Ubisoft Ventures Further into Blockchain with New Web3 Game

Ubisoft was one of the first major traditional game publishers to experiment with blockchain technology.

Despite backlash from gamers, the developer of Assassin’s Creed and Just Dance has continued to explore the space. Now, the developer has announced its next Web3 game.

The original PC game Champions Tactics: Grimoria Chronicles was quietly announced late last week as a player-versus-player (PvP) tactical role-playing game (RPG).

No screenshots have been released, and the teaser trailer only hints at the fantasy world’s atmosphere.

It does, however, depict what appear to be figurine-like silhouettes of fantasy characters, indicating a potential aesthetic that is directly inspired by the aesthetic of physical tabletop games.

“Assemble a team of mythical Champions, engage in thrilling tactical battles against other players, and discover the legends of the dark and mystical world of Grimoria,” states the official description.

Champions Tactics will be the first Ubisoft game built on Oasys. This gaming-centric blockchain network has attracted the attention of other gaming titans such as Square Enix, Sega, and Bandai Namco.

Last fall, DoubleJump Tokyo announced it is developing an Oasys game based on Sega’s Japanese historical card game IP, Sangokushi Taisen.

The game will be released on PC via a dedicated desktop application, so it will not be a web-based game, and the official website promises a “free drop at launch” to enable gameplay.

This indicates that Champions Tactics may require an NFT or token to play, but that Ubisoft will initially provide them for free.

Late in 2021, Ubisoft shocked the gaming community by announcing that it would release limited-edition NFT-based items on the Tezos blockchain for the PC version of Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon: Breakpoint.

This experimental rollout, the most prominent integration of NFTs into an existing mass-market game to date, was met with numerous player complaints.

Many gamers are skeptical of NFTs due to speculation on digital assets, scams in the NFT industry, and a belief that publishers will use NFTs to extract more money from players.

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Despite this, Ubisoft has continued to forge partnerships and build in the Web3 universe, most recently by releasing its Rabbids characters in The Sandbox, an Ethereum metaverse game.

In 2020, Ubisoft released a Rabbids-themed NFT experiment to benefit UNICEF, and in 2021, the company released One Shot League, a spin-off of the Ethereum NFT fantasy soccer game Sorare.