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More Far Cry 4 evidence emerges, this time from an Ubisoft resume
Ubisoft may not want to publicly acknowledge the existence of a new entry in the Far Cry series just yet, but that won't stop its employees from citing the game in their resumes. Xavier Plagnal currently serves as Studio Design Manager at Ubisoft Shanghai. A visit to his LinkedIn profile reveals that from September 2013 to the present Plagnal worked as Content Director on "the next Far Cry." It doesn't say what exactly he directed for the game, nor does it offer any word on the game's plot, setting or the platforms it may appear on. Though we can't say for certain that a new Far Cry game is in the works until Ubisoft officially confirms it, the claims made by Plagnal's resume line up with earlier indicators of its existence. In October, Cliff Martinez, a composer best known for his work on the film Drive, let slip in an interview that he was "working on a video game called Far Cry 4." Only a few months prior, Ubisoft Senior VP of Marketing and Sales Tony Key stated that "[Far Cry is] a great brand, and now it's got the recognition it deserves, so we're clearly going to make another one."
Ghost Recon Online coming soon to Steam Early Access
Ubisoft's free-to-play third-person shooter Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Online will soon enroll in Steam's Early Access program, the publisher announced today. Originally released in 2012, Ghost Recon Online has seen frequent updates in recent months as developer Ubisoft Singapore responds to player feedback. The team plans to use Early Access to further refine the experience as it builds toward a worldwide launch. Ghost Recon Online is available now via Steam Early Access in Canada. A worldwide release is coming this spring.
Splinter Cell Blacklist 'Homeland' DLC emerges from the shadows
Sam Fisher and Fourth Echelon get some new gadgets and missions in Splinter Cell Blacklist today. The Homeland DLC pack, available for $6.99 on PC, Xbox 360, PS3 and Wii U, adds a pair of co-op mission maps, two new sneaking suits for Sam, a crossbow with sleeping darts and some skins for Blacklist's Spies vs. Mercs multiplayer mode. Previously, this DLC content was exclusive to pre-orders and the collector's edition. Splinter Cell Blacklist launched last month, marking the first entry in Ubisoft's iconic series since the divisive Splinter Cell: Conviction back in 2010. In our review of Blacklist, we lauded the campaign's situational freedom and proclaimed it the best entry in the series yet.
EndWar Online is a free-to-play MOBA-like running in Flash
Ubisoft Shanghai is preparing a free-to-play entry in the Tom Clancy's EndWar series called EndWar Online. Running in Flash, EndWar Online is completely playable in the browser and focuses on quick, frenetic 1-v-1 skirmishes. I was able to play a sample match at Ubisoft's Digital Day event lasting all of four minutes, highlighting EndWar Online as a speedy one-on-one variant of the established multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) formula seen in League of Legends. The hook is a balanced unit system where each vehicle is inherently designed to counteract another vehicle on the battlefield. Players, choosing a faction to permanently align themselves with and then battling to control lanes feeding into the enemy base, must play to the units already on the battlefield. If the enemy is encroaching with tanks, it's wise to spawn helicopters and attack from above – though the enemy could spawn surface-to-air missile trucks and destroy air vehicles in retaliation. It's this constant tug of war in each isolated conflict that made EndWar Online feel tense. Battles are waged across a fictional post-apocalyptic planet, trashed from nuclear war. As factions win battles and control territories, bonuses are spread across those factions to other players on a timed basis. The spoils of war then carry into the next conflict. Players can sign up for a closed beta that is expected to launch before year's end, though Ubisoft hasn't announced an official launch date for EndWar Online yet.
Splinter Cell Blacklist review: Fisher is King
It was while stuck behind enemy lines, carefully studying the movements of armored guards that I realized just how deeply I'd fallen for Splinter Cell Blacklist. Completing most of the game as an unseen and non-lethal ghost, I left the franchise's protagonist motionless for minutes as I examined the patterns of three aggressive adversaries. This is the Splinter Cell of days past, a game with as much focus thrown at patient stealth progression as at Hollywood bombast. Back from the cold, Splinter Cell hero and seemingly ageless covert agent Sam Fisher returns to help thwart American enemies. For Sam's latest jaunt through coordinated terror strikes, Ubisoft Toronto recalls the stealth gameplay that made the series famous, while offering more action-focused players tools to survive an onslaught. Whether it's a player's desire to pass through each sequence completely unseen or leave nary a pulse beating in their wake, Splinter Cell Blacklist allows them to craft their perfect gameplay style.%Gallery-195982%
Splinter Cell: Blacklist crosses out local co-op on Wii U
Splinter Cell: Blacklist will not feature an offline co-op component on Wii U. Producer Liu Jun has confirmed the news with NintendoLife, citing the pressure to ship the Wii U version alongside other platforms as the reason behind the missing feature. "In order to ship at the same time as the other consoles, we unfortunately weren't able to delve into this feature. But we think Nintendo gamers will be really excited to get the game at the same time as other consoles." Ubisoft Shanghai is the lead developer on the Wii U version, which looks like it'll offer some useful WiiPad functionality when it launches later this month. Outside of the omission of local co-op play, the Wii U version features are identical to its PC, Xbox 360 and PS3 brethren.
