Web2 Gaming Giants Unite with Metaverse Platform: What Sparks Can Ubisoft and Immutable Create?

Author: Kasou Kazoku

Recently, gaming giant Ubisoft announced a new partnership with leading metaverse platform Immutable, aimed at jointly creating a brand new gaming experience.

The theme poster for the collaboration

The following text will take a look back at this event.

Leveraging Strengths: The Collaboration Between Immutable and Ubisoft Aims to Create High-Quality Blockchain Games

This collaboration marks Immutable's continued commitment to player digital ownership, while Ubisoft will delve into the possibilities of decentralization through its Strategic Innovation Lab.

The primary step of the collaboration is to combine the expertise of both companies. Ubisoft, with its rich experience in developing top-tier high-quality games, will merge with Immutable's ecosystem, technology, and expertise to build a leading Web3 gaming platform.

Nicolas Pouard, Vice President of Ubisoft's Strategic Innovation Lab and head of blockchain projects, shared his insights:

"Immutable, as the preferred platform for many leaders in the Web3 community, offers cutting-edge technology and unique expertise that can seamlessly integrate decentralized technology into games. We are excited about collaborating with them and look forward to introducing this fluidity into mature games, allowing players to focus on the joy of the gaming experience itself."

Ubisoft's Recent Struggles Highlight the Urgent Need to Transform into Blockchain Gaming to Overcome Crisis

Ubisoft, once regarded as a creative genius in the gaming industry, has faced severe challenges in recent years. Their flagship games, such as Tom Clancy's The Division 2, Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Breakpoint, and Watch Dogs: Legion, have seen a decline in popularity and ratings, even resorting to discounts of up to 80% to attract players. Ubisoft's stock price has also plummeted from its peak in 2018, with rumors of the company being up for sale.

Player dissatisfaction with Ubisoft primarily revolves around the games no longer being fun, lacking freshness, and a decreased anticipation for future titles. Ubisoft was once praised for franchises like Assassin's Creed and Far Cry, but in recent years, they seem to be running out of ideas and creativity. Additionally, their "open-world+" design model has become increasingly outdated, failing to meet the demands of modern players.

Concept image of Ubisoft's brand logo

Since mid-year, news of layoffs has emerged from Ubisoft, and it has recently confirmed the layoff of 98 employees from its Canadian studio, along with various positions across other studios, totaling 124 employees company-wide.

Ubisoft spokesperson Antoine Leduc-Labelle stated to the media that the company has been exploring ways to reduce operational costs and improve collective efficiency to achieve long-term goals. This restructuring will involve functional adjustments at the Canadian studio, including a reduction in staff at the Montreal visual studio Hybride and the global IT team.

Ubisoft emphasized that while this is a difficult decision, the company will provide comprehensive support for departing employees, including severance pay, benefits, and career assistance. The restructuring will not affect the company's production teams. The layoffs account for less than 2% of the total Canadian workforce.

Since the beginning of 2023, several gaming companies, including Microsoft, Sony, and EA, have also conducted layoffs, indicating that the traditional gaming industry is facing dilemmas and challenges.

Ubisoft has been actively exploring new technologies and platforms, ranging from cloud gaming to virtual reality, and even experimental toy interactive games, covering a wide range of fields. Their interest in blockchain gaming has existed since 2018, and the company has even helped form a blockchain gaming alliance.

A collage of posters from various Ubisoft games

Ubisoft's Strategic Innovation Lab previously developed a blockchain-based game prototype called Hashcraft, but this Minecraft-like game never progressed beyond the prototype stage.

Its Quartz platform marks Ubisoft's official entry into the NFT space, launching a product called "Digits" aimed at collectors and fans.

However, public perception of NFTs is largely negative, associated with high prices and Ponzi schemes, as well as the general unwelcomeness from Ubisoft's regular users. Additionally, Ubisoft's Ghost Recon: Breakpoint has faced poor sales and player backlash, complicating the promotion of NFTs.

Despite initial setbacks, Ubisoft continues to invest in Web3 projects, including Cross the Ages, Nine Chronicles, Dogami, Rebel Bots, and Skyweaver, and has collaborated on NFTs with Reddit and The Sandbox.

Recently, Ubisoft released its own Web3 game, Champions Tactics: Grimoria Chronicles, a PC-based PvP tactical RPG experimental game that requires players to assemble a mythical champion team to engage in tactical battles and explore the mysterious legends of the Grimoria world.

Will the Collaboration with Immutable Be Ubisoft's Lifeline?

Immutable, as a leading platform for metaverse games, has recently made significant strides in the gaming field by launching its zkEVM testnet. This move not only demonstrates Immutable's innovative drive in the gaming industry but also showcases its proactive advancement in technology development.

The zkEVM chain is designed specifically for gaming, providing an environment compatible with the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) and integrating low costs, large-scale scalability, and enterprise-level security. Unlike general-purpose chains, zkEVM focuses on meeting the specific needs of games, optimizing scale, speed, and user experience, while providing game studios with ample liquidity, player community support, and network effects.

The zkEVM testnet from Immutable is officially launched

Through the zkEVM testnet, game developers can now freely develop or migrate smart contracts in a low-risk sandbox environment and experiment with game economic designs. This platform also provides easily migratable smart contracts and enhanced gameplay mechanics, creating a frictionless gaming experience for users and offering a more secure gaming environment.

Overall, the launch of the zkEVM testnet is a key step for Immutable to strengthen its position in the gaming field, bringing unprecedented new possibilities for game development, particularly in reducing development costs, providing seamless interoperability, and making it easier to acquire game players, tools, and funding through collaboration with Polygon.

Conclusion: Both Parties Embrace Change, Further Market Performance Needs Observation

The collaboration between Ubisoft and Immutable symbolizes an important shift in the gaming industry. In the face of challenges and crises, Ubisoft has chosen to embrace new technologies, and the partnership with IMX is a key part of this strategy. By combining Ubisoft's rich experience in high-quality game development with Immutable's advanced technology and ecosystem, this collaboration heralds a new era in the Web3 gaming field.

Although Ubisoft is currently in a trough and facing difficulties, this collaboration may become a crucial turning point for the company's transformation and revival. For the gaming industry, this is not only a new starting point for Ubisoft but also a bold exploration of the future for the entire industry.