14 DAY TRIAL // Video game developer and publisher Ubisoft announces that it will introduce a range of microtransactions for its upcoming Assassin’s Creed: Unity, which will allow gamers to use real world money in order to unlock some items, including gear for their character, which would otherwise only be offered after a gameplay milestone is reached.
But despite the public's general dislike for such mechanics the company says that their addition is only designed to streamline the game experience and will not compromise the nature of the franchise in any way.
The statement comes from Vincent Pontbriand, a senior producer working on Assassin’s Creed: Unity, who tells TotalXbox that, "Companion apps, monetisation, other business models, digital only… We have to be reactive to these things, but not necessarily fundamentally change what we’re trying to do."
The company has not yet offered full details on which items in the title can be bought and whether there are rare pieces of equipment that are only offered to those who are willing to work for them by completing missions and goals.
The developer adds, "It depends. If we think it fits the gameplay, or the brand itself, the core values, we’re willing to take those risks. If not, then not. We’re not going to make any compromises."
Assassin’s Creed: Unity received a number of new demos during Gamescom 2014 but none of them focused on the microtransaction feature but the team at Ubisoft will probably offer full details closer to launch date.
Assassin’s Creed: Unity will arrive on October 28 and can be played only on the PC, the Xbox One from Microsoft and the PlayStation 4 from Sony.
The game will take gamers to Paris in the late XVIII century, during the time of the French Revolution, and will allow gamers to take part in the most important moments of the major historical event.
Players will quickly discover that things are not all that they seem to be and will have to work to see who is trying to control the crowds and to steer events towards a more sinister goal.
The core parkour elements of the Assassin’s Creed series will be present in the new title and the development team has promised that more options to move around will be present and that gamers will have a lot of new tools to use to get close to targets and complete their deadly missions.
Assassin’s Creed Rogue will arrive in November on the Xbox 360 and the PlayStation 3 and will tell a parallel story.