Ubisoft Has Quietly Canceled an Anticipated Sequel?
Things apparently aren’t going as smoothly as they should be at Ubisoft since the company just canceled yet another gaming title in development. In fact, the company has canceled more than seven previously announced gaming titles in the past year and probably countless other unannounced titles as well. Now, in the latest news, Ubisoft’s sequel to Immortals Fenyx Rising apparently isn’t so immortal since the company canceled the title.
Ubisoft has canceled the sequel to Immortals Fenyx Rising.
According to VGC, Ubisoft just confirmed that it had canceled its follow-up to the 2020’s mythology game Immortals Fenyx Rising, which was already in active development. The news of the game’s cancelation was leaked a few days ago, with members of the development team stating that Ubisoft decided to pull the plug on development due to challenges around establishing the IP.
Following the leak, Ubisoft’s spokesperson publicly confirmed that the company canceled the title, stating that Ubisoft is currently reallocating some creative teams and resources within Ubisoft Quebec.
In other words, Immortals Fenyx Rising hasn’t fulfilled Ubisoft’s sales expectations. It’s possible that the development costs outgrew initial projections, prompting Ubisoft to pull the plug.
The spokesperson for the company stated that the team’s expertise and the technologies they have developed will serve to accelerate the development of Assass… pardon, other key projects associated with the company’s biggest brands.
The sales number of the original Immortals Fenyx Rising was 70 percent lower than those of Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla, which actually isn’t that surprising for a new gaming title—which is approximately 1.4 million copies of the game. We would call that a healthy commercial success in the modern gaming market, especially for an original release that was highly praised for almost all of its aspects.
So, while many are wondering why Ubisoft decided to pull the plug on Immortals Fenyx Rising 2, the recent news surrounding the Assassin’s Creed franchise might reveal the cause.
A Long List Of Ubisoft Cancellations And Delays
Canceling Immortals Fenyx Rising sequel is just another one in a long line of sequels and delays at Ubisoft. The highly-anticipated-and-frequently-delayed Skull & Bones was scheduled for a 2018 release date; Ghost Recon Frontline and Splinter Cell VR were canceled, as was Project Q.
Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora was delayed, Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time Remake was delayed indefinitely and Beyond Good & Evil 2 is stuck in development hell. And this is not the whole list of games; accounting for all of them requires a separate article.
The spokesperson for the company stated that the team’s expertise and the technologies they have developed will serve to accelerate the development of Assass… pardon, other key projects associated with the company’s biggest brands.
On the other hand, Assassin’s Creed is doing well; Valhalla is the best-selling AC game ever, with more than 20 million copies sold, upcoming games such as Assassin’s Creed Mirage, though smaller in scope, are still highly anticipated, and Ubisoft just announced a remake of 2013’s Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag.
Considering the rising costs of game development in a crowded and volatile market, Ubisoft had no other choice but to gut Immortals Fenyx Rising and reallocate its resources to produce yet another Tomb Ra… pardon, we meant Assassin’s Creed.
