Ubisoft’s ‘Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown’ was a breath of fresh air in the gaming world, a departure from Ubisoft’s usual focus on sequels. It received praise from both players and critics alike. However, despite the positive reviews, the game struggled financially, leading Ubisoft to disband the development team.
Michael Douse, Director of Publishing at Larian Studios (the studio behind the critically acclaimed Baldur’s Gate 3), has been vocal about his thoughts on Ubisoft’s approach. Douse argues that releasing ‘The Lost Crown’ on every platform except Steam initially severely hampered its performance.
The game was only released on Steam seven months after its initial launch, a move that Douse believes was a significant mistake. He argues that releasing the game on Steam from day one would have made it a “market success” and likely spawned a sequel. Douse highlights that, at the time of ‘The Lost Crown’s release, Ubisoft’s own platform wasn’t seeing much activity. This, coupled with the late Steam release, meant that the game lacked visibility among potential players.
“The hardest thing is to make an 85+ game—it is much, much easier to release one. It just shouldn’t be done as it was.” Douse stated.
Ubisoft’s Controversial Approach to Game Ownership
Ubisoft’s game release strategy isn’t the only point of contention. The company recently faced backlash for shutting down servers for ‘The Crew,’ making it unplayable despite players having paid for it. Douse commented, “If the statement ‘gamers should get used to not owning their games’ is true because of a specific release strategy (sub above sales), then the statement ‘developers must get used to not having jobs if they make a critically acclaimed game’ (platform strategy above title sales) is also true, and that just isn’t sensible—even from a business perspective.”
Following this criticism, Ubisoft appears to be moving back towards releasing games on Steam after an extended period of exclusivity on its own platform and the Epic Games Store. This gradual return suggests Ubisoft may be reconsidering its strategy in light of recent setbacks. This shift in strategy raises crucial questions about the future of Ubisoft’s gaming platform and the potential impact it could have on future game releases.