Ubisoft will soon be switching the hosting of a good many of its servers from a third-party provider to a new facility and, as a result, many Ubisoft games’ online modes will be unavailable during that time. For PC and Mac gamers, this may impact you even more.

When the transfer begins on February 7, most of Ubisoft’s titles will be limited to offline play only on all platforms, but a few PC and Mac titles won’t function at all. This list includes Assassin’s Creed (Mac), H.A.W.X. 2 (PC), Might & Magic: Heroes VI (PC), Splinter Cell: Conviction (Mac), The Settlers 7: Path to a Kingdom (PC), and The Settlers (Mac).

Ubisoft says that this transfer will affect all Ubisoft games one way or another, save for these five recently-released titles: ANNO 2070, Assassin’s Creed Revelations, Driver: San Francisco, Just Dance 3, and The Settlers Online.

“We apologize to our customers for the inconvenience,” Ubisoft said in a statement. “This move ultimately will help us improve the maintenance of our infrastructure and deliver better uptime and greatly improved services for our customers.”

Ubisoft didn’t say just how long the transfer is expected to take. The company recommends you follow its official Twitter account for more updates on when online functionality is expected to return.

Ubisoft migrating servers, several games affected is a post from: The Inquisitr

The Witcher 2 developer CD Projekt RED recently came under fire for the aggressive, strong-arming, borderline blackmailing tactics employed by a firm it hired to go after pirates of their game. The developer received so much flak, in fact, that the developer ultimately backed down and “ceased” pursuing pirates.

The practice of tracing IPs in an attempt to catch pirates in the act, and then subsequently demanding the alleged pirates pay the developer cash for fear of having to pay even more, is unfortunately not an uncommon one–and it appears that CD Projekt RED isn’t the only company in the gaming industry doing it.

A report from TorrentFreak points the finger at publishing giants Atari, Ubisoft, Codemasters, Square Enix and many others, claiming that each publisher/developer has either directly or indirectly gone after alleged pirates in Germany demanding money, lest the company takes them to court.

Rock, Paper, Shotgun rounded up the games publishers/developers that TorrentFreak alleges have  gone after pirates for, and they include:

Atari’s Alone In The Dark, Test Drive Unlimited, and Test Drive Unlimited 2; Techland’s Dead Island and Nail’d; Daedalic’s (and in turn LucasArts’) Euro distribution of Tales Of Monkey Island; Square’s Deus Ex: Human Revolution, Batman: Arkham Asylum, Just Cause 2; Koch’s distribution of Techland games and Ubisoft’s Kane & Lynch 2: Dog Days, Agrar Simulator 2011, as well as both Painkillers; Codies’ Operation Flashpoint: Red River and DiRT 3; Kalypso’s Airline Tycoon 2, Tropico 3 and 4; dtp’s Cities XL 2012; Aerosoft’s City Bus Simulator, Airbus X; and many others.

You can read more on the matter over at TorrentFreak (here), or at Rock, Paper Shotgun (here).

Atari, Ubisoft and more going after German pirates is a post from: The Inquisitr

In the post-apocalyptic world of I Am Alive, it would be an understatement to say that things are pretty messed up. You’ve got a thick, hazardous layer of dust to contend with, and buildings and architecture that look like they’ll fall apart if a light breeze passes by.

To help you stay alive in Ubisoft’s I Am Alive, the company released a trailer with a few helpful pointers to guide you through the hazardous environments. In the video, the game’s protagonist cautions players to keep their gas masks on while in the thick dust – you know, so you don’t destroy your character’s lungs – and climb up to safety to breathe fresh air.

For awhile, it seemed like I Am Alive wasn’t going to survive development. The game was announced back in 2008 and was originally targeted for a spring 2009 release – but, for reasons that Ubisoft never revealed, that didn’t happen. The developer/publisher went quiet on the game after its announcement, and it was thought to be dead until September, when Ubisoft announced that I Am Alive would be released on XBLA and PSN next year.

Check out the latest I Am Alive trailer below.

