• Guide

How to play the pre-order 'Thrown to the Dogs' bonus mission - Assassin's Creed Shadows

Somewhere in Assassin's Creed Shadows is a dog that needs your help, so what are you waiting for?

Aidan O'Brien

March 19, 2025 9:40 AM

Ubisoft

1

The Thrown to the Dogs quest in Assassin's Creed Shadows is a special bonus mission for people who have preordered the game. If you are wondering how to play it, as it won't be all that obvious when you first start playing the game, this is what you need to do.

How to play the pre-order "Thrown to the Dogs" bonus mission - Assassin's Creed Shadows

To play this mission, progress through the main story until you get to the From Spark to Flame mission and then access the Objective board. If you look at the Objective board, you will see a quest-giver called Stray Dog in the top right. This is the preorder bonus quest. Track the mission node beneath the dog, and then go to the Map screen.

This quest can be found in the Izumi Settsu region, in Sakai, just to the southeast of Osaka and to the northwest of Tennoji Temple. When you arrive, there will be a large blue area on the map, but you can find the exact location of the dog marked in the image above. 

You will find him near a shrine, and when you pet him, the quest begins. Follow the dog, taking out any enemies that try to interfere with his efforts to lead you somewhere. The quest itself is quite straightforward, and you will come face to face with a rather uncaring woman. It was her and her men who hurt the dog, so deal with her, then track down the key she was looking for.

It can be found underneath the main house in the small compound you will be exploring, so walk around the back and crawl under it. Then, continue to follow the dog to wrap up the mission. You will get the dog as a pet at your Hideout when the mission is complete.

For more Assassin's Creed guides and news, be sure to check out our Assassin's Creed Shadows page.

Aidan O'Brien

Contributing Guides Editor

Hailing from Ireland, Aidan has been conditioned by local weather conditions to survive hours at his PC grinding through whatever game is offering the lowest possible drop rates for loot. He thinks the easiest way to figure out what fans of games want to read is to just be a fan of games. You can normally find him logged into Warframe, Destiny, or a gacha game. You can reach out to him on X @scannerbarkly.