Assassins Creed VR – Augmented & Virtual Reality Confabulation

February 9, 2024

Ubisoft “disappointed” in ‘Assassin’s Creed VR’ Performance, Future VR Investments on Hold

In Ubisoft’s most recent earnings call, CEO Yves Guillemot said he was “disappointed” with the performance of Assassin’s Creed Nexus VR (2023) and that the company will not be increasing investment in VR right now, as it awaits further growth of the medium.

As a Quest exclusive, Assassin’s Creed Nexus VR brought the franchise’s patented mix of parkour, stealth, and combat to VR for the first time. Released in November, it was well primed for strong holiday season performance on Quest 2 and the new Quest 3 headset.

During the Q&A section of the company’s Q3 2024 fiscal year earnings call, Guillemot said the VR game markedly underperformed though, which has led Ubisoft to pull back on further VR investment. Here’s Guillemot’s full statement:

“We have been a bit disappointed by what we were able to achieve on VR with Assassin’s Creed. It did okay, and it continues to sell, but we thought it would sell more, so we are not increasing our investment on VR at the moment, because it needs to take off.

We have been very impressed by what Apple came up with, and we think it’s fantastic hardware, but we continue to look at this VR business as something that we have to look at but not invest too much in, until it grows enough.”

Assassin’s Creed Nexus VR represented the beginning (and possible end) of the company’s second wave of investment in VR. The first started in 2016, which saw the release of Eagle Flight (2016), Werewolves Within (2016), Star Trek: Bridge Crew (2017), Transference (2018), and multiplayer arena shooter Space Junkies (2019), that latter of which was pulled from stores in late 2022 due to low engagement.

The studio also released PC VR space exploration game AGOS – A Game Of Space (2020) in late 2020 with surprisingly little fanfare.

Ubisoft’s more recent reluctance to develop VR games didn’t start with the poor performance of Assassin’s Creed Nexus VR however, as the company announced in 2022 that it would be cancelling its much larger second wave of VR content, including Splinter Cell VR, Ghost Recon Frontline, and two unannounced titles.

Thanks to tech analyst and YouTuber Brad Lynch (aka ‘SadlyItsBradley’) for pointing us to the news.

The post Ubisoft “disappointed” in ‘Assassin’s Creed VR’ Performance, Future VR Investments on Hold appeared first on Road to VR.

September 22, 2023

‘Assassin’s Creed Nexus VR’ Gets First Gameplay Trailer, Coming to Quest in November

Ubisoft announced Assassin’s Creed Nexus VR back in June, staying that we’d get the Quest exclusive sometime this holiday. Now the studio has revealed a first look at gameplay, and announced the official release date.

Coming to Quest on November 16th, the new Assassin’s Creed Nexus VR trailer shows off a few clips of each of the game’s three protagonists: Ezio (Assassin’s Creed II), Connor (Assassin’s Creed 3), and Kassandra (Assassin’s Creed Odyssey).

From the gameplay trailer, it seems there’s going to be a good slice of parkour, melee, and ranged combat too—basically what you’d expect from the long-awaited Assassin’s Creed VR game. Ubisoft says we should expect to “get caught up in a world of espionage, intrigue and betrayal.”

Locations in the game include Venice, Athens, Colonial Boston “and more,” the studio says in the game’s Quest page, noting that players will have the autonomy to “decide the best way to achieve your objectives” across open map environments. “Meet and interact with civilians and historical figures, all of whom react to your VR actions,” Ubisoft says.

As for combat, Assassin’s Creed Nexus VR melee includes blocking, parrying, and counterattacks, with weapons including bow and arrows, the Hidden Blade, swords, tomahawk, throwing knives, crossbow, and smoke bombs.

You can wishlist Assassin’s Creed Nexus VR for Quest 2 and Quest Pro, with launch coming November 16th. The game is also presumably coming to Quest 3 whenever the headset launches, although Meta hasn’t mentioned yet when Quest 3 is due to release. Whatever the case, we’re sure to learn more next week at Connect 2023, which promises a big info dump on Meta’s latest VR headset.

