Ubisoft is famous for pushing the boundaries of entertainment, and that includes being among the first developers to take on virtual reality and developing games that others might consider strange. Of course, not everything is experimental, and huge AAA productions like Ghost Recon Wildlands make up some of the main highlights of the Ubisoft E3 Press Conference. This is an especially big year for the publisher, since it marks its 30-year anniversary. To celebrate, Ubisoft is giving away a free game every month until the end of the year.
This year’s press conference included six new game announcements, which are:
Just Dance 2017
The Just Dance series has been an annual release since the first game launched in 2009. Today’s press conference kicked-off with an elaborate dance number, complete with a variety of costumes and props to announce Just Dance 2017. The game will come to all consoles and the PC in October, and is the first Ubisoft game to be announced for Nintendo’s NX console.
Star Trek: Bridge Crew
Ubisoft is developing the very first Star Trek-themed VR game, Star Trek: Bridge Crew. To announce the milestone game, the developers gathered actors Levar Burton, Jeri Ryan and Karl Urban—who have all starred in Star Trek shows and movies—to team up and play the game for themselves. All the actors were blown away by the experience, and got viewers psyched for the game’s release this fall for all major virtual reality platforms.
Trials of the Dragon Blood
Two Ubisoft developers took to the stage wearing very loud pink tracksuits with tiger stripes to announce that the popular stunt/puzzle game Trials Fusion and the trippy ’80s sci-fi action shooter, Far Cry Dragon Blood, were having a baby together. That child is Trials of the Dragon Blood, a game full of bright and crazy stunt tracks for players to master. Best of all, the game launched for consoles and the PC on the same day it was announced.
Grow Up
The charming game featuring a wobbly red robot riding giant plant vines, Grow Home, is getting a sequel called Grow Up. Developed by Ubisoft Reflections, the game will feature the return of the robot named B.U.D., who will make his way all the way to moon, but this time without the guidance of a mothership computer. The game will release for PC, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One in August.
Watch Dogs 2
First revealed last week in a livestreaming event, Watch Dogs 2 is one of the biggest game announcements of the Ubisoft press conference. The sequel takes the gameplay features introduced with the original Watch Dogs to a whole new level, this time turning the city of San Francisco to a hacker’s playground. Related announcements included a reminder from Sony VP of marketing that a Watch Dogs movie was in the works, and that Ubisoft was strengthening its partnership with the PlayStation 4 by releasing all Watch Dogs 2 DLC content 30 days before it comes to other consoles. If that’s not enough incentive to pick up the game, then maybe the collector’s edition might sway you. It’ll come with its very own toy remote controlled robot.
Steep
Always pushing the boundaries of entertainment, Ubisoft announced Steep at its E3 press conference. It is the first open world extreme sports game, where players can snowboard, flying using wingsuits, and traverse a mountainside however they like. Inspired by the Alps, the game will feature hundreds of activities and challenges. Steep will release later this year for consoles and PC.
