Author: Trafficblast

The announcement that Netflix and Ubisoft are planning a live-action Assassin’s Creed series was welcome news for fans of the franchise, but it’s hardly surprising. Ubisoft and Netflix first announced they were working together in June 2019 on distribution of the movie adaptation of The Division, and in July 2020 they shared that they were teaming for an animated Splinter Cell show and a Beyond Good and Evil movie. Negotiations for the publisher’s bestselling franchise have probably been in the works for a while.

What the news does make clear is just how much Netflix is banking on video game adaptations to give it an edge in the streaming wars. Assassin’s Creed will join a growing library of titles, including The Witcher (despite being based on the books rather than the games) and Castlevania, that allow the service to capitalize on its existing strengths and tactics to continue to grow its audience.

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A Perfect Medium for Video Game Adaptations

Generally speaking, video games make notoriously bad movies. One of the main reasons for this is the burden of both appeasing hardcore fans while also introducing the property to casual viewers. Video game stories unfold over 20-100 hours and often involve complex mythologies. It can be nearly impossible to satisfactorily explain the world, the characters, and the plot and then deliver some meaningful payoff in two-to-three hours without relying on dull exposition dumps or just leaving some viewers extremely confused about what’s going on. Those very problems were present in the 2016 Assassin’s Creed film.

In contrast, viewers of serialized TV shows are used to dealing with significant setup. Put in enough sex, action, jokes, and engaging characters to make a given episode entertaining and you can easily get viewers to sit through lectures on the nature of magic or the relationships between noble houses. Once you’ve gotten a few episodes in, everyone’s basically caught up and you can get into the big conflicts.

Game of Thrones wildly expanded the audience for genre shows and proved that even people who weren’t prolific readers of fantasy novels were willing to keep up with their complexities. Netflix’s The Witcher was one of the first shows to attempt to fill the void left by GoT’s departure, offering the same mix of big-budget fantasy and political intrigue. The show joined a stable of more historically focused dramas that Netflix streams thanks to its aggressive efforts to collect the rights to shows made around the world (including titles like The Last Kingdom, Medici, and Barbarians). With its time-hopping, globe-trotting action and complicated lore filled with secret societies and genetic memory, an Assassin’s Creed show will likely straddle the line between those shows and the live-action manga adaptation Warrior Nun.

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Netflix isn’t entirely giving up on the prospect of making a good video game movie though. It’s also planning a live-action Dragon’s Lair adaptation and the Beyond Good and Evil movie. That’s smart business given that the COVID-19 pandemic has devastated theatrical releases while prompting rapid growth for Netflix. Plenty of people might still not feel safe going out to the movies next year, but they’ll likely be desperate for new entertainment they can watch from home.

Short Series and Endless Spinoffs

Video games also fit uniquely well with Netflix’s business model, where the streaming service is constantly releasing new titles but often cancels shows over just a few seasons. Any given game and its sequels and DLC might offer enough plot for several seasons, but gamers are already primed to accept spinoffs, prequels, and reboots.

Like with a game series, streaming series face diminishing returns over time. Every sequel or season makes it more daunting for new audiences to get invested while some people who played or watched the original will lose interest. A new game or show based on the same property provides the opportunity for a fresh start without entirely abandoning dependable fans.

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That’s already clearly part of Netflix’s game adaptation strategy. While the second season of The Witcher is filming now, Netflix is also working on a live-action prequel series, The Witcher: Blood Origin, and an anime movie prequel, Nightmare of the Wolf. The Castlevania anime may be used to set up a Devil May Cry series from the same series creator. Netflix is also getting a live-action show based on Final Fantasy XIV, which presumably opens the doors to any number of other shows based on the enormous RPG series.

The deal between Netflix and Ubisoft includes the rights to live-action and animated Assassin’s Creed shows. Because of its numerous settings, time periods, and protagonists, the Assassin’s Creed series is especially perfect for a wide range of titles. If Netflix kicks things off with a series based on Desmond Miles and Altaïr Ibn-La’Ahad, it could easily move on to a show focused more on Ezio Auditore da Firenze or on Layla Hassan and Kassandra.