July 18, 2023

Ubisoft to Support Haptic Vest in ‘Assassin’s Creed Mirage’, But No Word Yet on ‘Nexus’ VR Game

Earlier this month Ubisoft announced a new brand deal with haptic clothing creator OWO, which produces a thin and light shirt featuring electrode-based haptics. Strangely enough, the partnership isn’t targeted at the upcoming VR game Assassin’s Creed Nexus, but rather the non-VR game Assassin’s Creed Mirage.

OWO’s haptics provide 10 electrified zones around the user’s torso and arms, something the company says can deliver 30 sensations, with various impacts including bullet wounds, punches, machine gun recoil, wind and more. It seems like the ideal candidate for an Assassin’s Creed VR tie-in, but Ubisoft isn’t saying as much. Yet.

We reached out to OWO to see whether the company’s unique haptic shirt would eventually support Ubisoft’s upcoming Assassin’s Creed VR game. While the answer was non-committal, OWO says its partnership with Ubisoft doesn’t stop at Mirage.

“Currently, the only Ubisoft title announced to work with the OWO Haptic Gaming System is Assassin’s Creed Mirage,” an OWO spokesperson tells Road to VR. “As this is a long-term partnership, more Ubisoft titles will be announced in the near future.”

Notably, OWO already supports a handful of VR titles, such as Half-Life: Alyx, Pistol Whip, Beat Saber, Bonelab, Until You Fall, and Arizona Sunshine. These are all PC versions that require third-party mods, however individual developers can choose to support the vest on most any device since it connects via Bluetooth, much like bHaptics’ various haptic devices.

To boot, Ubisoft says it’s supporting OWO on Assassin’s Creed Mirage versions on PS4, PS5, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One and PC. The edition will be available initially for purchase on OWO’s official website and will be sold as a bundle with the Assassin’s Creed Mirage game available through different retailers later on, the company says. Pricing isn’t clear yet, although the haptic shirt sells direct from OWO for €500 (~$560).

Equally unclear is when the special edition OWO shirt will launch; AC Mirage itself launches October 12th this year. Still, that leaves a fair amount of time between now and then to add in OWO support for Nexus, which is launching exclusively on Quest sometime Holiday 2023.

June 12, 2023

Ubisoft Reveals ‘Assassin’s Creed Nexus VR’, Coming to Quest 2 This Holiday

Ubisoft has finally officially Announced Assassin’s Creed Nexus VR, the first VR game in the franchise, planned for release on Quest 2 and Quest Pro (and likely Quest 3) this holiday.

Today during Ubisoft’s online showcase, the company fully announced Assassin’s Creed Nexus VR, though unfortunately the only glimpse of the game we’re getting on video for now is a “CGI announce trailer”:

The trailer does give a sense of the gameplay Ubisoft is trying to deliver, promising to give players a taste of stealth, parkour, and of course combat. The studio says players will inhabit three different well-known assassins from the franchise—Ezio, Kassandra, and Connor—which will have players jumping between various locales and time periods.

Although the trailer is purely CGI, Ubisoft revealed the first screenshots of the game which, assuming they’re representative of the visuals on Quest 2, are pretty impressive.

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We don’t yet know much else about Assassin’s Creed Nexus VR, except that it will have a release date sometime “this holiday,” on Quest 2 and Quest Pro. We expect that the game will launch with, or not long after Quest 3, which it will also be available on. And it’s expected that Assassin’s Creed Nexus VR will be exclusive to Meta’s headsets.

We’ll be eager to learn more about how Ubisoft will deliver the experience shown in its announcement trailer—which includes significant bouts of movement, including swinging from poles—in a way that’s comfortable, fun, and unique to VR. If you’re interested, the game can now be wishlisted on the Quest store.

June 1, 2023

5 VR Games We’re Most Excited for From Quest Gaming Showcase

Meta dumped an avalanche of VR news today in its hour-long Quest Gaming Showcase livestream, revealing trailers and info on more than a dozen new games coming to Quest 2, Quest Pro, and probably also the newly unveiled Quest 3 headset.

Here’s what we’re most excited about:

Asgard’s Wrath 2

That’s right, the sequel to hit Rift title Asgard’s Wrath (2019) is coming to Quest this winter, bringing with it a ton of new places to explore and a cast of new companions and puzzles. Meta’s Sanzaru Games says we should expect phsyics-based melee and a more intuitive combat system altogether, not to mention a brand-new realm to explore which will bring us to a reimagined Ancient Egypt. Catch the full announce here. Also, check out the trailer on YouTube (age-restricted).

