Assassin’s Creed Infinity: Towards a GTA Online / Fortnite Game-Service, Is It Really a Good Idea?

With more than 155 million copies sold since its creation in 2007, the Assassin’s Creed saga is Ubisoft’s goose that lays golden eggs. Aware that it is necessary to develop its games over the years, the French publisher and its creatives have decided to reflect on the future of the license, so that it remains sustainable for years to come. If the formula of one episode per year was abandoned a few years ago, to also give the teams time to develop new projects, we learn that the series could well take a serious turn. Via a Bloomberg article (written by Jason Schreier), then confirmed a few hours later by a post on the official Ubisoft website, we therefore learn that the franchise is about to pass the game-service course, a bit like Fortnite or GTA Online to make an easy comparison. Roughly speaking, this means that the business model of one episode per year, with each time a different era, is doomed to disappear for a constant and regular update of the content, in order to make the universe evolve in a more natural way. .

Rather than keep passing the baton from game to game, we deeply believe that this is an opportunity for one of Ubisoft’s most beloved franchises to evolve in a way more integrated and collaborative, less studio-centric and more focused on talent and leadership, wherever they are within Ubisoft.

According to journalist Jason Schreier, the game would be constantly evolving and would even make it possible to move from one era to another more easily, in the sense that the online platform that this Assassin’s Creed Infinity represents would link several eras for various experiences and varied. The other information to remember is that this new AC project would be the result of several internal Ubisoft studios, with Ubisoft Quebec as lead taking the reins, knowing that Ubisoft Montreal would also work in reinforcement. If we are to believe the rumors of the hallway, the rapprochement between the two studios would be badly perceived internally, the two studios nourishing a certain rivalry, in particular for the development of Assassin’s Creed games.

The creative direction of Assassin’s Creed Infinity will also take the form of an interstudio collaboration. Jonathan Dumont and Clint Hocking will share leadership as Creative Directors, being responsible for their teams at Ubisoft Quebec and Ubisoft Montreal, respectively. Dumont was previously world director on Assassin’s Creed Syndicate at Ubisoft Quebec, before being creative director on Assassin’s Creed Odyssey

On paper, this all sounds interesting and even makes sense in terms of a business model, with the GTA Online and Fortnite examples being proof that it can work and make a lot of money. But we must not forget that mastodons have tried things too and have even broken their teeth; the latest example being a certain Marvel’s Avengers who are still healing their wounds and quietly hoping to regain the confidence of players and their community. Still, this project is still in its infancy and this codenamed Assassin’s Creed Infinity project will not see the light of day before 2024, if Jason Schreir’s information is correct. We recently saw with the Nintendo Switch Pro that sometimes it can be seriously wrong …

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