The upcoming Ubisoft games on our radar are a varied bunch, and we're hoping many of them show face at Ubisoft Forward 2023. It goes without saying that we're already hyped for AC Mirage, with its release date announcement at this year's PlayStation Showcase drumming up plenty of buzz for the stealth-action franchise. But although Basim's latest rooftop-hopping adventure looks like a stunning return to form, already sounding a lot like some of the best Assassin's Creed games from the early days, Mirage is not the only new Ubisoft game to watch.
From Ubisoft Bordeaux to Montreal, Monday's showcase has plenty of viable contenders to be seen across the publisher's 15 in-house studios and beyond. You'd be forgiven for losing track, especially given what little we know about a fair few of these titles, but we're here to remind you all the same. Whether you're hoping for a fresh look at some of Ubisoft's free-to-play titles, or awaiting details on the more mysterious upcoming Assassin's Creed games, here's a look at all the upcoming Ubisoft games to keep an eye out for.
Assassin's Creed Mirage
Platforms: PC, PS5, PS4 Xbox Series X, Xbox One
Release date: October 12, 2023
First things first, Assassin's Creed Mirage is one of the top upcoming Ubisoft games for good reason. Set in 9th century Baghdad and featuring a familiar face from Assassin's Creed Valhalla, Mirage is a prequel meets origin story of sorts for Basim that signals a return to AC's foundational elements. This means stealth-oriented combat and smaller maps to explore, where "inhabitants react to your every move". It's doing away with the open world RPG stylings of Assassin's Creed Odyssey to hone in on what made the series so special in the first place: sneaking around and stabbing people in the shadows.
Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora
Platforms: PS5, Xbox Series X, PC
Release date: TBC 2023
Another upcoming Ubisoft game beset by delays, Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora, is worth keeping an eye in the coming months. It was initially intended as a companion game to 2022's long-awaited Avatar: The Way of Water film, but a postponed release has left the open world RPG slated for release sometime this year. There are plenty of rumors circulating, from leaked screenshots to hints at combat mechanics, but it's the confirmed details we'll be waiting for now that Ubisoft has confirmed Avatar's presence at Ubisoft Forward 2023.
Skull and Bones
Platforms: PS5, Xbox Series X, PC
Release Date: TBC 2023-24
Despite repeated push-backs, Skull and Bones is a swashbuckling pirate RPG that still looks worth its weight in saltwater. This upcoming release from Ubisoft is set during the 1700's "golden age of piracy", with players climbing the ladder from lowly grunt to fearsome captain of the seven seas by raising their notoriety and causing some mayhem. Originally announced during E3 2017 and slated to launch earlier this year, Skull and Bones's sixth release date delay sent it back to the developers for a final deck swab, and a new release date is still projected for 2023-24.
The Crew: Motorfest
Platforms: PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X, Xbox One, PC
Release date: TBC 2023
One for all you gearheads out there, The Crew: Motorfest is billed by Ubisoft as being "the ultimate gathering for all car lovers." Set on the paradisiac shores of Hawaii, the "exciting and diverse playground" of Motorfest is raring to bring the thrill of Forza Horizon to PS5. If driving fast cars around pretty places seems precisely your speed, this is one game to watch in the coming months – especially as developer Ivory Tower has spent the last decade honing its skill at building open world racing games.
TBC
Assassin's Creed Codename Red
Platforms: TBC
Release date: TBC 2024
Ubisoft Quebec is at the helm of Assassin's Creed Codename Red, an action-RPG set to bring the long-running game series to Feudal Japan. In terms of visuals, all we have to go on are the tantalizing crumbs left by last year's announcement trailer, although the setting and confirmation of a samurai protagonist have already gotten us hyped for the future release. Details are light on the ground right now, but Red is set to be the next flagship Assassin's Creed game, in development with the team behind AC's Odyssey and Syndicate.
Assassin's Creed Infinity
Platforms: TBC
Release date: TBC (expected 2024)
Assassin's Creed Infinity is less of a game in itself and more like a hub. The intent is to make it a "single entry point" into the Assassin's Creed franchise for all fans, allowing for a level of overlap between the games to give the whole experience a meta twist. Current plans are to add new releases to the project as it develops, including Assassin's Creed Red and Hexe. Ubisoft is also exploring the possibility of Infinity becoming the home for future multiplayer Assassin's Creed games.
Assassin's Creed Codename Jade
Platforms: iOS, Android
Release Date: TBC
A beloved franchise is getting the mobile treatment in Assassin's Creed Codename Jade. It's set in ancient China, and save for the initial announcement trailer, details on this one are still rather hazy. We do know that Codename Jade will be a mobile-exclusive, open world game. With free reign of iconic landmark locations, Assassin's Creed executive director Marc-Alexis Côté says we will be able to "parkour atop the Great Wall of China, sneak through bustling cities, engage in intense combat, and discover the secrets, the vastness, of ancient China."
