Ubisoft Planning for Assassin's Creed Infinity, Online Platform in 2024

Nice article. Thanks Liam. It seems like all these big publishers have been burned by their attempts to cash-in the games as a service model so they are doubling down and creating online platforms with games as a service. What could go wrong?

Well, I have a bad feeling about this.

We still don’t know very much about this but I can’t say this excites me right now. I really liked Odyssey and Origins. Valhalla was good but had waaaaaaaay too much in it. I was hoping they would revert back to the Odyssey/Origins type game but they apparently are going in a very different direction.

RIP Assassin’s Creed.

I’ll wait to see more before passing judgement. Could be quite cool but could also be a massive clusterbuck.

Between this and the GTA rumour the gaming landscape is changing massively by the looks of things

Ah yes, just what we need.

A bigger Assassin’s Creed game.

Oh no. I was hoping for a proper shift like from Black Flag to Unity but not like this.

Count me as far out as possible from this and pretty much all things Ubisoft at this point!

Ohh Ubisoft -_-
Going off topic...
Is anyone else excited about Steelrising? It seems Spiders is putting their own spin on the "souls" formula and I live for it!

Will they still make games that are offline single player, and I can plug 150 hours into the experience per playthrough? I have absolutely zero interest in an online game.

@get2sammyb As far as I'm concerned, Ubisoft is AC, and AC is single player offline. I've played the games since the start, and this has me really worried.

@get2sammyb that could be a good thing I guess but I would expect a 2 year gap max. 3 is kind of a long stretch and drought. I’m not happy with this news though. Just continue giving us good normal sized games that we can complete. Stay off that bandwagon.

I can't say I am surprised. These big studios are money printing machines and they will chase whatever trend gets them the biggest return on investment; much to the detriment of gaming as a whole.

If I can't have a single player, offline, physical version of a game, then I won't play said game, even if it's in a franchise I have followed since its inception.

Not sure what to make of this. I've been a fan since the first game but this model doesn't sound right.

So they had HUGE success with Valhalla.
The best selling AC game in the series since 2012/13.
And now they throw the franchise down the ***** chasing the Fortnite money.
Hats off to the decision makers at Ubisoft!

To be honest … I am open to the idea. We already have a whole bunch of single-player AC games, and these will still be available to us. Also, being able to go to different locations/periods from a central (modern?) hub makes total sense from a canon pov.

On the downside, while we don't know what form this will take, we can pretty much trust Ubi to bring those microtransactions. Plus, while the gameplay is not my favourite (to say the least), I actually do enjoy the long format Valhalla-stories, and would be sad to lose that aspect.

@Unlucky13 I hope it will be much like Division 2, which is PVE focused with PVP. I was reluctant to do an "online game" but after almost 300 hours in D2 I am glad I took a chance. You only see people in hubs and you can call a rando in for backup (and they can call you) however these two settings can be switched off and you basically have a PVE game where you see nobody at all ever. The great part of it is there are seasons and events that keep you playing, the downside is you need to connect to a server, which takes like 30 seconds.

I can't imagine they will throw away PVE after hit after hit with the AC franchise, and just do an online battle royal. I feel like this will be "the next AC" but with online options for collaboration, raids, leagues, etc. It will also be very interesting on how they develop the modern day vs. historical periods mix.

I am excited to see what these two stellar teams come up with!

No new AC game till at least 2024?

Thats rough.

@get2sammyb I think tha'ts it! No more AC as we know it.
To me it sounds (or I hope it sounds) like they are creating the Animus, which makes sense... if is some kind of hub in which you can go and choose solo experiences or multiplayer (co-op or competitive) and jump around assasins and time lines, it could be awesome!

Cool, more live service garbage.

Oh FFS... This is what will become of our hobby. Between Game Pass and games as a service/online platforms, the time of buying and owning a well-defined game is dead.
I'll support Sony until they also are defeated by this wave, but I'm not optimistic that it will take very long...

@get2sammyb I think the time span makes sense. Another year of Valhalla DLC, takes it to 2022, 2023 starts the reveals of Infinity with teasers up until a 2024 launch. I do hope they don't squeeze another AC game in there. I think the wait between games is longer but the break (which maybe we all need) should provide more build up to a bigger launch.

Well Ubi surprised me with 3 great games and turned AC around. Excited to see what this is, no reason to doubt them at this point.

But 3 years wait is rough. At least I still have the Valhalla Season Pass left.

@frankmcma Yeah, D2 is what makes me slightly hopeful. A friend "lured" me into that world – and I have been really reluctant to go online/coop – but it works really well for that game.

This sounds really, really terrible.

insert GIF of Team America puppet projectile vomiting

Halo Infinite now this garbage? If this is the way the industry is trying to go say goodbye

Well a higher up at Ubi did say they want to focus more on free-to-play stuff in the future a few months ago. I guess we are going to see the results of that shift come 2024. As an old school AC fan this definitely doesn't sound like something I'd be into at all.

