As Ubisoft dials down on the grandeur and scale of Assassin’s Creed, it’s looking to the stars for its other blockbusters, or to be more specific, Star Wars Outlaws and Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora.
Previously, we covered that Star Wars Outlaws, Massive Entertainment’s upcoming Star Wars game, will launch exclusively on Ubisoft Connect. But, now, it appears that Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora will join it as well.
The launch exclusivity on Ubisoft Connect signifies a shift in Ubisoft’s release strategy after being recently welcomed back to Valve’s digital distribution service, Steam.
Star Wars Outlaws and Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora do not currently list any other platforms such as GOG, the Epic Games Store, or Steam as launch partners. Even upon searching for these games on Steam or the Epic Games Store, no such pages exist. While this is not entirely new—Ubisoft has previously prioritized the Epic Games Store and Ubisoft Connect for its releases—it does indicate a consolidation of its digital storefront strategy.
Interestingly, other Ubisoft games like The Crew Motorfest and Assassin’s Creed Mirage list Epic Games Store as a launch platform. This suggests a selective approach rather than a blanket policy for all titles. The release date for Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora is set for December 7th, while Star Wars Outlaws is set to launch in 2024.
However, it’s important to note that this exclusivity may not be permanent. The past has seen some Assassin’s Creed games making a late return to Steam, and Far Cry 6 getting a Steam re-release. Thus, it is highly plausible that Star Wars Outlaws and Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora will eventually find their way onto other platforms such as Steam and Epic Games Store, following their initial exclusive launch on Ubisoft Connect.
Ubisoft’s approach to game release platforms has been a contentious issue among the PC gaming community. In the past, Ubisoft has faced criticism for favoring the Epic Games Store and Ubisoft Connect over Steam. The decision to make two of their biggest upcoming games exclusive to Ubisoft Connect might be seen as a surprising move, especially as there’s little to no financial incentive to doing so – Steam is the largest digital games distribution platform and Epic Games Store is second but has a reputation for paying more for exclusivity rights.
This shift in strategy suggests Ubisoft is keen on exercising more control over its product distribution, likely aiming to foster customer loyalty towards its own platform, thereby ensuring a greater share of the profits even at the risk of potentially lower sales numbers.
However, Ubisoft has refrained from sharing any official PC system requirements for the new Avatar game nor provided any definitive statement regarding the platform availability of the game. As per PCGamesN, Ubisoft claims that it will have “more details to share regarding platform availability at a later date.”
For now, Ubisoft fans can look forward to the release of Assassin’s Creed Mirage on Steam on October 12, which features a smaller but denser world and a Deluxe Edition that caters to Prince of Persia fans.
