14 DAY TRIAL // Watch Dogs Creative Director Jonathan Morin has confirmed that, while a sequel isn't in development just yet, it could appear very soon as his team has ideas about continuing the adventures seen in the upcoming game.
Watch Dogs is one of the few all-new intellectual properties coming from large publishers, like Ubisoft, and the company has already invested a lot of money and time, due to a recent delay, in order to make sure that it appeals to players.
Even so, a sequel isn't set in stone, at least according to Director Jonathan Morin, who talked with Eurogamer about the odds of a new title in the series.
First up, he explicitly denied that a new game was already in development, saying that "Right now there is no such thing as a Watch Dogs 2."
The developer then talked a bit hypothetically about the odds of a new title and how it would take less time to create than the current Watch Dogs.
"It’s certainly not going to be the same amount of time if we ever embark on such a journey. A big part of it was defining whatever Watch Dogs is. Once you have that starting point, then what becomes interesting is what players want more of – what comes next?"
"Especially with the delay we have just been really concentrating on getting it [the original Watch Dogs] launched. After that we’ll see where it goes – I think Ubisoft is showing more and more that they’re willing to take the time for it to be right."
In terms of what Morin wants from a sequel, he believes that the series can easily delve deeper into the hacker universe and explore more of how actual cities are being controlled by various technologies that can easily be infiltrated.
"I certainly like the idea of going deeper in the thematics – the hyperconnectivity and hacking in an entire city, controlling a city, monitoring everyone. There’s stuff we discovered by making Watch Dogs that are interesting to pursue. But it’s up to players."
Ubisoft set some lofty sales targets for Watch Dogs, especially after the delay of last year, so you can bet that the fate of a Watch Dogs 2 sequel hinges on whether or not the game will be able to meet these goals and garner critical acclaim.
The game is set to debut for PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One on May 27. This fall will also see the release of the Wii U edition.