I Am Alive trailer teaches you how to survive [Video] is a post from: The Inquisitr

Earlier this week, I Am Alive creative director Stanislas Mettra seemed pretty clear that a PC release of the title is unlikely, saying that he was aware of PC gamers “bitching” about no release on their platform, but that it wouldn’t be financially viable due to rampant piracy.

As it turns out, he apparently didn’t mean to come off as utterly dismissive of the PC gaming platform as a whole – Mettra sent a follow-up email to IncGamers in an attempt to clarify his stance on a PC release of I Am Alive.

He told IncGamers:

“I would really love to see a pc build of the game and I dont think I meant to say ‘the game won’t happen on pc’ it’s probably an English language miscommunication (I am not native English speaker).

“What I meant is that the pc version did not happen yet [sic]. But we are still working to see the feasibility of it, which is not necessarily simple. I gave some examples to illustrate the problematic [sic], but obviously it is not in my hands and not my part to talk about this.”

Mettra continued:

“Honestly, which game maker would not love his game to be playable on as many platforms and by as many people as possible? Regardless console or pc, what matters is the game and the pleasure people can get from it.”

Ubisoft totally didn’t make Mettra write this. Nope.

Source: IncGamers

I Am Alive creative director backpedals, says PC release still possible is a post from: The Inquisitr

The Call of Juarez franchise got off to a relatively good start, with the first two titles, Call of Juarez and Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood, receiving mostly positive reviews from critics. Call of Juarez: The Cartel, on the other hand, was an absolute disaster.

Aware of just how terrible The Cartel was, Ubisoft is reaching out to confirmed Call of Juarez: The Cartel players (by way of Uplay) with a questionnaire, asking them what they liked and disliked about the game and what they would want in a new Call of Juarez title.

Ubisoft leaves little up to suggestion in the questionnaire, stopping just short of confirming that there will be another Call of Juarez game, even suggesting that it may see the return of Ray McCall from Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood.

The questionnaire also asks players what specific setpieces players would like to see in a new Call of Juarez game, including:

• Hunting an outlaw in the rocky mountains
• Defending a ranch attacked by Mexican pistolleros
• Preventing a bank robbery
• Rescuing an innocent man about to be hanged up
• Taking part in a shooting contest
• A gun duel in the empty main street of a town against your worst enemy
• Guarding a fort against a group of outlaws
• Helping a man to escape from the sheriff’s office
• Defending a train attacked by Native Americans on horses
• A gunfight in a saloon after a poker game
• Preventing outlaws from pillaging a gold mine
• A fusillade between lawmen and outlaws

If there is anything Ubisoft and Call of Juarez: The Cartel developer Techland learned, it’s apparently that Call of Juarez should have never left the Wild West. That’s not exactly the problem, but it’s a step in the right direction.

Source: Gaming Liberty (via Game Informer)

Ubisoft email (strongly) suggests new Call of Juarez game in the works is a post from: The Inquisitr

Following up on recent news that Ubisoft probably won’t be releasing I Am Alive on PC, the publisher revealed that Ghost Recon: Future Soldier will also not be seeing a release on the platform, and it’s for the very same reason: piracy.

Ubisoft isn’t going to completely deprive the PC crowd of some Ghost Recon, however. They may not be getting Future Soldier, but they will be getting Ghost Recon Online, which will remain exclusive to the PC until the Wii U is released.

Ubisoft is calling Ghost Recon Online the “equivalent” to Ghost Recon: Future Soldier, so the publisher considers it not to be too much of a loss for the PC crowd. To further thwart the evils of piracy, Ubisoft will be making Ghost Recon Online entirely free-to-play and, of course, DRM-free.

“We are giving away most of the content for free because there’s no barrier to entry,” Ghost Recon Online producer Sébastien Arnoult told PC Gamer. “To the users that are traditionally playing the game by getting it through Pirate Bay, we said, ‘Okay, go ahead guys. This is what you’re asking for. We’ve listened to you – we’re giving you this experience. It’s easy to download, there’s no DRM that will pollute your experience.”