Trials Evolution: Gold Edition hits PC March 21
Trials Evolution: Gold Edition will land (head first) on PC starting March 21. The game bundles up the previously Xbox-exclusive Trials Evolution and all the levels from its predecessor, Trials HD, into one big, bone-crushing package. Gold Edition features the same extensive level editor, allowing players to come up with all kinds of creations, including ones that have nothing to do with racing at all.Trials Evolution: Gold Edition will be available both via retail and download services. Check out a new trailer above.%Gallery-176643%
Ghost Recon Online for Wii U 'on hold,' Ubi focused on PC version
Ghost Recon Online was one of the first games shown off for Wii U at E3 in 2011, even getting a special long-form demonstration at an Ubisoft developer roundtable event (also featuring Killer Freaks from Outer Space, which has since been transformed into ZombiU). But it won't be on Wii U at launch, as the project has been shelved indefinitely.Producer Theo Sanders told Videogamer that "As of right now, the entire Ghost Recon team is focused on the PC version only," adding "The Wii U version is on hold." He said that the team at Ubisoft Shanghai, who was simultaneously developing both versions, simply wanted to have "all hands on deck" for the PC service, though the Wii U "was a really fun, cool platform to develop for.""If in the future we have an opportunity to address it again, we'll make future announcements," Sanders said. "But as of right now we're focused completely on the PC version."
Ubisoft offers a lesson in Far Cry 3's co-op mode
After debuting during Sony's E3 2012 media briefing, Ubisoft has released a video walkthrough of the four-player co-op mode found in Far Cry 3. Taking place six months before the separate single-player campaign, co-op revolves around four characters on the hunt for a man who stole a pile of loot from the group. Let's just hope the ragtag group of merry mercenaries can get off the island before the real mayhem starts. Far Cry 3 is launching for the Xbox 360, PS3 and PC on December 4 in North America. %Gallery-156960%
Far Cry 3 multiplayer screens show death by bullets, not malaria
Do you know the definition of insanity? It is flipping through this gallery of Far Cry 3 multiplayer screens and expecting new images to show up. Also, check out our preview of the experience.
The ghostly image of my death in Far Cry 3
The stories crafted during multiplayer sessions of Far Cry 3 will sound similar to the tales told from other competitive shooters:The blast from a nearby grenade hits me like a shockwave. From behind the smoke a group of four rebels emerge and open fire on an ammo depot I'm set on defending. Two of the invaders are felled in a hail of shots from my submachine gun. Two other foes scatter and leave me standing alone. The area is mine, and mine alone.I hole up, waiting for a flanking attack -- but nothing happens. Seconds later I hear a crack in the air. A blip registers on my radar. Then another crack and I fall to my feet, dead.What seems fairly standard turns into something new and interesting. Like Call of Duty: Modern Warfare before it, Far Cry 3 reveals lethal enemy positions via a kill cam. But unlike other titles, Far Cry 3's system may be the best that I've ever seen at detailing critical strategic information to downed players.%Gallery-130908%
I Am Alive review: Do not resuscitate
Somewhere along the way, development of I Am Alive took a sharp turn. It shifted from a full retail release to a condensed downloadable title. Development was ripped out of the hands of one (now defunct) developer and given to another. The character and his backstory were changed. Even the setting was altered. It almost seemed that, like I Am Alive's protagonist, Ubisoft was attempting to pull itself out of a terrible disaster. Core ideas that exist in I Am Alive show an exceptional amount of promise, but the title shows its hand far too quickly, running out of captivating tricks within the first few hours.%Gallery-145458%
I Am Alive receives free iOS companion app
Ubisoft has released a free I Am Alive companion app for iOS devices ahead of the game's impending XBLA release. The app features area maps, hints from the developers regarding points of interest, an achievement checklist and a compendium of in-game resources and their effects. It also contains concept art, developer diaries and the game's soundtrack, six tracks of which are exclusive to the app.The companion program even has a photo mode, which lets you take pictures of your friends eating and then make it look like they're eating in a dystopian ruin. Cell phones probably don't work in I Am Alive's post-apocalyptic future, but they do work in our pre-apocalyptic present, so why not take advantage of that while you can? If anything, you'll be able to impress all of your trendy hipster friends with a photo manipulation app they've never heard of.
I Am Alive dev diary discovered in the rubble
This developer diary for I Am Alive covers the dusty vision for the game and conveys its interesting combat system. It also delves into the exploration, stamina and inventory mechanics. I Am Alive will attempt to survive in the digital distribution space on March 7.
