ubisoft-montreal posts

While the Assassin's Creed franchise has been a big hit for developer-publisher Ubisoft on the console front, the open world stealth action game series hasn't had much of an impact on the PC platform. The first two games in the series were released months after their console platform debuts and the same goes for the third game, Assassin's Creed Brotherhood, which is already out for Xbox 360 and PS3 but isn't due out for the PC until sometime in the first quarter of 2011.

Yet, an Ubisoft rep insisted to Computer and Video Games that the PC is a big part of the game series. Ubisoft UK marketing boss Murray Pannell is quoted as saying, "Definitely, PC is still an important platform for the franchise." He added that details on what the PC port of Assassin's Creed Brotherhood will contain will be revealed "soon".

Assassin's Creed Brothehood is due out for consoles this week but PC gamers will have to wait until sometime in 2011 to get their hands on the third game in the best selling action game series. But is developer/publisher Ubisoft planning for yet another entry in the series in the next year?

During today's quarterly conference call with investors today, Ubisoft's CEO Yves Guillemot answered a question asking about a possible new Assassin's Creed game in 2011 with this cryptic response: "There will be something around Assassin's. That's the only thing we can say." Could he mean DLC content for Brotherhood? Perhaps a spin-off game in another genre? Or something else entirely? Hopefully we will learn more soon.

Ghost Recon Future Soldier, the upcoming and latest game in Ubisoft's tactical shooter series, was first announced for a fall 2010 release and then pushed back to a first quarter 2011 timeline. Now Ubisoft's latest financial press release have announced that the game won't make that release date after all.

Instead Ubisoft has decided to move Ghost Recon Future Soldier to sometime in the publisher's 2012 fiscal year which in calendar year times starts on April 1, 2011 and ends on March 31, 2012. There's no word on why the game has been delayed yet again but at least the first quarter is a bit less crowded now.

It's not exactly a shock at this stage but Ubisoft has now confirmed that the PC port of Assassin's Creed Brotherhood won't be shipping with the console versions of the game. The publisher has now confirmed that the PC version of the latest entry in the best selling action game series will miss its November 18 release date and will now ship sometime in the first quarter of 2011.

In retrospect this is just the latest example of the Assassin's Creed series making PC gamers wait. The first two games in the series had their PC ports come out several months after their console counterparts.

Layoff news continues to hit the game industry. Today Kotaku reports that Ubisoft has give notices to 38 members of its Red Storm Entertainment studio in Cary, North Carolina. The story did not say how many team members remain at Red Storm, which created the Rainbow Six and Ghost Recon tactical shooter series.

A spokesperson for Ubisoft said the layoffs were due to "a realignment of production priorities" at the publisher but added that Red Storm team members affected by the layoffs will be given a chance " to consider positions in other Ubisoft studios." Red Storm's current project is working on the multiplayer features for Ghost Recon: Future Soldier which is due out in the first quarter of 2011.

As promised via online ads for the game earlier this week, a playable PC demo for R.U.S.E. is now available for download via its Steam web page. The demo for the upcoming WWII-themed RTS game by pubisher Ubisoft and developer Eugen Systems apparently consists of just one single player mission that was made especially for the demo as you control Allied forces in Italy against German armies.

The title, which uses dummy units and other methods of deception and cloaking to keep you and your enemies guessing, is still slated to be released in the US on September 7. People who pre-order the game via Steam will gain access to two extra multiplayer maps.

2008's release of developer/publisher Ubisoft's open world first person shooter Far Cry 2 was met with praise from critics and solid sales. Even before the game was released there was talk of making Far Cry 3. Now a new rumor from the pages of PC Gamer's latest print magazine suggests that Far Cry 3 is in full production mode.

The magazine, in its rumor-filled Spy column, states that the game is "in full swing now" at Ubisoft's Montreal studios. According to the article the game's development is being lead by Josh Mosqueira, who previously worked over at Relic Entertainment as the lead designer for Company of Heroes. There's no word on what the game might be about although previous suggestions about Far Cry 3 stated the game would stick to Far Cry 2's African setting.

Last May Clint Hocking, a long time employee of Ubisoft's Montreal studio announced that he was leaving Ubisoft after nine years. Hocking, who was creative director of 2008's open world first person shooter Far Cry 2, didn't give any word on what he would be doing next.

While we still don't know what he will be doing next, we do know what developer he will be working with. GameSpot has confirmed that Hocking is now working with LucasArts as the creative director of an unannounced title for the San Fransisco-based company. Currently LucasArts' only known internally developed game is Star Wars The Force Unleashed II which is currently set for an October 26 release date.

[Via Joystiq]

As we reported a few weeks ago, Ubisoft had a panel at this weekend's San Diego Comic-Con that not only had a discussion and demo of the upcoming shooter Ghost Recon Future Soldier but also showed and discussed a preview of the previously announced Ghost Recon-themed live action short film.

The one minute preview of the movie, which has the title Alpha, showed members of the Ghost team taking out an Eastern European military installation. GameSpot reports that the movie showed some high production values and "will certainly appeal to fans of the high-action, big-explosion action film genre." And yes, there will be Ghost team members cloaked in the movie like they will be for Future Soldier. Both game and movie will be released in 2011.

Confirming earlier rumors, Ubisoft has now revealed via their latest financial press release that a Mac version of the developer's stealth-action game Splinter Cell Conviction is in the works. In addition the publisher also has plans to release a Mac port of its hit open world action game Assassin's Creed 2.

Both of the Ubisoft Mac ports are scheduled to be released to gamers sometime this quarter which means they are due out before September 30. Our question: Will the Mac ports also have Ubisoft's "always on" DRM set-up that are now a part of the publisher's PC game releases? We hope not.