Sad to see the series take a turn like this.

Updated with comment from Ubisoft. It's very much a real thing.

Something tells me the bigwigs have spent too much time hanging around the Mythic Quest set 🤔😂

Well if this is a way of linking smaller more immersive single player experiences within an online connected system of some kind that sounds ok. If the more likely outcome is some kind of shared Fortnite type game with people running around dressed as popular youtubers, wearing fluorescent fairy wings with jet packs flying around medieval Venice I'm out. Requiescat in pace.

The problem with MMO's IMO is the combat. I've just yet to play something like Monster Hunter when the entire game is rendered online. Once gameplay mechanics are as seamless as they are offline, I wouldn't care to interact with online worlds, especially if you can be as involved with the community as you want, but so far...most MMO combat is weaksauce. FF14 is fun, but it's nothing like the SP combat engines.

@munkholt A few times on later D2 campaign missions I "called for backup" and someone jumped into my game, joined right into the fight, helped me succeed, and then did a salute and jumped right back out. With mics off it was kind of perfect. I like online when I need some quick help, just don't need co-op up in my grill every minute of playtime. I expect ACI will be similar.

@ankehuber I'm sure they are just suits looking for the quickest cash grab ideas and implementing them apparently

Goodness knows what this all means, but it doesn't sound good. Im out.

I played all AC games but if its a live service game i am out.

@Jester1701one Assassin's Creed Valhalla is a live service game.

@LiamCroft Not really since i can ignore all their *****. The question is how much more aggressive this will get.

@Jester1701one Being able to ignore it doesn't mean it's not live service.

Ubisoft keeps chasing the live service next big thing wish them good luck with that but it seems that Valhala was my last AC game it was a fun ride over the years.

We only really need one more AC game: the rumoured Richard Lionheart DLC/standalone/spinoff/whatever would tie Valhalla back to AC1, full circle. And then begin a new, Infinity cycle.

Would love if Ubisoft could make a more linear condensed AC game. Something that is 30 to 40 hours long.

Assnite, no thank you!

Another franchise is heading to its grave

Edit: I love Assassin's Creed games, so this is not hate against them, this is a sadness about the state of the gaming industry. Just look at Marvel's Avengers, great license, even good moments in the story but because it's a live service online game, it's full of microtransactions and mindless tedious grinding. We as gamers need to support traditional releases, as in pay once or pay extra only for decent substantial DLC.
The way things are heading every game will have no substance, single player stories are dying out(yeah there is still a few major releases but a lot less) and it's a tragedy.

@Unlucky13 I don't know if you've noticed, but Ubisoft already threw away AC's identity for whatever is making money at the time. I don't know why you're surprised.

While I don’t think major publishers need any defence whatsoever, but still, the leaking of major projects by Schreier, Grubb and the likes is starting to annoy me. Truly the potential for any future suprise E3 moment - like FF7R or Shenmue 3 - is killed by these people. Not specifically thinking about this project… What is the journalistic value of this reporting?
It’s like the marketing dpts. of publishers should simply take these “journalists” on as agents. (Which probably they already are in some way)

The hardest of passes.

@MisterWhen When we praised a game with nothing to do with AC, Odyssey and such, this wasn't that far out. People already said a game that abandoned every core AC concept was a "fresh" game so most people here complaining about how AC is changing already sold it out a long time ago.

@PowderToastMan

To be fair, Assassins Creed has been dead for a few games now. The last one was atrocious.

@dasd2

A GTA Online type of Assassins Creed they can milk for a decade?

Book it

Assassin's creed Valhalla is my last Assassin's Creed game then, I own all the Assassin's Creed game & Remasters. It'll be a always online GTA Online/RDR2 Online type of game, with microtransactions at the forefront.

Lol. A live service assassin's Creed with micro transactions and likely a monthly fee. Great idea ubisoft 👎

Original name too 😅

It seems Ubisoft has the goal of stripping away all the soul left in this franchise. It was already in terminal state on Origins, and entered in coma on Odyssey...

Seems like every company wants an Avengers/Godfall/Outriders fiasco to call their own.

@Shepherd_Tallon
The good old days… everything nowadays is seemingly abundant while simultaneously being shallow. I have to stop, this makes me feel old.

@Jaz007 I'm a big fan of Origins, and a HUGE fan of Odyssey. Its AC perfected, IMO. I want more like that, gradually getting bigger and better, for the next 20 years.

@frankmcma But do they play the same way that an offline game does? Are they slower? What happens if you don't have a great internet connection?

I gave ES:Online a try, and didn't like it at all. So much of what I like about Skyrim is just totally different in that one, even though I barely interacted with other people. Its not the experience that I want.

