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With E3 2021 now well and truly underway, Ubisoft were one of the first of the large industry players to have their conference at 3am earlier today. Here are the all the major highlights that comprised the hour-long showcase, as well as our verdict of the show at the end of the article.
Brawlhalla
A new content update for the multiplayer brawler Brawlhalla introduces the legendary Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles into the universe, as Leonardo, Donatello, Raphael and Michelangelo smash their way into the game, each with their own unique moveset. Brawlhalla has been going strong for years, with this new update set to bring players back for more.
For Honor
For Honor begins Season 2 of its 5th year with a major story update allowing you to experience visions of the Kyoshin event, a new Testing Ground for dueling, new armor variations as well as new character arriving on July 22nd. Any time is a good time to be jumping back into For Honor, and we hope that it does a great service to the game.
Rainbow Six Extraction
The first new game from Ubisoft this year is something that they have teased for quite a while. Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six lends its name to the newest title, Extraction, a PvE co-operative first person shooter set in a timeline where mutated parasites now roam the earth. Players will fight through monsters of varying difficulty and challenge to rescue any downed teammates.
Riders Republic
Riders Republic is set to make an impact on the extreme sports genre by giving fans a new and unique experience. With massive multiplayer environments, a host of sports ranging from trail biking to rocket gliding, and a rocking good time for everyone involved, Riders Republic stands out as one of the more unique offerings of this conference, with a September 2nd release date.
Rainbow Six Siege
A new operator will hit Rainbow Six Siege, alongside Operation: North Star, which will begin next week. As of now, we’ve yet to see how Thunderbird, the new operator will play, so stay tuned for more updates.
Watch Dogs Legion
A new DLC expansion for Watch Dogs Legion seems like it’s bringing back Aiden Pearce and Wrench of Watch Dogs and Watch Dogs 2 respectively. It pits both of them on opposing sides, with Aiden fighting for more than just business. The expansion will be included in the season pass, available from 6th July, with a tentative standalone purchase after.
Assassin’s Creed Valhalla
No new Assassin’s Creed this year, but Ubisoft hopes to sate us with a major expansion for Valhalla. While Wrath of the Druids sees Eivor infiltrating a mysterious cult in Ireland called the Children of Danu, The Siege of Paris introduces the new war-torn locale of Frankia in one of the most ambitious and largest Viking confrontations ever. With new weapons and abilities, The Siege of Paris looks to bring hours of content to Valhalla when it arrives later this summer.
Far Cry 6
Far Cry as a series has generally been excellent in establishing their major villains as a proper threat, and FC6 is no exception, providing us with a harrowing cinematic that shows just how far Anton Castillo (played by Giancarlo Esposito, aka Gus Fring from Breaking Bad) is willing to go to teach a lesson to his son Diego. Alongside this trailer, we also take a look at the season pass for Far Cry 6, which seems to imply that we will be playing as villains of previous Far Cry games, only in a role-reversal, where the protagonists become the antagonists. The season pass also brings back the ever-loved Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon, which is an incredible riot to play and comes highly recommended.
Far Cry 6 is slated to launch October 7th this year.
Mario + Rabbids: Sparks of Hope
An apparent sequel to the surprisingly fun Mario + Rabbids: Kingdom Battle, the saga of Mario alongside the Rabbids continues with Sparks of Hope, which introduces open-world exploration paired with new abilities courtesy of the Sparks, who are stars with Rabbid faces that seem to be integral to the story. Think what you will of the Rabbids, but there’s no denying that this game will still look like a fun, yet tactical challenge to players.
Sparks of Hope is a Switch exclusive, dropping in 2022.
Just Dance 2022
Just Dance returns with even more fun new songs to pretend you can dance to, with singer Todrick Hall announcing a special version of his track, Nails, Hair, Hip, Heels featuring a unique dance routine to be present in Just Dance.
Just Dance has always been a cracking game to turn on at parties and this seems to be more of the same, so we’ll be looking forward to showcasing our two left feet when the game drops November 7th on all platforms.
Rocksmith+
When Rocksmith launched a decade ago, it was an advanced alternative to the world rocking Guitar Hero. Now Ubisoft is turning Rocksmith into a dedicated guitar learning tool, with Rocksmith+, a subscription-based software designed from the ground up to teach both beginners and advanced players on how to play their favourite tracks on the guitar.
If that interests you (and it should), you can even register for the closed beta today, and hopefully start to slay those riffs soon.
Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora
The final reveal came as a surprise, as apparently Ubisoft has acquired licensing from James Cameron’s Avatar to create an Avatar game. Frontiers of Pandora looks to be an open world adventure encompassing the planet of Pandora, where you play as the Na’Vi, against the encroaching threat of humans who are attempting to deplete the planet of unobtainium. It also might tie in with the upcoming Avatar 2 movie, as they both release in the same year of 2022.
Verdict: 2/10
Besides a few surprising announcements, Ubisoft’s conference ended up raising more questions than answers as to what exactly Ubisoft wants to do with its large collection of IPs. Let’s hope Day 2 of E3 brings us something more exciting to look forward to.
Want to know more of our thoughts on E32021? Join THE MAGIC RAIN on Facebook every day at 9pm, where we’ll be discussing all things E3 live on stream!