Arnoult continued:

“When we started Ghost Recon Online we were thinking about Ghost Recon: Future Solider; having something ported in the classical way without any deep development, because we know that 95% of our consumers will pirate the game. So we said okay, we have to change our mind.

“We have to adapt, we have to embrace this instead of pushing it away. That’s the main reflection behind Ghost Recon Online and the choice we’ve made to go in this direction.”

Ghost Recon: Future Soldier not coming to PC, replaced by Ghost Recon Online is a post from: The Inquisitr

It’s pretty clear at this point that Ubisoft considers piracy on the PC platform to be a considerable problem, and they are undeniably right – it is a problem. Their solution, as many PC gamers are aware, was to impose restrictive always-on DRM on the PC ports of their titles.

Apparently, the company is going for an even more harsh form of anti-piracy with I Am Alive, which is to not release it at all. That’ll show ‘em!

“We’ve heard loud and clear that PC gamers are bitching about there being no version for them,” Stanislas Mettra, creative director at Ubisoft for I Am Alive, told IncGamers.com. “But are these people just making noise just because there’s no version or because it’s a game they actually want to play? Would they buy it if we made it?”

Even in the case that people are interested in buying it, Mettra still considers a release on the PC to be more trouble than it’s worth.

“It’s hard because there’s so much piracy and so few people are paying for PC games that we have to precisely weigh it up against the cost of making it. Perhaps it will only take 12 guys three months to port the game to PC, it’s not a massive cost but it’s still a cost. If only 50,000 people buy the game then it’s not worth it.”

Are you disappointed that I Am Alive most likely won’t be coming to the PC?

I Am Alive probably won’t be coming to PC, piracy to blame is a post from: The Inquisitr

If Rayman Origins isn’t enough to satisfy your cravings for all things Rayman, Ubisoft is cooking up a little something that you should be interested in. Unless you don’t like Rayman 3, in which case you probably won’t be interested in this at all.

The company announced today that a high-def remake of Rayman 3: Hoodlum Havoc is in the works, and is due to release over on Xbox Live Arcade and PlayStation Network at some point around Spring of 2012.

As usual with these sorts of “remakes”, you’ll be treated to enhanced visuals – high-definition visuals, in fact – as well as achievement or trophy support, depending on your platform. If you’re sensitive about your frames-per-second, you’ll also be pleased to know that Rayman 3: Hoodlum Havoc HD will run at a buttery smooth 60 FPS.

Audio is said to have received an improvement as well, but the publisher wasn’t specific on what exactly that means, other than the obvious.

Price and exact release dates are still TBA, so sit tight for more on that. At least this time you shouldn’t have to worry about Rayman 3 releasing dead in the middle of a million billion high-profile games. Poor, poor Rayman Origins..

Rayman 3: Hoodlum Havoc HD announced, due out next year is a post from: The Inquisitr

Rumors regarding development of a next-gen Xbox and the PlayStation 4 have been going on since.. well, not longer after the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 were released. Over the past year, however, the rumors have been piling up, with reports of all kinds that suggest both manufacturers are gearing up to announce their respective next-gen consoles.

The latest in the string of rumors come from Edge, which reports that a source from within Ubisoft says that the developer already has access to “target boxes” for Microsoft’s next-gen Xbox. While not an actual dev-kit, the source says that Microsoft is getting ready to release full-on dev-kits to developers by the end of the year.

The report goes on to say that Microsoft may be aiming for a release of the next Xbox just in time for the 2012 holiday season, which falls in line with similar rumors that have popped up over the past few months.

Additionally, Edge reports that a “major” Sony studio has ceased development on PlayStation 3 titles, and is now focused entirely on developing for the PlayStation 4 hardware. Not only that, their source says that the studio has been involved in the development of the console’s graphics technology.

As usual, take both of these rumors with the appropriate grain of salt. We all know that both companies are working on their next console, but how far along in development they are is unknown for certain.