Requiecast in Pace, Assassin's Creed. You've been one of my favourite franchises!

I was hoping the next game would be a return to form but I'm interested in seeing how this works

I'd much prefer the the individual games. Origins, Odyssey and Valhalla have all been great games, why change it?

@KidBoruto the Ubisoft mentality is super sad. They are only thinking about money, and they were one of the best deliviring games...now they just want franchises they can milk with live services. It's just sad

Incredible Ghost of Tsushima franchise is takin over at least so it doesnt bother me as much.While they will most probably mess up AC for a while.

Did I read correctly that no new Assassins Creed game for 3 years then?
Should give me just enough time to get through Valhalla then.

Personally I wanted a setting during the height of the Roman Empire, with pretty much whole of Europe and North Africa to explore as part of a Legion.
You could even meet Jesus at the crucifixion and find out he's one the Isu for example, or try and bump off Caesar Augustus who is the top templar in that time.
Probably too big but it could be great!

this is so sad if creed goes live service I won't bother with it anymore.

Defo won't be bothering with this if it goes online only. Such a shame cause the last three games in the franchise I have loved. Hopefully they'll still make historical rpg's and just not call them assassins creed.

So disappointed by this. I thought the last 3 games were huge improvements, and for me this is kind of the death of the series.

Very sad to hear/read this. Does not sound like a good thing. At all. This sounds terrible honestly. I like the individual games. I am not a fan of just keep adding on and on with no end in sight. Count me out as this does not sound fun. If they wanted to do this- make it somehow separate from the other games and make both

@Unlucky13 Odyssey is AC perfected? What about it Assassin's Creed? What core identifying parts of the series does it excel at? What even connects it to the series if you take the name away? You might like it, but it's just not an AC game - enjoying or saying it's a great game doesn't make it one. Ubisoft should have made a new RPG series instead of throwing the AC name around for money.

@Jaz007 I guess it depends on what you want AC to be. I was excited about the first game when I saw an E3 special about it on G4 a year before it came out. I preordered it, and got it the day that it was released, so I've been into the series literally since the start.

I love the world that they created, both the modern story and the precursor race. I've always thought that the graphics and gameplay felt great, and enjoyed the individual time period stories that they told along the way. But I've always kind of muddled through the forced stealth aspects of the games, and just done my own thing with battle as much as it would let me since the very first one. Swords and cleavers!

And so when they took the story and idea of AC and put it into an action RPG, which is much more my format, then yes, it was perfected in my opinion. To go deeper than that, I feel that Odyssey probably did a large open world better than anyone else has to this point. Its the peak of the genre, and I dream of seeing the whole industry build from what they did. Its not perfect, but I want a lot more like it.

one dumpster fire this is 🤷 a way to rip people off more? hasn't been a good assassin's creed game since the first 3 and im not talking about the ending.

@Unlucky13 The idea of AC? The idea isn't different historical periods using swords. The idea is an order of assassins, which has a core tenant of not attracting unneeded attention, of using stealth. Social stealth is a key feature of AC as well as the hidden blade as an assassination title. It was that order being throughout history in a historically accurate, fact filled, and researched setting. The whole precursor race and beyond convoluted modern and big conspiracy story is barley present and connects anything is Odyssey.
You don't play as an assassin in Odyssey nor do you is there even an order of assassins. It also threw the history out the window for something more fantastical. You have a magic spear as a main weapon.
You want a game set in a semi-historical setting to let you use a sword in an open world. That's far from the identifying or anything that makes AC AC.
Storywise and idea wise Odyssey wasn't AC. You loved and that's fair, but pretending it's AC rather than you just liked the open-world swordsman idea isn't really accurate.
That's what I love about AC, being an assassin in a historical setting (hence the assassin part in Assassin's Creed name. ) So them removing assassinations, the brotherhood of assassins as the core of the game as well the historical accuracy in favor in a non-assassin related spartan mercenary RPG with ruined my day.
You wanted a different series frankly. But because they used the AC name as a cashcow instead of doing that, you don't have any reliability to keep getting the kind of game you're currently enjoying because it gets thrown to whatever idea smells like money rather than a new identity based on what you love. That's what led us to here.

@Jaz007 Fair enough. Lets say that I enjoyed the AC series from the start until Black Flag, which I didn't like at all. Nor Unity. Syndicate was fine. I loved the story, both the ancient parts and the semi-modern aspects. The graphics and some of the gameplay mechanics were absolutely cutting edge, and it was all really fun.

I did not enjoy the forced stealth. Not my thing. I also tended to be a little loose with how I played, and would go archery and melee most of the time if I could.

And so, whatever you want to call Origins and Odyssey, with ties to the story - especially the ancient one, but with a world and gameplay style that I prefer, then that's what I want more of. Valhalla isn't as good. Its scaled down too much, and honestly plays closer to the older titles IMO.