STACK July 2017 Issue 153

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040 JULY 2017
visit GAMES FEATURE
Revolution; the visual splendor in the
campaign mode, as you can imagine,
is exceptional.
While the basic formula remains,
Ubisoft Montreal, the studio
responsible for the brilliant AC: Black
Flag, has tweaked the gameplay. A
side mission introduced us to the
new combat mechanics that have
now been mapped to the bumper
No, we’re not talking
about beautiful
people here, but the
media area itself. At
least this year they
had fans, but given
the tight space and
the heat emanating
from the consoles,
Ubisoft take out the
prize of having the
hottest booth at the
show. Following my
session with Far Cry
5, I couldn’t have
been any wetter
had I swam across
the Yarra. Next year
we’re doing the booth
in boardshorts.
HOT
Booth
title in the publisher’s largest
franchise, Asssassin’s Creed:
Origins. On a personal level, I had
earmarked both of these titles as
‘must plays’ en route to LA.
According to the dev leading us
through the Origins playthrough,
the game has been finished since
earlier this year. The additional time
leading up to launch on October 27
will be dedicated to ensuring there
are none of the technical issues
that have affected some of the
publisher’s more ambitious recent
titles. Two modes were available for
play – a short campaign experience
and a new mode called Arena.
I’ve been a fan of the franchise
since I first marveled at the horse
animations in the original
AC. Although I have played
every entry since, I lost
interest in AC: Syndicate
after about four hours and
never went back. Ancient
Egypt, a setting regularly
requested by fans, feels
far more suitable for an
Assassin’s Creed adventure
than England's Industrial
and triggers on the controller. There’s
also a new extensive skill tree that
will allow unparalleled customisation
for the protagonist, Bayek.
Arena is great fun. Playing as a
gladiator you battle oncoming waves
of enemies, all possessing different
fighting abilities, before facing off
with a boss. According to our guide,
this mode will be unlocked as the
game progresses.
Far Cry 5 was the game I enjoyed
most during our stay at Ubisoft’s
booth. Essentially it was the same
level showcased at the media
briefing, but this one culminated
with a chance to fly a plane on a
bombing raid and then partake in a
dogfight.
Opting to play with Grace the
sniper as support, it proved a little
too easy; she picked off most of
the opposition before I got a chance
to get right in amongst the action.
Our guide from Ubisoft Montreal
explained that the support character
balancing is still being worked on. A
restart with Boomer, the dog, proved
more challenging.
Despite not releasing until early
2018, it already feels like a tight
game – the gun mechanics and kill
animations are excellent. I
seriously can’t wait to play
the finished product – it
proved to be one of the
best games I played at the
show.
Pirate game Skull
and Bones, a surprise
announcement at the
conference, was playable
at the booth, but waiting
Far Cry 5 proved to be
one of the best games I
played at the show
times to get on the other titles
prevented me from getting in to
see it. I thoroughly enjoy naval
combat and played Black Flag until
my thumbs bled and my throat was
sore from singing shanties, so I was
gutted to miss out on this one. It’s
early days, so I’m hoping – praying,
actually – that Ubisoft Singapore will
end up including a single player.
Elsewhere, The Crew 2 was
playable but again, scheduling times
and other priorities meant that we
missed it.
There was also hands-on with the
perennially delayed South Park: The
Fractured But Whole, too, with the
demo taking place at Peppermint
Hippo strip club and showcasing the
combat system, an improvement
over the basic grid formula in Stick
of Truth. Will the game actually
release in October? We're told it's a
certainty...
Providing we can avoid a Just
Dance demo, stopping off with
Ubisoft has always been one of the
most anticipated sessions to attend
at E3, and this year didn’t disappoint.
With an ebullient press conference
showcasing an enviable slate,
Ubisoft will be very happy coming
out of E3.
Assassin's Creed: Origins
Skull and Bones
The Crew 2
UBISOFT