Ubisoft has been through some turbulent times lately, but that's not necessarily a new phenomenon. Through Ubisoft's explosion in popularity in the late 2000s/early 2010s, they have released some incredible games, but also some games that have split critics and fans down the middle.
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Whether it is games that are released in a near-broken state, predatory monetization, or just plain strange choices, responses to some Ubisoft games are incredibly polarized, with pro and anti-voices alike struggling to understand the other side.
8 Skull and Bones
The Pirate Fantasy
Skull and Bones
- Released
- February 16, 2024
WHERE TO PLAY
- Developer(s)
- Ubisoft Singapore
- Platform(s)
- PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S
There's no defending some of Skull & Bones's strangest monetisation decisions that made it seem like a waste of time to many, but for others, there is a great game lying beneath the reams of bad press heaped atop the struggling naval combat simulator.
Put simply, the naval combat is genuinely pretty great when it works, the ocean dynamics are fantastic, the faction system is a lot of fun, and there are few games out there that really try to give this kind of in-depth progression system based on naval combat. The game's fans and critics are split from each other entirely, though it's unlikely the game will recover in popularity any time soon.
7 Watch Dogs Legion
Hack the Planet
Watch Dogs Legion
- Released
- October 29, 2020
WHERE TO PLAY
- Developer(s)
- Ubisoft
- Platform(s)
- PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, Stadia
Though the Watch Dogs franchise, in general, has seen some controversial design choices, none have been more controversial than Watch Dogs Legion, which did away with a pre-designed central protagonist and instead let the player choose whatever NPC they wanted to play as, making them the story's hero.
While building up a weird and wild custom DEDSEC operative was compelling and charmed many players, others felt that the ultimate level of player creativity came at the cost of a compelling story. It's hard to say either side is wrong, but instead it just depends on the priority of the gamer.
6 Far Cry 5
Home on the Range
Far Cry 5
- Released
- March 27, 2018
WHERE TO PLAY
- Developer(s)
- Ubisoft Montreal, Ubisoft Toronto
- Platform(s)
- PC, PlayStation 4, Stadia, Xbox One
- Genre(s)
- FPS, Open-World
The Far Cry franchise, since Far Cry 3, has become well known for its variety of compelling protagonists and settings. Ubisoft decided to make a big swing and set Far Cry 5 in rural Montana, while also having a protagonist who embodies Christian evangelicalism to an extreme degree and a list of companions who are whackier than ever.
For some, this big political swing was a massive win for the franchise that actually sought to challenge gamer's perceptions of who bad guys could be in video games, but others felt that the characterisation of New Eden was shallow, and some felt it was offensive to Christians in general.
5 Assassin's Creed Valhalla
Viking Violence
Assassin's Creed Valhalla
- Released
- November 10, 2020
WHERE TO PLAY
- Developer(s)
- Ubisoft
- Platform(s)
- Stadia, PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S
As the Assassin's Creed franchise bravely stepped forward into a new era of the PS5/Xbox Series X generation, some gamers were concerned that it would continue along its path of RPG bloat, while others valued the massive value for money these games continued to give.
Assassin's Creed Valhalla leaned hard into the RPG side of the new direction for the franchise with a mind-boggling amount of content and secret weapons that would keep even the most active gamer busy for weeks. For some, it was bloated and too much. For others, it was the ultimate statement of pure pound-for-pound value in video game purchasing power.
4 Assassin's Creed 3
Forment the Revolution
Assassin's Creed III
- Released
- October 30, 2012
WHERE TO PLAY
- Developer(s)
- Ubisoft Montreal
- Platform(s)
- Nintendo Switch, Nintendo Wii U, PC, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Xbox 360, Stadia
- Genre(s)
- Action, Open-World
After the Ezio trilogy, the Assassin's Creed franchise had a problem of where to go next. Not afraid of being a little controversial, Ubisoft decided to go with a depiction of the American Revolution, a topic that is rarely explored in games, usually because of its political ideas that can be inflammatory to this day.
Sure enough, the game was released to a fair degree of controversy, with some questioning the game's historical accuracy, while others arguing that the colonial towns of Colonial America didn't complement the parkour style of the Ezio trilogy. Yet, since then, others have argued that the game shows a remarkable bravery in depicting a rarely depicted era. However, most can probably agree that the six-hour Kenway tutorial section was probably a little too much.
3 For Honor
Melee Masterclass
For Honor
- Released
- February 14, 2017
WHERE TO PLAY
- Developer(s)
- Ubisoft Montreal
- Platform(s)
- Xbox One, PC, PlayStation 4
- Genre(s)
- Action
As the age of modern military shooters drew to a close, gamers were clamouring for more games to focus on in-depth melee combat instead, and For Honor should have filled that gap perfectly.
However, the game's multiplayer forward presentation turned many gamers off who wanted something with For Honor's central melee mechanics in a compelling single-player experience. Others argued that For Honor was a breath of fresh air in an increasingly stale multiplayer zone. The game is still chugging along today, though many wonder whether it should have been appreciated more than it was.
2 Assassin's Creed Origins
The RPG Reinvention
Assassin's Creed Origins
- Released
- October 27, 2017
WHERE TO PLAY
- Developer(s)
- Ubisoft
- Platform(s)
- Xbox One, PC, PlayStation 4, Stadia
- Genre(s)
- Action RPG, Open-World
After Assassin's Creed: Syndicate, most gamers agreed that the entire Assassin's Creed franchise was tired and needed serious rethinking. That soft reboot came in the form of Assassin's Creed: Origins which took the franchise as far back as it ever been to ancient Egypt, but it also turned the franchise far more towards RPG mechanics.
For some fans of the series, the increased focus on RPG gameplay over stealth gameplay was a betrayal of what the franchise was, while others celebrated the new direction that offered a massive amount of scope and value which remains a controversial topic to this day as the Assassin's Creed franchise continues to try and evolve to bridge the gap between the two camps.
1 Assassin's Creed Unity
A Rough Start, A Quality Game
Assassin's Creed Unity
- Released
- November 11, 2014
WHERE TO PLAY
There is no doubt that Assassin's Creed Unity launched as an absolute mess. Many critics pointed out the rampant crashes, visual glitches, and clumsy presentation from top to bottom, which was a shame as the Assassin's Creed franchise intended to make a big splash onto the PS4/Xbox One generation of consoles.
Yet, since its release, a small but passionate group of fans advocate for a reappraisal of the game, arguing that once the glitches were removed, what remained was a genuinely novel story, a good balance between RPG and stealth mechanics, as well as some of the best crowd tech ever put to pixels (even if it remains incredibly difficult to fully complete).
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