Gaming Ramble Weekly

Oh hello! What’s this? Posts on consecutive weeks? I truly must be back on the writing grind, and you’re so welcome in joining me. Interestingly enough, we’re in a bit of a slow period for the gaming industry for this year. News is slow, and “big” new game releases have slowed to a halt. That’s not a bad thing though, these last 16 months have been non-stop, so it gives us all a chance to catch our breaths and maybe catch up on some titles we haven’t had a chance to get to!

And while 2024 is going to be slower compared to what was a jam packed 2023, it appears that it could be a really important year for Ubisoft, where they could potentially release two of the biggest games of the year. Last week, we finally found out the release date for Star Wars: Outlaws, the upcoming open-world Star Wars game developed by Ubisoft Massive, which will release on 30th August 2024. Secondly, we expect Assassin’s Creed: Codename Red to release at the end of the year, marking the first mainline Assassin’s Creed release in four years (not including Mirage, which was a glorified Valhalla DLC).

Ubisoft as a studio are a really interesting case in the games industry, and it’s interesting for us who are actively interested in the industry to have an understanding of the perception of things to the casual market. To the hardcore, Ubisoft is typically seen as a bit of a “copy-paste” studio, where many negative connotations in open world games described as being “Ubisoft-like”. It would also be remiss of me to not mention the controversial reports from 2021 where many current and former employees spoke out about sexual harrassment and a general attitude of sexism against women in the workforce. Calls for CEO Yves Guillemot to resign have been ignored, and he continues to lead the company. The general belief is that until he resigns, the culture in the company is unlikely to change, but the hope remains that some positive change will be seen soon.

To a casual fan, Ubisoft are probably one of the most well known studios about, making popular franchises including Assassin’s Creed, Far Cry, Rainbow Six, Watch Dogs, Prince of Persia, and many more. Adding a Star Wars game into the mix could be seen as a big move from Ubisoft, however last year’s Avatar game, also made by Ubisoft, was seen as a commercial flop. Not to mention, that Respawn already have a popular Star Wars gaming franchise in Jedi, and Outlaws runs the risk of being compared to these games. Should it not reach Jedi’s high standards, there could be a serious concern that consumers will wait for a sale on the recommendation of reviewers.

2024 represents a serious opportunity for Ubisoft to re-establish themselves as a key player in the gaming space, but it also could spell serious trouble should their two big titles not commercially perform. In February, Ubisoft released Skull and Bones, a game that no one asked for, or cared about, or really wanted to play for that matter. It was stuck in development hell, and after almost 10 years, finally released to subpar reviews and a lukewarm reception. Embarrassingly, Yves Guillemot described Skull and Bones as the first ever “AAAA” game, a statement that had many rolling their eyes and laughing at “Classic Ubisoft”.

The biggest intrigue will always come with Assassin’s Creed, which to me, is one of gaming’s biggest franchises. One of my favourite games of the PS4 generation was AC: Origins, it was a game that I felt found the right balance of bringing in popular RPG elements while also maintaining an interesting story with great emotion and assassination opportunities. I felt that Ubisoft then lost their way in Odyssey and Valhalla, favouring quantity over quality, mainly because of the rushed development cycle of the franchise, with a new one releasing almost every year.

Red (we do not yet know the official title of the game) represents an opportunity for Assassin’s Creed to receive a much needed upgrade in graphics, as well as a change in world design and structure. While we don’t know a whole lot about the game, we do know it’s set in Japan (a setting that has been much called for) and could blend the Assassin Order with the Shinobi, a fighting style I’m very excited to see brought into the franchise. If Red reviews well, it will be an absolute must-play for me, and so I remain hopeful.

Whatever your opinion is of Ubisoft, whether you like their franchises or not, there is no doubt that a successful Ubisoft is better for the industry as a whole. Success breeds growth, leading to more jobs for developers and more opportunities to be creative. It is more important than ever that Ubisoft find a way to bring back success while changing their company culture, and somehow, someway, steering clear of greedy exploitative practices (unfortunately, Star Wars Outlaws has already faced controversy with its pricing strategy).

I’ve said it before on here and I’ll say it again, but I just love video games. They take me to new worlds that no other media can, and they keep me entertained and switched on for hours on end. My personal view is that a successful and thriving industry is better for us all, whether you’re a consumer, a developer, or a journalist. Ubisoft play a huge role in that, as one of the biggest third party studios about. My hope is that they deliver two quality experiences this year, which will be covered on here when more news breaks. But for now, I must head back to the Lands Between and finish my second playthrough of Elden Ring, and then I’m considering starting a new game after, not sure what right now, but thankfully there’s plenty of choice. Thank you for taking the time to read this, you reading these helps me along my dream to get into the journalism space, so it does mean a lot!