Ubisoft says it’s sorry for Assassin’s Creed Unity with a free game for season pass holders

By Will Fulton November 26, 2014

assassins creed 2016 cancelled assassin s unity — Image used with permission by copyright holder

Ubisoft is offering Assassin’s Creed Unity‘s first downloadable content expansion, Dead Kings, to everyone that purchased the game for free as a gift to make up for the buggy launch, according to a letter from Ubisoft Montreal & Toronto CEO Yannis Mallat. Fans that already purchased the season pass, which includes Dead Kings, will instead be offered a free game from a selection of recent and upcoming Ubisoft titles.

When released, Dead Kings will be available as a free add-on in all platforms’ respective online stores. The release date for the expansion has not yet been announced. Season Pass holders will have their choice of The Crew, Far Cry 4, Watch Dogs, Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag, Rayman Legends, or Just Dance 2015 as a free download in addition to all of the Unity DLC they already have coming. Ubisoft is currently setting up the system by which those games will be redeemed and will share details when it is in place.

Recommended Videos

Assassin’s Creed Unity was notoriously glitchy when it released on November 11, 2014, and Mallat is very apologetic: “Unfortunately, at launch, the overall quality of the game was diminished by bugs and unexpected technical issues. I want to sincerely apologize on behalf of Ubisoft and the entire Assassin’s Creed team. These problems took away from your enjoyment of the game, and kept many of you from experiencing the game at its fullest potential.”

Ubisoft has been hard at work, releasing a steady stream of patches and workarounds to make the game more playable. The third major patch has been released this week, providing a range of bug and stability fixes. Assassin’s Creed Unity is currently available for PlayStation 4, Windows, and Xbox One

Topics

Action Games

Former Digital Trends Contributor

Will Fulton is a New York-based writer and theater-maker. In 2011 he co-founded mythic theater company AntiMatter Collective…

Gaming

Assassin’s Creed Shadows’ blend of old and new is a recipe for success

Yasuke in Assassin's Creed Shadows fighting an enemy. He's dressed in his samurai armor.

Assassin's Creed Shadows was officially revealed a couple of weeks ago in a beefy cinematic trailer showing off its dual protagonists, Yasuke and Naoe. It's a big moment for fans of the series, as Shadows is finally the Feudal Japan Assassin's Creed game fans have been asking for since it was teased back in the very first entry in the franchise in 2007.

Does it live up to that long wait? Ahead of today's Ubisoft Forward stream, I saw an extended gameplay presentation for Assassin's Creed Shadows that gave me a much better sense of what to expect this fall. The team behind it is looking to blend newer series entries like Valhalla, Odyssey, and Origins into the more traditional Assassin's Creed titles from over a decade ago. And that seems like it could be a winning formula.
Out of the shadows
During the presentation, I saw both of Shadows' playable characters in action -- and they're quite different from one another. Yasuke's Samurai stature and hulking physique command respect from villagers when he walks by. They bow to him, move out of his way, and clearly show signs of admiration. His combat skills also match this, giving him access to actions like a shoulder charge to break down doors or knock enemies off balance.

Gaming

Can’t wait for Assassin’s Creed Shadows? Play these games instead

Yasuke in Assassin's Creed Shadows fighting an enemy. He's dressed in his samurai armor.

Ubisoft unveiled Assassin's Creed Shadows last week, giving us our first real glimpse at the first Assassin's Creed game to be set in Japan. Its Feudal Japan setting is something that fans of Assassin's Creed have craved for a long time, and while it's awesome that Ubisoft is finally delivering that concept, some other games did beat it to the punch. Many other developers have noticed how fruitful a historical Japan setting can be, from its feudal era all the way until the West started to intervene in the Edo period. As a result, there are quite a few games that I can recommend you check out while you're waiting for Assassin's Creed Shadows' November 15 launch.

The five games I'm recommending all range in size. Three of them are AAA action games, all set in different eras of Japanese history that immerse players in different ways. Meanwhile, the other two games I'm spotlighting are more experimental titles that, while not directly comparable to Assassin's Creed Shadows from a gameplay perspective, are still well worth your time if Japanese history and culture intrigue you.
Ghost of Tsushima

Gaming

No, Assassin’s Creed Shadows won’t be online only

Yasuke in Assassin's Creed Shadows fighting an enemy. He's dressed in his samurai armor.

Despite fan concerns that the recently announced Assassin's Creed Shadows would be online-only, Ubisoft has confirmed that this won't be the case.

The Assassin's Creed team posted a statement on X (formerly Twitter) on Thursday to clarify that the game would only need an online connection to install, and then can be played completely offline after.