Ubisoft apparently wants to concentrate on crafting unique experiences for specific audiences rather than producing games with the broadest possible appeal. The company plans to approach projects with “focus” instead of trying to get “one game to do everything.”
The news comes from a recent interview by IGN with Vice President of Editorial at Ubisoft Fawzi Mesmar who explained that carefully crafted experiences are going to be a strategic goal for the company going forward.
“We want to be okay with making a decision around the one game and go ‘we're going to go for that,and we're going to commit and we're going to be okay it can make those kind of people happy, but maybe not everybody.’ And that's okay,” Mesmar explained. “We believe that a more focused game is better for the people that like a kind of game.”
According to Mesmar, the recently revealed Assassin’s Creed Mirage provides a perfect example of this particular approach to game design. The franchise will be diversifying its gameplay with each upcoming entry in the series. “There's many different types of players that could enjoy Assassin's Creed and we're focusing on all of them instead of making one game that is supposed to cater for every potential Assassin's Creed fan,” the executive pointed out. “So, for the people who want to go back to its roots, we are making a game for them and hopefully for others that didn't get to enjoy that classic when it came out.”
Mesmar however noted that in addition to Assassin’s Creed Mirage, Ubisoft is working on “a multiplayer experience, mobile experience, a big roleplaying game experience. There's so many different types of elements that we cater for. And that also exemplifies the editorial vision that we set in which we're not making the one game for everybody, but we're making a game for you and focused.” The executive added that “we're committing to the decisions that we're making on it.”
Mesmar went on to identify “innovation as a key pillar for all of our games coming forward,” describing how this could be “anything from a quirky new art style to a relatively new take on a genre to even new gameplay mechanics. So, every Ubisoft project will be looking at those aspects and trying to differentiate, provide depth, and provide the higher standards of quality as well as providing new ways for players to be able to connect, interact, and express themselves.”