Don’t look now, FakE3 is not over yet. We still have the next Xbox event tomorrow and another Ubisoft Forward too. It turns out that the latter will arrive in September. The news came during Ubisoft’s quarterly earnings call. At what point do we stop calling it unofficial E3 and admit that we’ve bled to death in the Christmas reveal season? Never? Ah, swell.
“We will have another exciting Ubisoft Forward event in September and we look forward to showing you more,” said CFO Frédérick Duguet as part of his comments for the call. “Ubisoft Forward was an important milestone and the response from our fans was very promising. We achieved a record for maximum concurrent audience during this event, beating our previous E3 conferences. ”
We already knew that another Ubi Forward event was coming. Now we have a month. Soon we will have an appointment. After that, probably one of those sizzle games that lets us know what games will be covered. Yum yum, the marketing juice is part of a complete breakfast of news.
During the first Ubi Forward we got Assassin’s Creed Valhalla and Watch Dogs: Legion release dates, an official announcement from Far Cry 6 and an open beta release for Hyper Scape. We don’t hear about Skull & Bones, that pirate that has been boiling for years, though a report released shortly thereafter suggests it could become a live service game.
The other thing that did not come up during the past showcase was the acknowledgment of recent allegations of sexual harassment, abuse and discrimination at Ubisoft by colleagues and members of the public. Several executives have resigned in the wake of the allegations. Another recent report details more alleged abuse and discrimination. CEO Yves Guillemot addressed Ubisoft’s goals and plans after the allegations during the earnings call.
“I am determined to make profound changes to improve and strengthen our corporate culture,” said Guillemot. “We have already acted quickly and firmly, announcing and introducing large-scale initiatives aimed at transforming our organization.”
Ubisoft outlined the steps being taken in its press release for the call, including investigations by outside consultants on the allegations, a review of the composition of the editorial department, a new position for a Chief of Diversity and Inclusion, and the appointment of a Head of Workplace Culture.
As for the next Ubisoft Forward, mark your calendars for September.
