm Blueprints on Dam Battlegrounds are the Control Tower, Power Generation Complex, Ruby Residence, and Pale Apartments . The first two regions, despite only being marked on the map as mid-tier loot, contain a phenomenal number of containers to loot. The Control Tower can also contain a couple of high-tier Security Lockers - though of course, you’ll need to have unlocked the Security Breach skill at the end of the Survival tree.

There’s also a lot of reporting amongst the playerbase that the Residential areas in the top-left of the map - Pale Apartments and Ruby Residence - give you a comparatively strong chance of finding Blueprints. Considering their size, there’s a high density of containers to loot in both locations, and they also have the benefit of being fairly out of the way. So you’re more likely to have all the containers to yourself.

Buried City

The best Blueprint farming locations on Buried City are the Santa Maria Houses, Grandioso Apartments, Town Hall, and the various buildings of the New District . Grandioso Apartments has a lower number of containers than the rest, but a high chance of spawning weapon cases - which have good Blueprint drop rates. The others are high-tier loot areas, with plenty of lootable containers - including Security Lockers.

Spaceport

The best places to find Blueprints on Spaceport are the Arrival and Departure Buildings, as well as Control Tower A6 and the Launch Towers . All these areas are labelled as high-value loot regions, and many of them are also very handily connected to one another by the Spaceport wall, which you can use to quickly run from one area to the next. At the tops of most of these buildings you’ll find at least one Security Locker, so this is an excellent farming route for players looking to find Blueprints.

The downside to looting Blueprints on Spaceport is that all these areas are hotly contested, particularly in Duos and Squads. You’ll need to be very focused and fast in order to complete the full farming route.

Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Embark Studios

Blue Gate

Blue Gate tends to have a good chance of dropping Blueprints, potentially because it generally has a high number of containers which can hold lots of items; so there’s a higher chance of a Blueprint spawning in each container. In my experience, the best Blueprint farming spots on Blue Gate are Pilgrim’s Peak, Raider’s Refuge, the Ancient Fort, and the Underground Complex beneath the Warehouse .

All of these areas contain a wealth of containers to loot. Raider’s Refuge has less to loot, but the majority of the containers in and around the Refuge are raider containers, which have a high chance of containing Blueprints - particularly during major events.

Stella Montis

On the whole, Stella Montis seems to have a very low drop rate for Blueprints (though a high chance of dropping other high-tier loot). If you do want to try farming Blueprints on this map, the best places to find Blueprints in Stella Montis are Medical Research, Assembly Workshop, and the Business Center . These areas have the highest density of containers to loot on the map.

In addition to this, the Western Tunnel has a few different Security Lockers to loot, so while there’s very little to loot elsewhere in this area of the map, it’s worth hitting those Security Lockers if you spawn there at the start of a match.

That wraps up this primer on how to get all the Blueprints in Arc Raiders as quickly as possible. With the Expedition system constantly resetting a large number of players’ Blueprints, it’s more important than ever to have the most up-to-date information on where to find all these Blueprints.

While you’re here, be sure to check out our Arc Raiders best guns tier list , as well as our primers on the best skills to unlock and all the different Field Depot locations on every map.

ARC Raiders

PS5 , Xbox Series X/S , PC

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