Assassin’s Creed Unity Launch Party
Oh how decadent French aristocracy was, at least we got a good taste for it at Ubisoft’s Assassin’s Creed Unity launch party.
Just like last year and the Assassin’s Creed: Black Flag launch, Ubisoft set the tone for the party and the game. There was a running theme, and a few tweets, that people felt under dressed. The Liberty Grand played host, and they did an amazing job. The free food was stellar, yes that’s right the free food. If you came expecting just to play some video games, and maybe bump shoulders with a developer or two, please raise your bar of expectations right now.
Photo courtesy of Ubisoft Toronto. Photographer: Jorge Figueiredo
The Assassin’s Creed Unity launch party was luxury. Everything from the French guards at the door way, to the horse drawn carriage rides outside, to the live quartet playing ballroom music, it was everything you’d expect a French king to throw at you. The look and feel was right, it put you in the mindset of going to a masquerade ball, but what about Unity itself? It was there, but it wasn’t allowed to stretch its legs.
The consoles setup had Assassin’s Creed Unity playing, with a small quad setup for Assassin’s Creed Rogue. The playable mission was a hit on a person in the Notre Dame Cathedral. You could explore the outside of the church, but you were limited in where you could go. Much like standing on the wrong side of a velvet rope at a gala, you could see all the amazing visuals out there. It made you want to explore Paris, and there is a lot to see.
In the Q&A portion of the night, Level Design Director Nitai Bessette gave the low down on how the city is portrayed. The scale ratio for the city of Paris, and its buildings, is 1:1. That’s huge, literally. It means that walking from one end of the city to the other will take time. As opposed to the setting in Black Flag, Unity has added the city itself as a major character. A character that’s going through a major change. A change that is seen in the people.
One of the other new additions was citizen AI. The devs said in previous games that the people in the city felt too static. They could go form point A to B, and then to C. They wanted Paris to feel more organic. Now the citizens will act more natural. Some will go to work, if they need a drink they’ll stop for water. Some may feel tired in the sun and simply find some shade, or go home. It’s like they’ve taken a portion of The Sims and thrown it into revolutionary France. However, it wasn’t all about Assassin’s Creed Unity, Assassin’s Creed Rogue got some love as well.
Photo courtesy of Ubisoft Toronto. Photographer: Jorge Figueiredo
It had four screens to play with, and they were packed. It was hard to figure out the reason why, until you got close. A familiar face had shown up, Edward Kenway was back. It was hard to get a chance to play, but you could see the hype when we saw our favourite pirate back on the screen.
It was an awesome night to attend. A big thank you to Ubisoft Toronto for organizing it, and a big thanks to Microsoft Canada for providing the consoles.
Assassin’s Creed Unity and Assassin’s Creed Rogue both come out today! On the next gen consoles for Unity, and the 360 and PS3 for Rogue.
Are you excited for the new AC games? Are you going to pick up both Unity and Rogue? Were you at the launch party, what did you think? Let us know in the comments below, or on our Facebook page.
Photos by Jorge Figueriredo.
