UbiDays 2007
Article - We travel to Paris in search of assassins and rabbids
With the summer doldrums now almost upon us, Ubisoft shipped the great and good of the gaming publication world off to a gathering in Paris, during which the French publisher's 2007 line-up would be demonstrated and detailed. Stepping off the Eurostar at Gare du Nord, the troupe of hacks were transported through the sweaty streets of the French capital by coach, arriving at the Louvre gallery in time for a few Da Vinci code moments spent trying to work out what the giant glass upside-pyramid thing is actually all about.
With some nine-hundred journalists attending the showcase from across Europe there was a palpable sense of anticipation (and nervousness among Ubi staff, given the unprecedented size of their event) as we were ushered into a large conference room where hostess Alexandra Kezan (big in France, I'm told) began the evening's proceedings by introducing CEO Yves Guillemot. The boss briefly waxed lyrical about the strength of the publisher's forthcoming line-up, and the emergence of the new casual games division that will take Ubisoft into new markets via consoles like the DS (the motto being 'Games for Everyone', embodied by titles like Horsez and Jam Sessions).
The evening proceeded in a smart fashion with Alexandra engaging numerous designers in conversation about their various titles, although it his hard to imagine her employers for the evening were impressed by her obvious ignorance concerning the products on display. This was highlighted perhaps most notably and comedically during the segment on casual games when she repeatedly pressed an Ubisoft producer on whether the titles might prove dangerously addictive. Something of a faux pas, we'd say.
Producer Jade Raymond was on stage to discuss Assassin's Creed and demonstrate a new trailer, which not only boasts some inventively brave background music but also showed some action sequences in which the fluidity of the assassin's moves were shown-off more aptly than than ever. Raymond also spoke of the breadth of the game's plotline and the richness of the source material; the middle-east of the crusades period. She emphasised the importance of the assassin's creed itself: "nothing is true, everything is permitted," a motto which reflects the game's nature and hints at further secrets to be uncovered (we pressed our PR man who teased that he'd read the script, but to no avail).
Elsewhere, the Haze team from Free Radical (headed by David Doak) took to the stage accompanied by a rather terrifying 'Mantel' corporation trooper, detailing the role the 'Nectar' performance boosting drug will play in the game, hinting at an over-arching dialogue on the state of war and its role in videogames, and promising four-player co-operative action in the PS3 'leading' FPS. The lead designer of EndWars also spoke during the evening with some enthusiasm about the forthcoming RTS, revealing that voice control will be possible, while he also mooted the enourmous gameplay potential of the title's WWIII setting (while we watched with some nervousness a full scale Parisian invasion in the trailer).
Haze trailer
Tom Clancy's EndWar trailer
The evening's event had kicked-off with a new Splinter Cell: Conviction demo, in which the new game engine was shown off in some style, Ubisoft Montreal's latest seeing Sam Fisher on the run and undercover - wearing a hoodie to conceal his identity. The environments of the game look far more interactive than ever before, the developers demonstrating the way objects can be moved to barricade doors or hurled as weapons. 'Crowd stealth' will be at the heart of the new SC experience, with various bars on the new HUD helping the player assess Sam's presence in the crowd; whether he is scaring pedestrians or attracting unwanted police attention, etc.
Splinter Cell: Conviction trailer
As the evening's presentation wore on we were also treated to a literal pep-talk from the former US army soldier aiding Gear Box on the new Brothers in Arms title. He spoke of the up-close and personal relationship the developer hopes to convey in the title, while designer Randy Pitchford also took us through the game's enhanced environs that are certainly looking better than ever but also face some stiff competition from other WWII series'.
Brothers in Arms Hell's Highway trailer
As the presentation's end approached, Ubisoft executives returned to the stage (sarcastically 'thanking' Alexandra at one amusing point) and you could almost feel the excitement as the evening's 'surprise' approached. Beyond Good and Evil 2? A new Prince of Persia perhaps? Sadly not. A new game based on the forthcoming Beowulf movie is on the way, with Guillemot promising that the title will 'redefine' the hack and slash genre. No further details, images or footage were revealed sadly, with Ubisoft promising more 'soon'. Then, in perhaps the oddest moment of the evening (beyond the teaser rabbid animations which repeatedly caused mayhem in silhouette-form on the stage's backdrop), a veritable warren-full of rabbits were pushed onto the rear of the stage. Bemusement ensued while we were treated to a rather entertaining trailer for Rayman Raving Rabbids 2.
And so, with the official presentations concluded we were ushered from the conference room and into the champagne and sushi-fueled indulgence of the UbiDays party. We would return to the Louvre the next day, hangovers and motion-sickness in-tow, for some close-up glimpses of Ubisoft's biggest releases of the year. And Surf's Up.
Naruto: Rise of a Ninja trailer
While hands-on time was limited we can report that various new media and details were released surrounding some of the publisher's biggest titles, while we can also reveal that Blazing Angels II is presently looking far better than the original, the new Naruto is a cell-shaded visual treat (though the gameplay wasn't shown in sufficient detail to really get us excited quite yet), and Dark Messiah has also come on in leaps and bounds from the PC.
While the event's scale and opulent setting spoke volumes about the publisher's ambitions at the inaugural UbiDays event then, we couldn't help wish there had been a really massive announcement of some description, or perhaps just a smidgen more hands-on opportunities with games (most notable being Assassin's Creed - just give it to us!). That said, with some excellent fondue fruit and a quick glimpse of the Mona Lisa duly consumed, the event was by no means an unenjoyable experience. Très bon!
© 2012 Ferrago Ltd