Source: Edge

Rumor(s): Ubisoft working with next-gen Xbox hardware, Sony studio focusing on PlayStation 4 is a post from: The Inquisitr

Most of you have had barely any time with Assassin’s Creed Revelations, if even any at all, but Ubisoft has gone ahead and announced DLC plans for the title.

First up will be the “Ancestors” character pack on December 13. The pack will add in four new multiplayer characters: the Privateer, the Corsair, the Brigand and the Gladiator. Ubisoft says that each character comes complete with unique taunts, weapons and assassinations.

The Ancestors DLC will set you back $3.99 on PlayStation Network, or 320 Microsoft Points over on Xbox Live. The press release didn’t mention whether or not the PC version, which is due out on November 29, will get the DLC on the same day, however.

Ubisoft went on to say that we can expect more DLC down the line, but they aren’t willing to talk about that just yet. Going by Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood, you can probably expect to see at least one or two maps released at some point.

In case you missed it, a whole bunch of reviews started pouring in yesterday for Assassin’s Creed Revelations. You can find a round-up of a few of them at this link.

Assassin’s Creed Revelations first DLC pack, ‘Ancestors’, due out in December is a post from: The Inquisitr

When Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood released last year, the level of expectations wasn’t exactly high. Which was understandable, considering that not only was it only a year apart from Assassin’s Creed 2, and it seemed like nothing more than an excuse to add multiplayer.

As it turned out, we were all wrong – Brotherhood turned out to be a great game, and the multiplayer was pleasantly surprising in its quality. Ubisoft managed to do it the first time around, but now the question is can they do it again with Assassin’s Creed Revelations?

Going by the reviews that are just now pouring in, the answer to that question looks to be a “yes”, but with a few caveats

Critics agree that Assassin’s Creed Revelations‘ multiplayer is better than ever, but a few critics believe that Assassin’s Creed Revelations suffers from the short development cycle more-so than Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood did.

For more, you can check out a selection of reviews directly below, ordered from lowest to highest.

Wired – 7/10 (Read full review)

“The elements added to Assassin’s Creed: Revelations do make it feel like a more different and occasionally surprising experience compared to Brotherhood, which felt like an expansion pack. But at its core, we’re still playing the same game for the third time.” – Chris Kohler, Wired

Destructoid – 7.5/10 (Read full review)

“As much as Assassin’s Creed: Revelations is a testament to the inevitable cost of trying to milk your franchise too much, too fast, it is still a fun game that gives you the single-player gameplay you’ve come to know and love, but sadly offers little more on that front. A few months after you finish it Revelations will be that game that had better make Assassin’s Creed III worth the price Ubisoft has had to pay to release both titles on schedule, but the main reason you will remember it at all is because you will have the disc in your tray for the masterful multiplayer.” – Maurice Tan, Destructoid

Joystiq – 4/5 (Read full review)

“It’s an Assassin’s Creed game wearing blinders that focus it on covering ground it’s already traveled, albeit more effectively. While it’s always good to see iterative improvements, some bold new territory would have been a real revelation for the series. Instead, Revelations does almost everything its predecessors have done slightly better. Which, as it turns out, is enough just one more time.” – Arthur Gies, Joystiq

Strategy Informer – 9/10 (Read full review)

“With the release of Revelations, Ubisoft have finally turned their initial concept into a truly unmissable game. Pulling the narrative together alongside some vital gameplay additions, this is the best, most complete Assassin’s Creed title to date.” – Nick Akerman, Strategy Informer

Assassin’s Creed Revelations: Review Round-up is a post from: The Inquisitr

The storyline for Assassin’s Creed isn’t exactly the easiest thing to follow, much less remember after having not played for some time. Fortunately, Ubisoft released a video that should get you up to speed on the course of events since the first Assassin’s Creed.

It doesn’t go over everything, obviously. It misses quite a few plot points, including a particularly surprising twist from the end of Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood, but it’s still a nice little primer for those of us who’ve forgotten how things have been progressing.

Even if your memory is solid – and if it is, I envy you – the video’s good for getting you hyped up to see where the story takes you with Assassin’s Creed Revelations, so go ahead and give it a look directly below.