Play.com lists 'Ubisoft Triple Pack,' containing Beyond Good and Evil HD, Outland, From Dust [update]
It looks like more downloadable titles will be getting the packaged retail treatment, this time courtesy of Ubisoft. Similar to the various other retail packs we've seen in the past, the "Ubisoft Triple Pack" will contain three previously download-only titles for PS3 and Xbox 360: Beyond Good and Evil HD, Outland and From Dust, according to a listing on Play.com.Play.com's pre-order price of £14.99 equates to roughly $23, although no listings currently exist for the Triple Pack on any of the usual US retailers' websites. We've contacted Ubisoft for clarification regarding the collection's availability and pricing, but we feel safe in assuming that it'll cost more than $1 and less than $100 million, and that it'll be available in a country somewhere on this specific planet.Update: Ubisoft has responded in a wholly surprising and remarkably unpredictable fashion: "We have nothing to announce at this time."
Far Cry 3 trailer touches down, gets tied up, and left for dead
Remember that Far Cry 3 trailer we were all excited about from Ubisoft's E3 2011 press conference? It turns out that, ahead of Ubisoft officially releasing it, one intrepid YouTuber has snagged it and thrown it online. Thankfully, it wasn't tied to a rock before being thrown into the internet.
I Am Alive report was a 'joke,' game's continued delay evidently not a joke
We're going to ask you to remember all the way back to last week, when we reported on a rumor that the long-in-development (and optimistically titled) I Am Alive was, in fact, still alive but would only see release on Xbox Live Arcade and PlayStation Network. Nearly a full week after that story crawled out of the rubble we know as the internet, and a week after Ubi said that it had "not recently announced anything for I Am Alive" and, in case it wasn't totally clear, it has "nothing official to announce at this time," we have an update from the source of the rumor. The French-language video show Warpzone is a part of French gaming site JeuxVideo, which said, "Obviously, anyone who has watched Warpzone immediately understood it was an unimportant joke." It was seemingly so unimportant that they waited until now to let everyone know! As for the fate of I Am Alive, Ubisoft's unwillingness to confirm whether or not the title is a retail game or a downloadable game, or really to talk about it at all, isn't filling us with hope.
Rumor: I Am Alive on PSN and XBLA
*Cough, cough.* I Am Alive. No, really, I haven't been declared dead yet! I know it's been touch-and-go, but I appear to be on the mend. It's just -- well, I may have lost a bit of myself along the way. I was once supposed to be a full-fledged retail game -- in a nice box and everything -- but according to the host of JeuxFrance's "Warpzone" show (who claims to have been informed directly from the creator herself, Jade Raymond), I'm now going to be alive digitally, inside of Xbox Live Arcade and the PlayStation Network. While I don't like the idea of losing any vital parts or, uh, shrinking, I do hope the news is true! Those are nice, open places to live -- and probably better than a cramped box. Check out the Warpzone episode here -- fast-forward to the eight-minute mark for the stuff about me! You do know French, I trust? [Update: Ubisoft hasn't gotten back to us, but it did tell Eurogamer, "we have not recently announced anything for I Am Alive and we have nothing official to announce at this time." Well, okay then.]
Beyond Good & Evil HD preview: There is power in numbers (Carlson and Peeters, chapter 21)
In November of 2003, a much younger Ubisoft was launching two high-profile (and excellent!) titles: the Montreal-developed reboot of the Prince of Persia series, subtitled "Sands of Time," and the Montpellier-developed Beyond Good & Evil, the supposed first installment in creator Michel Ancel's planned trilogy. By now, you know how this story goes. The Prince of Persia reboot – fueled by Ubisoft's curiously siloed marketing muscle – was a massive success and spawned two immediate sequels, a 2008 reboot, a 2010 feature film and associated tie-in game. The remainder of the Beyond Good & Evil trilogy? Despite a sequel being announced five years later at Ubisoft's Ubidays event in 2008, the company has subsequently ignored, mismanaged, or forgotten that promise. But now, seven years after both games made their way to retail, we're being treated to HD rereleases and, while Prince of Persia: Sands of Time was released on PS3 as a lazy up-rezzed port (even retaining major bugs from its original release!), Beyond Good & Evil appears to be benefitting from a degree of care (and marketing) it was never afforded in 2003. Talk about karma. %Gallery-112902%
Beyond Good & Evil HD: see the first screens
We got a chance to play a small section from early on in the freshly revealed Beyond Good & Evil HD yesterday evening at Ubisoft Digital Day 2010. Jade and Pey'j definitely looked higher-poly, while the textures were still clearly in the process of being swapped out. The framerate was a little inconsistent at this stage, but just by running at 1080p the game looked remarkable, even seven years after its 2003 debut. Ubisoft couldn't confirm if this remastering should be taken as a sign that Beyond Good & Evil 2 had become a higher priority project at the company. You can, however, bet it will be keeping a close eye on sales of Beyond Good & Evil HD as a gauge of just how quickly it needs to get the sequel out the door.%Gallery-103841%