I Expect You To Die 3: Cog in the Machine

We’ve known about the upcoming sequel to the hit spy-flavored puzzle game I Expect You To Die, but it seems every new trailer that pops up is just another opportunity to salivate at the Bond-style escape room’s ingenious puzzles and patently dastardly villains. It’s coming to the Quest platform and PSVR 2 “soon,” developers Schell Games says. Catch the full announce here.

Attack on Titan VR: Unbreakable

The trailer for Attack on Titan VR: Unbreakable is admittedly not gameplay, although it’s easy to see where it’s headed, as Japanese studio UNIVRS seems to be heavily suggesting gameplay elements here. It’s bringing both single player and co-op modes to the Titan-killing, swing-tastic game, letting you play in Japanese or English, subs included. It’s coming to Quest platform in winter 2023, which is a little later than the promised summer 2023 launch window previously announced, but better late than never. Catch the full announce here.

Dungeons of Eternity

Although it’s hard to get super excited about a roguelike dungeon crawler—there are a few really great ones out there already—Dungeons of Eternity is coming to the Quest platform this year from a studio called Othergate, which was founded by a bunch of ex-Oculus Studios game designers. The 1-3 player co-op dungeon crawling RPG also incorporates physics-based combat, which is pretty refreshing to see since it focuses on melee as well as archery and magic. Catch the full announce here.

Stranger Things VR

TV show game tie-ins are pretty hit and miss (mostly miss), but we can actually vouch for the studio developing this Stranger Things VR game, coming to Quest this fall from VR pioneers Tender Claws. You may know Tender Claws for its games Virtual Virtual Reality 1 and 2 and The Under Presents, three spectacular titles that really just get what makes VR great. Be the bad guy, Vecna. Do bad shit. Catch the full announce here.

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Assassin’s Creed: Nexus VR

Ok, just one more, but it’s definitely outside of our lineup since we didn’t exactly get an eye-full of Ubisoft’s upcoming Assassin’s Creed game today like we hoped, which is now confirmed to be officially called Assassin’s Creed: Nexus VR (the only real news about AC from the showcase).

The actual reveal is said to come during Ubisoft’s Forward livestream event taking place on June 12th though, so we’re closer than ever to learning whether Ubisoft is set to faithfully translate the franchise’s high-flying, time-tripping assassin into VR. Catch the full announce here.

There were a ton of games announced today. Which one are you looking forward to the most? Let us know in the comments below!

June 1, 2023

‘Assassin’s Creed VR’ Full Reveal Coming July 12th at Ubisoft Forward

Although we didn’t get a first look at Ubisoft’s VR take on Assassin’s Creed during Meta’s big Quest Gaming Showcase today, the studio says we should watch out next week for the full reveal.

Meanwhile, today’s announcement (of an announcement) confirmed for the first time that a previous leak was true, claiming the game would indeed be called ‘Nexus’, or rather Assassin’s Creed: Nexus VR.

The leak, which was from April 2022, included a host of unconfirmed information including a video of a mission menu and initial impressions of the work-in-progress game.

The leaked video included a number of mission-related texts which could point to the game being set in a smorgasbord of iconic eras visited across the franchise. Here’s some text pulled from the leaked video in question which talks about Ezio, the Florentine nobleman from Rennaissance-era Italy:

“Ezio makes a surprise return to the family estate at Monteriggioni at the behest of his sister (and fellow assassin) Claudia. Claudia, it seems, has been trying to rebuild the ruins of Monteriggioni, and things have been going very slowly. She’s got her suspicions as to why this is so, what isn’t read to act yet. Instead, Claudia suggest Ezio fins out what’s going on, then leaves him with word that she’s hidden a knickknack of his that he loved as a child somewhere in [illegible] that sports a puzzle.”

Ubisoft is set to release more info about Assassin’s Creed: Nexus VR at its annual Ubisoft Forward livestream on June 12th.

