This will be the first year after many without a brand new Assassin's Creed game, but apparently Ubisoft is confident that Watch Dogs 2 sales will mitigate the otherwise devastating effect of his biggest IP missing its yearly release.
Ubisoft's Sales Director Darren Bowen released the following statement to MCVUK:
Assassin’s Creed has been a fantastic seller for Ubisoft and really important to the market every year, but make no mistake, Watch Dogs 2 will certainly fill the gap this year.
We are very fortunate to have such a strong and varied line-up so we don’t have to rely just one franchise. Following Watch Dogs 2, we also have Steep launching at the start of December along with strong back catalogue sales on Tom Clancy’s The Division and Far Cry Primal which have been two of the biggest launches so far this year.
Let’s not forget live games like The Crew and Rainbow Six Siege which is really being embraced the community with 10m players worldwide. If that wasn’t enough we also have the Ezio Collection, so for those consumers who need a taste of Assassin’s Creed every year – and we know there are a huge number of people – they will still be able to purchase a great triple pack which covers the most loved period of Assassin’s Creed.
If you really do need a state of Assassin's Creed in 2016, here's a trailer that compares the Ezio Collection to the original games (released on PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360).
Going back to Watch Dogs 2 sales, at any rate, Ubisoft previously mentioned that pre-orders were lower than the company had hoped. That said, pre-orders don't necessarily tell the whole story according to Ubisoft executives. The company witnessed this first hand with Far Cry, but also with live games like The Crew and Rainbow Six: Siege which massively improved after launch until their communities got way larger than suggested by initial sales.
As a reminder, the first Watch Dogs sold over 10 million copies, setting records at launch for the biggest new IP in the gaming industry. Watch Dogs 2 will be out next week on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, while PC gamers will have to wait for November 29th.
About the author: With over two decades of experience in gaming journalism, Alessio Palumbo has led the gaming vertical at Wccftech since August 2015. He started working at a young age for Italian websites like Everyeye.it, Gamestar.it, Nextgame.it, and Multiplayer.it before kickstarting the indie English-language publication Worlds Factory as its founder and Editor in Chief. In the last decade, he has coordinated the overall output of Wccftech's gaming section, managed PR relations, assigned reviews, produced daily news coverage, edited gaming content as needed, and delivered game reviews. Arguably, his trademark content is the long series of exclusive developer interviews that have been cited by Wikipedia and by the biggest news media and gaming publications. His passion for technology also makes him knowledgeable when it comes to gaming hardware and tech. His favorite genres include RPGs, MMORPGs, and action/adventure games.
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