Almost every company in the gaming business is launching its own subscription service. The latest to join the bandwagon is Ubisoft, the developer of popular titles like Assassin’s Creed, Far Cry, Just Dance, Prince of Persia, and Tom Clancy’s. At its E3 press conference on Monday, Ubisoft announced a game subscription service called UPlay Plus.
Ubisoft has a lot of competition
Google has announced its Stadia service, Apple will launch Arcade later this year, Microsoft has Xbox Game Pass, Electronic Arts offers Origin Access for PC and EA Access for console gaming, and Sony has its own PlayStation Now streaming service. Ubisoft will face fierce competition in the market. E-commerce giant Amazon is also preparing to launch its own cloud gaming service.
We’re launching #UplayPlus our first subscription service for PC on September 3rd!
It gives you unlimited access to 100+ games, DLCs & new releases for $14.99 a month. Discover more >> https://t.co/bAndiVc32r || pic.twitter.com/DlV1PpSA8K
— Ubisoft (@Ubisoft) June 10, 2019
Ubisoft’s UPlay Plus will give subscribers access to every game in the company’s catalog as a PC download starting September 3rd. Ubisoft will also bring its subscription service to Google Stadia in 2020. The French company has a catalog of more than 100 published titles. You will be able to download and play as many games as you like by paying a flat monthly fee. You will also have access to all the expansions, DLCs, and automatic updates.
The new subscription service will also give subscribers “earliest available access to new games.” You will get access to the beta and early access editions of Ubisoft’s upcoming titles such as Ghost Recon Breakpoint and Watch Dogs: Legion before everyone else. Subscribers will be included in the Ghost Recon Breakpoint beta on September 5 and early access release on October 1 this year.
Ubisoft VP Brenda Panagross said in a statement that more and more players are in the digital ecosystem, and a subscription service is one of the easiest ways for them to access the content. Evidence of Ubisoft’s service was spotted last month when ‘Ubisoft Pass Premium’ briefly appeared in the subscription category of the Ubisoft store. The listing didn’t provide any details about the service. Also, there was no button to purchase it at the time. The company was quick to remove the listing.
UPlay Plus is coming to Google Stadia in 2020
Ubisoft is the first developer to announce that it would bring its game subscription service to Google Stadia. Google revealed a few days ago that the Stadia Pro cloud streaming service would cost $10 per month. It would offer some free titles and other benefits, but customers will have to buy Stadia games separately. Google is scheduled to launch it this November in 14 countries. There will also be a free version of Stadia, but it won’t launch until 2020.
So, how will the UPlay Plus on Google Stadia work? If you want to use UPlay Plus on Google Stadia, you would have to pay for both subscription services. Many of Ubisoft’s popular titles are confirmed to arrive on Stadia, which you can purchase individually if you want. Google is open to hosting the subscription services of other third-party companies on Stadia.
Is it too expensive?
The UPlay Plus service has been priced at $15 per month. It is set to release on September 3rd. People who sign up before August 15 will get one month of free access. You can sign up here. The company is also giving early subscribers access a Ghost Recon: Breakpoint Atmosphere Emblem and a Watch Dogs Legion Ubisoft Hat for in-game characters.
Ubisoft’s plan is far more expensive than rival services. Electronic Arts charges only $5 per month and $30 per year for Origin Access. Microsoft offers hundreds of current as well as classic titles on consoles and PCs as part of its Xbox Game Pass service, which costs $10 per month. For $15 per month, Microsoft’s Xbox Game Pass Ultimate offers the subscription for consoles, PCs, as well as a subscription to Xbox Live Gold.
Sony’s PlayStation Now, which costs $99 per year, allows you to download many of its titles for offline play. It also includes a cloud streaming service. It will be interesting to see how gamers respond to Ubisoft’s new service in the fiercely competitive market.