Will it feature the high-flying action the franchise is known for? We won’t know until the full reveal, which we’re hoping comes with a solid gameplay trailer and a release date for its target platforms, which include Quest 2 and Quest Pro.

June 14, 2022

Ubisoft Hosting Assassin’s Creed Celebration Livestream Today

Ubisoft is set to host a ‘Celebration Livestream‘ for the Assassin’s Creed series today.

Might we get our first glimpse of the long-awaited Assassin’s Creed VR?

The stream, which was surprise announced just yesterday, takes place at 9am PT/6pm CET. The company hasn’t said what exactly to expect from the stream, though based on the name it sounds like we’ll probably get a look back at the series’ history, hopefully with a look to the future included too.

Rumors are swirling around the next major console Assassin’s Creed game, Infinity, but we can’t help but wonder if this might be where we finally get a glimpse of Assassin’s Creed VR, the long-anticipated spin-off game. Assassin’s Creed VR was first announced at Oculus Connect in 2019 for Oculus platforms, but to this day we’ve only seen one piece of concept art for the game on an official basis. Ubisoft also announced a Splinter Cell VR game at the same time.

Back in April reports did spring up stating that Assassin’s Creed VR would be called Assassin’s Creed Nexus, and that it would release within the next 12 months. We even got a look at a supposed leaked menu for the game. According to these alleged leaks, the game will consist of multiple missions but won’t be truly open world, instead featuring large, open-ended environments that allow you to explore and backtrack.

Given how long it’s been since an official announcement, we’ll keep our fingers crossed for a full reveal of Assassin’s Creed VR later today. What are you hoping to see from the game? Let us know in the comments below!

April 28, 2022

VR Gamescast: Assassin’s Creed VR, Cities VR Impressions

This week on the VR Gamescast Jamie and Harry are talking Assassin’s Creed VR and Cities: VR!

There’s been a whole heap of VR gaming news over the past seven days. First up, we’re breaking down Little Cities’ post-launch plans, including hand tracking. Can it pull off an ambitious new control scheme?

Elsewhere, there’s new details on Ghostbusters VR. Is it a sequel to the Afterlife movie? And will it come to other platforms?

Perhaps the biggest news of the week for many will be the Assassin’s Creed VR leaks. We might be getting a linear, single-player Assassin’s Creed game. Will that work in VR?

Finally, Cities: VR is out on Quest 2 today. We’re not quite ready to put a final review on it, but Harry has impressions from what he’s played so far. Is it an accurate translation of Cities: Skylines to VR?

The VR Gamescast goes live every Thursday. Make sure to join us for all the latest goings-on in the world of VR gaming!

April 25, 2022

Report: ‘Assassin’s Creed VR’ May Be Called ‘Nexus’, Video Reveals Prototype

It appears Ubisoft’s long-awaited Assassin’s Creed VR title has suffered a pretty serious leak, as footage of the game’s starting menu seems to have found its way online along with a few player impressions.

According to information from Reddit user ‘Echiketto’, Ubisoft is calling its upcoming Quest 2 game Assassin’s Creed: Nexus. The name can be seen in a video of what appears to be a working prototype of its main menu and mission selection screen. You can view that video below, courtesy of Brad ‘SadleyItsBradley’ Lynch.

Echiketto on Reddit shared a title screen video for Assassin’s Creed: Nexus

He also goes on to tell much about the VR game and even answers questions in the Reddit thread about it: https://t.co/O4y5uWr0tO pic.twitter.com/86qBBKVcg4

— Brad Lynch (@SadlyItsBradley) April 23, 2022

In the video, we get a look at what appears to be a Quest 2 build. It starts with a calibration sequence that makes you do a ‘T’ pose, and then allows you to either start a new game or ‘Enter the Animus’, the franchise’s virtual reality machine developed by the antagonistic mega multinational, Abstergo Industries.

The video also shows up to the selection of the first mission, named ‘The Sword of Ezio’. The text box appears to be unfinished, as it’s labeled ‘Sample text – needs to be scrollable’.

The text reads: “Ezio makes a surprise return to the family estate at Monteriggioni at the behest of his sister (and fellow assassin) Claudia. Claudia, it seems, has been trying to rebuild the ruins of Monteriggioni, and things have been going very slowly. She’s got her suspicions as to why this is so, what isn’t read to act yet. Instead, Claudia suggest Ezio fins out what’s going on, then leaves him with word that she’s hidden a knickknack of his that he loved as a child somewhere in [illegible] that sports a puzzle.”