Assassin’s Creed Revelations is due out on PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 on November 15 worldwide. A PC release will follow on November 29, also worldwide.

Thanks, Game Informer.

Get caught up on Assassin’s Creed’s story before Revelations is a post from: The Inquisitr

While certainly not the only publisher to impose draconian DRM on their PC titles that only serve to hurt legitimate consumers, Ubisoft has nonetheless built up a bit of a bad reputation among PC gamers for their “always-on” DRM.

If you were considering holding off on buying Assassin’s Creed Revelations for fear of the same DRM, however, here’s some news that should make you happy: Ubisoft has confirmed that Assassin’s Creed Revelations will ship on PC sans always-on DRM.

Ubisoft confirmed the news to Rock, Paper, Shotgun earlier this morning, saying that instead of having to worry about your internet connection working every second you play, you’ll only have to worry about it once. Once you’ve completed the one-time activation process, which will require an internet connection, you’re free to play offline to your heart’s content.

Ubisoft may not have an incredible track record with PC gamers, especially after that whole From Dust ordeal, but at least they’ve decided to back down on their aggressive anti-piracy stance for at least one of their games this year.

That isn’t to say that it’s not understandable that Ubisoft wants to protect their IP – that’s entirely understandable, and anyone who says that piracy on the PC platform isn’t a problem would be lying. Still, going about your DRM in a way that severely inconveniences legitimate users is not the way to do it.

It remains to be seen if Ubisoft has finally learned that lesson, but you can at least take comfort in knowing that at least you’ll be able to play Assassin’s Creed Revelations offline as much as you want. Hey, it’s a step in the right direction.

Source: Rock, Paper, Shotgun

Assassin’s Creed Revelations PC to ship without dreaded always-on DRM is a post from: The Inquisitr

Continuing onwards with their onslaught of Assassin’s Creed: Revelations media ahead of its release, Ubisoft released a new trailer today that details the new locale Ezio will be visiting, Constantinople, in his third and final chapter.

The video highlights just how large and diverse the city is, with a noticeable attention to detail to culture. Additionally, we get to learn a thing or two more about the Ottomans, who Ezio will apparently be doing quite a bit of business with throughout Assassin’s Creed Revelations.

You can check out the latest trailer for Assassin’s Creed: Revelations directly below.

Assassin’s Creed: Revelations is due out on PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 on November 15. A PC release will follow in December.

Assassin’s Creed Revelations trailer details Constantinople, the Ottomans [Video] is a post from: The Inquisitr

Ubisoft has released not one, but two new trailers for Assassin’s Creed Revelations today, and they’re both all about the game’s competitive multiplayer mode.

The first trailer, Secrets of Abstergo Industries, is a story-focused look at Assassin’s Creed Revelations. There’s gameplay to be found in the video, but again, the focus here is on story.

The second trailer, on the other hand, is just about nothing but multiplayer. We get to see a hefty amount of new footage, including a few of the new tricks and gadgets at your Templar character’s disposal in Assassin’s Creed Revelations‘ multiplayer.

You can check out both Assassin’s Creed Revelations multiplayer trailers directly below.

Assassin’s Creed Revelations is due out on PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 on November 15. A PC release will follow two weeks later on November 29.

New Assassin’s Creed Revelations trailers are all about multiplayer [Videos] is a post from: The Inquisitr

Taking down Borgia towers in Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood was an interesting distraction, but what Ubisoft is introducing in Assassin’s Creed: Revelations sounds even more interesting.

“Den Defense” is, as you may have picked up by the name, more or less like tower defense. Ezio is tasked with helping the Ottoman assassins out in defending their dens, and to do so he’s going to need up to set up defenses. You’ll line the rooftops with assassins, set up barricades and even pitch in yourself by putting a bullet or two in approaching Templar.

Also like tower defense games, the Templar will rush the den in waves, and with each wave the difficulty progressively rises. It’s an interesting new addition to the Assassin’s Creed franchise, and, based on the video, looks like it could be a lot of fun. If nothing else, it’ll be a welcome change of pace.

