Creativity is important to Ubisoft. Despite having franchises that have been around for years and some with annual releases, the publisher strives to innovate with each new installment and makes sure each has a new creative vision before greenlighting a new project.
Earlier this week, Ubisoft teased a small new project called Child of Light, an independent-minded game cultivated within a AAA environment. In an interview at Gamescom, Ubisoft executive director Alain Corre discussed how important that kind of creativity is to Ubisoft, plus the company’s commitment to embracing new ideas and technology as new consoles approach.
“We like creativity. Our creators always want to bring something new, because that’s what motivates them,” Corre told IGN. “We’re trying to make some bets and let some projects go forward. We always have a lot of different projects going on. Some are never finished. Some are never published. But with a game like Child of Light, we think Pat can bring something fresh. You were talking about an indie flavor. That’s what we feel too. We want to cultivate that. We’re planting some seeds, and with luck we’ll see some interesting flowers come up. I think Child of Light has that flavor. We want to combine our big brands, the way we innovate with these big brands, with some other projects, more indie-like projects that can emerge. It’s important to cultivate creativity at all levels.”
According to Corre, Ubisoft’s commitment to creativity means thoroughly thinking through each new entry in its big franchises. Even for successful series, a new installment has to be right before Ubisoft will move ahead with it.
It’s important to cultivate creativity at all levels.
“If we can bring something fresh, something that’s moving the franchise forward, bringing something new to the brand and to the heroes, I think we’ll go with it,” Corre said. “But with every game, it has to be polished. The ideas have to come. The innovation has to impress us first before we can put them in the hands of gamers. We want them to be happy.”
For Ubisoft, this often means picking the right studio for the job. With dozens of studios on multiple continents, the publisher has plenty of talent to choose from.
“I think that Ubisoft had to be a multicultural company from the very beginning,” Corre observed. “In the beginning, we were a French company, but the big markets weren’t in France. France was a good market, but America and Japan and the UK were bigger. So we had to be multicultural. I think we’ve kept that philosophy. All the people working here feel that they’re a part of Ubisoft as a global company. We’ve been able to create an atmosphere of help and sharing, which is beneficial to all our games. It’s helping us do some cross-fertilization, and achieve some economies of scale as well. People are happy to help each other because they know that the other studios will be able to help them in return. I think the ecosystem is working very well. Everybody’s happy.”
Most recently, that meant opening Ubisoft Toronto, the studio that launched Splinter Cell: Blacklist and will collaborate on a future Assassin’s Creed game.
“I think it’s becoming a major hub,” Corre said about Toronto. “They have a lot of talented creators there. We’re very proud of the team that created Splinter Cell. They’re one of the best creative teams in the world today. They have plenty of ideas, and I’m sure we’ll be surprised in the next few years by what they bring to us.”
Even with such a big stable of developers, Ubisoft is still willing to look to outside talent when it needs to, as evidenced by the announcement of The Fighter Within earlier this week, a game published by Ubisoft but developed by Daoka.
We feel that we have an opportunity, with every new technology, to create new gameplay, new IP, new names, new heroes. That’s what we’re doing.
“Well, we do have a lot of studios, but they’re all very busy,” Corre laughed. “On Assassin’s Creed, we have more than 600 people working on that game, between all the different studios helping each other. When we see a good idea proposed by an external company, we’re always ready to look at what we can do with it. With Fighter Within, what’s interesting is that they were very early on the new Kinect technology. We wanted to see what they could do. I think it’s very accurate in terms of combat. It’s also very exhausting. It’s good exercise. So it’s another way for us to be present at the introduction of a new technology, the new Kinect.”
Looking ahead, Corre has high hopes for Ubisoft’s prospects as the industry transitions to a new generation of consoles. As confirmed this week, Ubisoft will have several titles available at the launch of the new systems, including Assassin’s Creed IV, Watch Dogs, Just Dance and The Fighter Within.
“We’d anticipated that the machines would come for Christmas, so we started working a long time ahead on this new generation, in line with Sony and Microsoft,” he said. “We were prepared for that timing. Ubisoft in general has tried to be early on the new generation of machines, trying to innovate early. It’s the same for PS4 and Xbox One. We’re demonstrating Watch Dogs and Assassin’s Creed. These games are really at the next level with their next-generation adaptations. We’re very confident.”
Ubisoft has a long history of launching games alongside new consoles, often testing new technology long before other publishers. Corre says that practice is by design.
“When new technology is brought to the market, especially a new console like these big two, the consumers, the gamers, are more open to new experiences,” he explained. “For us, that’s a way to take some risks, make some bets on new IP and new gameplay. It’s a moment when people are ready to buy big franchises, but also try one or two other things. If you’re lucky and you have some good innovation, it can become a game that’s appreciated and exists on its own after that. That’s why we feel that we have an opportunity, with every new technology, to create new gameplay, new IP, new names, new heroes. That’s what we’re doing.”
These games are really at the next level with their next-generation adaptations. We’re very confident.
Looking ahead, Corre believes Ubisoft will evolve alongside the industry, and the publisher has already begun embracing emerging ideas like free-to-play and second screen experiences. Still, even as these ideas become more prominent, Corre believes the traditional AAA game model will continue.
“I think the free-to-play experience is something that’s pleasing to a certain category of gamers. But still, the vast majority likes big products, big experiences as far as emotion, graphics, sound, and gameplay. We think these big games will go on,” he told us. “The free-to-play experience can also be an extra experience within that big game. The tablet experience can be an extension of a bigger game. You’ve seen that on Watch Dogs. The tablet and the second screen are very important to the overall gameplay. It brings something new to the gamer. We think the addition of this kind of gameplay will be required in the future, just like sound once became a requirement. A second screen, and also some flavor and free-to-play experience within the overall experience is something that we look forward to.”
“We’re bringing some of our brands to mobile already,” he continued. “Assassin’s Creed, we’ve released that on mobile. So we’re looking at what we can bring to that device segment. There are so many new games coming each week on mobile. We need to make sure that our brands are integrated with a great game, so it can resonate with those fans of our brands that don’t just want to play on the sofa. We’re very protective in the way we’ll transfer our franchises to mobile and tablets. But it’s a huge market. It’s a gameplay possibility for our fans in addition to core gaming in the living room. We’re looking at that very carefully. But number one for us is quality. If we can bring a quality experience from our franchises to mobile and tablet, then we’ll make that move.”
Andrew Goldfarb is IGN’s news editor. Keep up with pictures of the latest food he’s been eating by following @garfep on Twitter or garfep on IGN.
Source : ign[dot]com
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