The anonymous leaker says they’ve already played a “fair bit of the game,” and maintains it will include many of the assassins from game’s past, although they allege the only thing that substantially changes from assassin to assassin is “the hand model and the way people address you.”

The leak, which we have not been able to verify independently, is said to include a number of the usual Assassin’s weapons such as a sword, hidden blade, throwing knife, smoke bombs, and crossbow. Combat is said to be timing-based, with Echiketto’s description sounding much like how melee is handled in Asgard’s Wrath (2019). “You have to wait until your enemy lowers his cover and strike fast,” the leaker says.

“Missions are linear, so no open world. The missions areas are fairly big. Backtracking is a thing,” Echiketto writes.

Additionally, the leaker says jumping—typically an important feature of the series—works by holding the “A” Button and walking towards bespoke areas to initiate a jump. From that description, it sounds very much like a concession to keep the game comfortable and more linear in how the player approaches the world.

A separate leak, reported by Exputer, maintains Nexus includes things such as “stealth movement, pickpocketing, lock picking, combat, climbing, and even the leap of faith.”

Exputer says Nexus features 16 missions, which you can play in either smooth locomotion via the controller analog sticks, or via teleportation. Ostensibly evening the playing field between the two locomotion styles, it’s said teleportation comes with a sound bar that indicates how much noise you’re making to nearby enemies.

“Overall, Assassin’s Creed Nexus seems like it’s going to be a really cool and immersive VR experience, and it’s not hard to see how the previously announced Splinter Cell VR game will also play due to both games similarities,” says Exputer.

On the other hand, Echiketto seems pretty unimpressed with the game, saying it “looked like a cash grab to me. Nothing new.”

We’re still waiting to hear more about Ubisoft’s other title, Splinter Cell VR, both of which were announced back at Connect 2020. Neither game was mentioned in this year’s Quest Gaming Showcase, which featured games slated to arrive sometime in 2022, which suggests we may see those games release in 2023.

The post Report: ‘Assassin’s Creed VR’ May Be Called ‘Nexus’, Video Reveals Prototype appeared first on Road to VR.

April 25, 2022

Report: Assassin’s Creed VR Called Nexus, Menu Footage Leaks

Supposed leaks may give us new information about the Assassin’s Creed VR game, apparently called Assassin’s Creed: Nexus.

Two posts surfaced online this weekend, both citing the Nexus name for the Meta-exclusive project. Take note that these reports could easily turn out to be false. Update: An Ubisoft spokesperson declined to comment, saying the company does not comment on rumors and speculation.

The first report was from a site called Exputer, which reported that the game will let you play as Assassins from across the entire series including fan-favorite, Ezio. According to the report, Nexus will focus on the core tenants of the main series, including stealth gameplay, combat and climbing.

Movement will apparently allow for either smooth locomotion or teleporting, with a sound meter used to keep you from simply jumping around undetected. The report also says you can hold a button and flick a wrist to reveal the iconic assassin blades.

Interestingly, though, the article also mentions that Nexus will be made up of 16 individual missions, which suggests it won’t be truly open-world like other games in the series. The second report from a Reddit user backs this up, saying missions are pretty large and allow for backtracking, but the game itself is not open world.

The second source from Reddit also claims to have played “a fair bit of the game” and has posted footage of what they claim is the menu for Nexus, which you can see above. The menu resembles the clean white aesthetic used in the Animus system in the main games, with the player loading into a level called ‘The Sword of Ezio’. There’s no actual gameplay and it’s much easier to mock up a menu than it is in-game content so, again, take this with a big pinch of salt for now.

The Exputer report also claims the game aims to release in the next 12 months. Last week Meta hosted its second annual Quest Gaming Showcase which focused on games releasing within the next year, but Assassin’s Creed was missing from the line-up.

We first heard that Meta had signed deals for Assassin’s Creed and Splinter Cell VR games in 2019 before the company made them official in late 2020. Since then Ubisoft has been heavily recruiting for both projects, but neither has been officially revealed in any form.