Assassin’s Creed publisher quietly drops an NFT game where characters cost more than your salary
THE NFT craze feels like a fever dream now as the tech bros have moved on to AI as their latest obsession.
However, three years ago Assassin’s Creed developer Ubisoft announced that it would be working on blockchain gaming.
It tried adding NFTs to Ghost Recon Breakpoint, but it bombed horrifically with fans when everyone lashed back against the company.
However, it seems that Ubisoft was already too deep into NFTs to pull out, and it has just launched a full-blown NFT game.
Champion Tactics is a tactical PvP RPG that is based around its players purchasing NFTs.
Usually there is a lot of marketing and fanfare around a game’s launch, but Champion Tactics has been released quietly as if Ubisoft is hoping not to draw attention to it.
There is a launch trailer for Champion Tactics: Grimoria Chronicles, but it doesn’t mention the NFTs.
Players can temporarily use a ‘figurine’ to start playing, but they will need to purchase or forge their own using cryptocurrency eventually.
The game is free to download but you’ll need both a Ubisoft account and active crypto wallet if you want to play.
Figures cost up to $64k/£50k, which is more than the average annual salary.
Free-to-play games consistently have discussions over being pay-to-win, with players criticising titles that put characters and upgrades behind a paywall.
This is one of the clearest examples of a pay-to-win title, except the cost of winning is far beyond most games.
However, the game already appears to be flopping, as it’s difficult to find people playing it online.
No Flipping Taste
Ubisoft undoubtedly began this project back when NFTs were hot, and now has had to follow through long after they have dropped in popularity.
People online are suggesting that Ubisoft might have been contractually obligated to complete the game and this also feels likely to me.
It would explain why it has been released despite the rock-bottom popularity of NFTs, and why Ubisoft seems hesitant to market it.
Whatever the reason for Ubisoft’s lack of attention, it’s getting about as much recognition as it deserves.
If you want to read more about Ubisoft, check out the price drop on Assassin’s Creed Shadows.
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