Knightly Musings: NEWSFLASH – Ubisoft Still An Anti-Consumer, Dishonest Developer And Publisher

Never has the phrase “a tiger cannot change its stripes” been more attributable to a person or entity such as video game developer and publisher Ubisoft. Throughout the company’s entire existence, it has shown that this company has no scruples when it comes to getting sales. The latest move by the company continues to drive home the fact that Ubisoft is an anti-consumer, dishonest, and crappy developer and publisher.

What has the company done this time? Ubisoft recently announced that on September 1st, it would be pulling online support for older games (Electronic Arts and other publishers do this regularly). However, what Ubisoft is doing goes beyond the standard result of no longer playing multiplayer with your friends. In this particular case, the DLC for some games will no longer be accessible, even if you purchased them, and one game as well. Space Junkies, a multiplayer VR shooter, will no longer be playable or accessible when the online service is turned off.

But in the case of Space Junkies, the problem is that the game is still available for the full price of $40 well after the announcement was made. Not only will it be unplayable come September 1st, there was no warning on the game’s store page to warn customers about this when the announcement was made.

To top it off, the games affected are also a part of the Ubisoft game bundle available during Steam’s Summer Sale. So Ubisoft is milking the cow as much as possible in a highly dishonest manner.

Why gamers are surprised by Ubisoft’s tone-deaf actions against its consumers baffles me. Of course, I’ve been boycotting Ubisoft for over 10 years now because of the company’s constant lying in regards to its ineffective, draconian DRM practices for combating piracy, and, at the time, future issues when it comes to buying digital versions of games.

In fact, R.U.S.E. was the last game I purchased from the developer where I fell for their ruse that the game would not come with DRM, which had been a complaint before it was released. Yet, after the game was launched, it was discovered that Ubisoft never removed the DRM. It just switched the type of DRM from its own for Steamworks. Nor is this the first time Ubisoft has performed this particular stunt. I still remember laughing my head off when Ubisoft declared that it would no longer use online-only DRM and, in the same breath, announced its digital platform Uplay. Which is still online DRM! Not the last time they would do this, but the biggest, most egregious example of deceptive propaganda.

Right now, the video game news media is riding the consumer outrage wave to get those juicy clicks. But, they are complicit in the perpetuation of these anti-consumer practices that have spread throughout the gaming sector. Gamers, too, are guilty for allowing these practices to continue and fester as they sought instant-gratification without thinking of the long term repercussions a digital marketplace would have. When people should have boycotted games, developers, and publishers for the anti-consumer practices; instead they rewarded it. 

Gamers are still reaping what they helped sow in this digital world where they have no rights as a consumer(Why Reselling Games Is A Good Thing). Where video game journalists don’t call out these practices and, even moreso, refuse to call for a boycott unless there is a faux woke agenda they can get behind. 

What’s the good news? That gamers can still affect change. Problem is, most gamers do not stand for anything. When people were calling for a boycott over Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 and the removal of dedicated server support, it was just words. When the game was released, almost everyone who claimed they would boycott the game were playing it and helped to perpetuate the further, inevitable decline of the online gaming community.

The latest example of feckless, hypocritical gamers? Look no further than the situation with Activision-Blizzard that involved a toxic work culture and harassment of female employees. The faux outrage from game journalists and gamers was instantaneous. But, nothing changed. Journalists went back to covering the company and its properties while gamers continued to buy, play, and stream Activision-Blizzard games. 

Not only are journalists and gamers not doing anything to stop developers and publishers from further poisoning the industry. On top of that, there aren’t many industry watchdogs, if any, for gamers to rely on in order to stay informed as to which video games have draconian DRM, shady business practices, or are even owned, or heavily invested in, by Chinese businesses. 

Personally, I keep hoping that Ubisoft will shut down and be lost to the sands of time (in addition to other video game companies). But gamers and games journalists keep propping them up. As a whole, the gaming community knows the causes but still wants to catch the symptoms. 

All I can do is to keep shining a light on it whenever I have the time.

Meanwhile, I am interested to see the lies Ubisoft will say to try and spin all of this.

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