Assassin's Creed Codename Hexe
Platforms: TBC
Release date: TBC
Something wicked this way comes? Assassin's Creed Codename Hexe is perhaps the most mysterious upcoming Ubisoft game of them all, purely for the fact that its short teaser trailer gives up next to nothing. All we can see from it is a handmade talisman, resembling the Assassin's insignia, dangling against the backdrop of a dark forest. Ubisoft has only gone so far as to describe Hexe as "a very different Assassin's Creed game", with speculating fans pointing to hints that Hexe might be set during the German witch trials. This seems entirely plausible, especially given the Pagan connotations of the talisman, so we can't help but get excited for a darker and somewhat spookier AC experience.
Beyond Good and Evil 2
Platforms: TBC
Release date: TBC
First hinted at in 2008, Beyond Good and Evil 2 has become synonymous with developmental hell. It's been six years since Ubisoft officially announced it during E3 2017, and with just a few promo shots and press releases to on on since then, it's anyone's guess whether we can expect news anytime soon. What we do know is that Beyond Good and Evil 2 is intended as a prequel to the 2003 original, this time featuring more open world RPG gameplay, branching narratives, and the choice between playing solo or multiplayer modes.
Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time Remake
Platforms: TBC
Release date: TBC
Announced two years ago, the upcoming Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time remake will not be showing face at Ubisoft Forward 2023. The "heavily under wraps" remake of a classic entry in the action-adventure series is now being developed by Ubisoft Montreal, much like the original – and despite the sparse information at hand, a recent update from Ubisoft confirms that the project is "very much alive". It's a remake that's getting a whole new remake, but this is one upcoming Ubisoft game we won't be letting out of our sight anytime soon.
Project U
Platforms: TBC
Release date: TBC
For a game that's already had one closed beta test, there's precious little online about Project U. According to the Ubisoft website, Project U is a "new concept of session-based co-op shooter, where many players unite to prevail against an overwhelming threat." This isn't the first time the publisher has hazarded a go at a co-op looter-shooter, though, with the cancellation of Project Q earlier this year sending its crew to work on Assassin's Creed Mirage instead.
Splinter Cell remake
Platforms: TBC
Release date: TBC
One upcoming Ubisoft game we would love to get a closer look at is the Splinter Cell remake, which went into development in 2021. With Ubisoft Toronto at the helm, the studio is keen to "make sure the spirit of the early games remains intact" – that means we'll hopefully see the stealth-heavy action gameplay we remember from the 2002 original. It's apparently possible to get through the whole game without a single kill, too, but we'll believe it when we see some gameplay.
Tom Clancy's The Division Heartland
Platforms: PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X, Xbox One, PC
Release date: TBC
A free-to-play offering from Ubisoft, Tom Clancy's The Division Heartland is an upcoming third-person shooter set in a fictional midwestern town. Riffing off The Division and taking place within the same universe, you'll be battling through the remote wasteland in the aftermath of the same devastating pandemic underpinning the first two games. It's neither a sequel nor a DLC, and with both PvE and PvP modes in the mix rather than the open world of the original, The Division Heartlands could be a strong contender even alongside some of the best free games out there.
Tom Clancy's The Division Resurgence
Platforms: Apple, Android
Release date: TBC
Mobile-only The Division Resurgence has all the open world gunslinging of the original title, only this time it's all in the palm of your hand. It's going the free-to-play avenue, much like The Division Heartland, and although there's no global rollout confirmed it's already being released in Southeast Asia under a different publisher. That sounds like a bummer for the rest of us, but with The Division Resurgence playtest signups already live for the next round, we're hopeful for some good news at Ubisoft Forward 2023.
Ubisoft Star Wars game
Platforms: TBC
Release date: TBC
In a galaxy hopefully not too far, far away, we can expect a new Ubisoft Star Wars game to grace our screens. We don't know much about it at all, save for the fact that Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora developer Massive Entertainment is spearheading the project, so that's about all we can confirm at the moment. Given that Massive has made a name for itself building complex open worlds and detailed RPG systems, we're keen to see what this upcoming Star Wars game is able to deliver.
XDefiant
Platforms: PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X, Xbox One, PC
Release date: TBC
XDefiant is Ubisoft's upcoming free-to-play arena shooter. PC is the only platform confirmed by the developer, but if our hands-on preview is anything to go by, XDefiant is a surprisingly solid shooter that could rival some of the best battle royale games out there. There's no release date for it just yet, and with the beta having ended in April, we'll just have to keep this one in our periphery until we get more news.
