Ubisoft is nearing the launch of Watch Dogs, just a bit more than a month from now. The game is highly anticipated, and Ubisoft believes it will become a major franchise as important to the company as Assassin’s Creed is. To that end, Ubisoft brought groups of journalists in to their SF offices to spend some quality time playing Watch Dogs.

Ubisoft’s usual demo space is in its San Francisco offices, with the large room outfitted with PlayStation 4’s at multiple stations with 42″ monitors. There was room for dozens of journalists, and the event was spread over two days to make sure many could be accomodated. Since the demo was set up to give journalists plenty of time to play through a mission, breakfast was served early on , with a buffet lunch (featuring, of course, Chicago-style pizza) as the day wore on. Everything was designed to focus attention on the game, and a number of key developers were there to help explain the game.

The game itself is an open world experience set in a near-future Chicago with hacking, driving, combat… a wide variety of possible activities. There’s certainly a Grand Theft Auto V feel in Watch Dogs, but the game allows you a greater range of activity and moral choices. You’re a vigilante hacker who can use his abilities for good or evil, and the moral arc of the character is up to you. The campaign story is one of trying to find justice for your murdered relatives, though, and not creating a crime empire.

While you can follow the main story, there are plenty of other activities to distract you. Minigames, AR games, many side missions beckon as you wander through the streets of Chicago. Your activities combine driving, or stealth, or combat, and hacking is layered on top of all the possibilities. The gameplay you experience will be based on your choices. If you like driving, then there’s plenty of that available, for instance. There are lots of collectible items, interesting minigames that test your free-running skills or metal agility. You can find adventure just walking down the street and scoping out the people you pass, delving into their online dossiers and hacking them if you choose. You can even go on “digital trips” – a wild break from the narrative that gives you some very different scenarios, like driving a mechanical spider-bot.

It turns out the the delay in Watch Dogs has worked out well for the launch, in that the game is arriving in an uncrowded period. So there’s plenty of attention to be paid among the press and the consumers. The game is compelling enough to command attention for quite a while, and it looks like it will do very well. Some key questions remain, though, and the answers won’t be known for a while. While Ubisoft has a pretty clear field right now, what will things be like in the fall when many high-profile titles (both new IP and important sequels) arrive Can Watch Dogs maintain mind share during the crowded holiday period Ubisoft will need to have some serious DLC and some serious marketing in the holiday market to make this a solid title for the fall.

One interesting part of the Watch Dogs release is the platform strategy. Will this game boost next-gen console sales, being released on current gen as well as next-gen Since the play experience is not significantly different, the answer is no. Watch Dogs becomes one more next-gen game to help persuade you to make the investment, but not a reason to buy a next-gen console in itself since you can still play Watch Dogs on current-gen consoles.

Watch Dogs has a serious companion app on iOS and Android, ctOS Mobile, which will enable mobile players to go head-to-head against console players. On your mobile device you’ll control city resources trying to stop console players from achieving their missions. It should be a great way to add enjoyment to the game and help get new players into the console or PC version.

Watch Dogs releases May 27 on Xbox 360, Xbox One, PS3, PS4, and PC, with a Wii U version promised for the fall. There will be DLC released for the game, and you can expect some serious marketing effort from Ubisoft. Will the game reach the sales heights Ubisoft is hoping for That remains to be seen, but the sheer scope and depth of the game, and the level of polish applied is impressive, and the gameplay is appealing. Introducing a new hit franchise is a daunting task these days, but if any game is up to the challenge Watch Dogs certainly is.