Ubisoft recently affirmed its commitment to microtransactions, not only as a business model but as something that makes games “more fun.” The publisher has faced criticism from both players and press in the past for its implementation of features like paid XP boosts in its single-player games. Nevertheless, Ubisoft has boasted some major hits in its single-player portfolio over the last new years. Assassin’s Creed Valhalla or Assassin’s Creed Shadows were both financial successes.
As part of its most recent annual report (via Eurogamer), the publisher restated its intentions to continue implementing microtransactions in full-priced single player games and otherwise. The report expresses a desire to “respect the player experience” and to use “sustainable” monetization. The report’s rhetoric attempts to strike a balance between centering microtransactions as part of the company’s financial strategy while reassuring players that they won’t go too far.
It states, “the golden rule when developing premium games is to allow players to enjoy the game in full without having to spend more.” That statement seems to be at odds with the sentence that follows, “Our monetization offer within premium games makes the player experience more fun by allowing them to personalize their avatars or progress more quickly.” While allowing players to buy progression boosts does not equate to locking content behind a paywall, it does allow for designing a grind-heavy experience that encourages players to pay up.
As for other Ubisoft related news, the company addressed the Stop Killing Games movement in an official statement. Earlier in July, ex-Ubisoft bosses were convicted of workplace harassment.
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