Video game developer Ubisoft has announced on its third quarter sales announcement the release date for “Watch Dogs 2” as it was taking a break from "Assassin's Creed."
The original “Watch Dogs” let players become Aiden Pearce, a fiercely independent hacker with a tragic family life. Taking revenge on those that had wronged him, Pearce became known in Chicago as the Vigilante. Players could hack bank accounts, security equipment and Chicago’s infrastructure.
The game had some unique ideas, but some people found Pearce just a bit too glum. Regardless, the game sold millions of copies and holds Ubisoft’s record for a franchise debut. Now, Ubisoft is ready to take another swipe at impressing the gamers that it did not with the game’s first title.
The open world action-adventure third-person shooter stealth video game’s first release was not just about roaming the streets hacking unsuspecting citizens. It was also a bit of social commentary. The game had a lot to say about how pervasive technology is in everyday life.
Pearce could cause blackouts and raise bridges in “Watch Dogs” because of CtOS, an operating system that was used for just about everything in Chicago. Barriers, traffic lights, power transformers, car alarm systems and bridges were all at the player’s disposal. Only battery capacity on the smartphone used to hack CtOS limited what players could do.
“Watch Dogs 2” was in development and expected to launch sometime during its next fiscal year, which runs between April 2016 and March 2017, The Verge reported. The franchise made its debut with the original game in May 2014. There are no exact details on the game itself, or what platforms it will be available on.
Other games confirmed for the same release period include “For Honor,” “South Park: Fractured But Whole” and Tom Clancy’s “Ghost Recon WildLands,” according to PC Gamer.
In addition to the announcement of release date of “Watch Dogs 2,” the French video game maker revealed that it was taking a break from “Assassin's Creed,” with no major new game in the series launching this year. Ubisoft is making an attempt to make the series a premier open-world franchise once again.