To see it in action for yourself, check out the Assassin’s Creed: Revelations Den Defense trailer directly below.

via Rock, Paper, Shotgun

Assassin’s Creed Revelations gets a dose of tower defense [Video] is a post from: The Inquisitr

If you felt the last Assassin’s Creed: Revelations trailer was too heavy on the story and far too light on the action, this latest trailer isn’t going to leave much room for complaining – it’s full of it. Unless you prefer story, in which case, well, there isn’t any.

All you’ll find throughout the trailer is scene after scene of Ezio proving that despite his old age, he can still brutally and efficiently stab dudes in the face just as well as he could in his younger years. If anything, he’s better at it.

The trailer does show off a new locales and gives us an additional look at a few new weapons, but the focus here is on action set to a pretty slick tune. Well, that and hyping you up for Assassin’s Creed: Revelations‘ release.

Assassin’s Creed: Revelations is due out on PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 on November 15. A PC release will follow shortly after on November 29. You can check out the latest Assassin’s Creed: Revelations trailer directly below.

via VG247

New Assassin’s Creed Revelations trailer features a whole bunch of stabbing [Video] is a post from: The Inquisitr

Ubisoft has released part two of the Secrets of the Ottoman Assassins video series for Assassin’s Creed: Revelations. This time, the focus is on the vast array of bombs at Ezio’s disposal, and how they’re made.

A few of the new bombs shown off in the video are caltrop bombs, which are used to distract enemies, as well as pyrite coin bombs, smoke signal bombs, and lethal splinter bombs.

As the video explains, you can find the ingredients used for crafting bombs scattered around the city, similar to the quest items in Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood. Once you mix the ingredient with a specific type of gunpowder, of which there are apparently several, you get your bomb. Voila!

Check out the latest in the Secrets of the Ottoman Assassins video series directly below.

Assassin’s Creed: Revelations is due out on PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 on November 15. A PC release will follow shortly afterwards on November 29.

via IGN

New Assassin’s Creed: Revelations trailer shows how to use, craft bombs is a post from: The Inquisitr

Ubisoft has let loose a new story-focused trailer for Assassin’s Creed: Revelations today, with ol’ Ezio himself narrating the whole thing.

Most of the trailer focuses on Assassin’s Creed: Revelation‘s story, but it’s not without a few quick shots of Ezio doing what he does best: stabbing some dudes in the face with not a care in the world. Wouldn’t be a proper Assassin’s Creed trailer without that, would it?

Assassin’s Creed: Revelations is, according to a report from a few days back, the final chapter in Ezio’s tale, and marks the beginning of the end of Desmond’s story.

Assassin’s Creed: Revelations is due out on PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 on November 15. The PC version was delayed, and is now due out sometime around December.

Check out the new Assassin’s Creed: Revelations story trailer below.

[Gematsu via VG247]

Ezio narrates latest Assassin’s Creed: Revelations trailer [Video] is a post from: The Inquisitr

A whole bunch of retail listings went up on the web today pegging a March 6 release date for Ghost Recon: Future Soldier, with listings popping up from the likes of Amazon, GameStop, GameFly, Best Buy, Target, and Wal-Mart.

It’s not often that retail dates ahead of an official announcement turn out to be true, but this one did; Ubisoft confirmed in a statement to Joystiq that the retailers are correct, and Ghost Recon: Future Soldier will ship out on PC, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 on March 6.

Back in June, Ubisoft announced that a multiplayer beta for Ghost Recon: Future Soldier will kick off at some point in January. Unfortunately for you PlayStation 3 and PC gamers, the beta will reportedly be exclusive to the Xbox 360.

In the meantime, you can tide yourself over by checking out these roughly eight minutes worth of Ghost Recon: Future Soldier goodness from Ubisoft’s E3 this past June.

Source: Joystiq

Ghost Recon: Future Soldier headed to retail March of next year is a post from: The Inquisitr