An Emphasis on Animation

Another challenge of adapting video games is the budgets necessary to recreate their worlds and characters. Netflix has shown it’s got the deep pockets to do The Witcher justice, but a show needs to deliver viewers for it to be willing to spend that kind of money. But Netflix is also willing to accept more modest successes with lower costs, which can be provided by animated shows.

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Like video games themselves, anime in the West has grown from a relatively niche fandom to big entertainment business, and Netflix is leading the way to expand the genre’s popularity worldwide. The launch of the Castlevania anime in 2017 was part of a concerted push to ramp up its share of the market. Netflix has continued to add to its library of original video game animated shows by working with CD Projekt Red on Cyberpunk: Edgerunners and Capcom on Resident Evil: Infinite Darkness.

Animation gives showrunners the same freedom to ignore the rules of physics or the constraints of physical locations that video game makers have. It’s also perfect for highly stylistic games like the 1930s animation-inspired Cuphead, which will be turned into the Netflix comedy The Cuphead Show.

Properties Netflix Can Control

Netflix makes more money from original shows that it produces in-house than from those acquired from a third party, but it also loves making deals with companies to get access to an established property like it did with Disney’s street-level Marvel heroes. While the MCU shows including Daredevil and Jessica Jones were a huge boon for the network, they all ended ahead of the launch of Disney+.

In retrospect, that separation was inevitable. Disney’s been making TV shows for a long time and the Netflix deal let the company continue to build an audience while learning enough about streaming from the industry leader before striking out on its own. Netflix execs probably wager they won’t face similar defections from Ubisoft or other video game companies they cut deals with because setting up a streaming service would be so far outside of their core competencies. Netflix is arguably more likely to get involved in making games, a prospect it has hinted at with interactive films and shows including Black Mirror: Bandersnatch, Minecraft: Story Mode, and You vs. Wild.

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Meanwhile, the game studios have their titles in front of Netflix’s rapidly growing subscriber base, getting a share of money from those deals while also potentially building a larger audience for the actual games. The more game companies that Netflix courts, and the more successful adaptations it develops, the more likely it is that other developers will find the service more appealing than its competitors. With so many streaming services to choose from, viewers have to make choices for where they’re spending their money each month, and for video game fans it’s becoming increasingly clear that it’s difficult to avoid Netflix.

A Growing Audience

Netflix was able to capitalize on the superhero boom with its MCU shows and The Umbrella Academy, and its interest in adding a huge library of video game-inspired content shows the streaming network is working to stay ahead of the curve. The games market has been rapidly growing for decades and by every metric, from console sales to Twitch viewership, interest in gaming has exploded during the pandemic. When those players need to take a break from gaming or are looking for something to watch in the background while they grind, Netflix wants to be the service they turn to – and the streamer is making big moves to make it happen.

What do you think? Is Netflix the way to go for video game adaptations? Let’s discuss in the comments!

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Among Us has never been more immersive. One player has created a mod that emulates the popular deception game in the free-to-play MMO VRChat.

VRChat, much like Roblox or Fortnite’s Creative mode, lets players design their own game modes and characters. A modder named Jar recreated Among Us in VR so that crew mates can have a more intimate murder experience.

The VR version of the game has tasks, vents, emergency meetings, and most of what makes Among Us enjoyable. It’s fan-made–so it can be janky from time to time–but it gets the job done.

This is a fun way to mix up how the InnerSloth hit is played. Others have played a version of the game in Animal Crossing, added their own mods to murder Toad, and turned Among Us into a horror game.

Among Us is still hot on Twitch, with over 350,000 people watching streamers play right now. Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s Among Us stream was one of the most successful broadcasts Twitch has ever seen.

October’s free Sea of Thieves update, Fate of the Damned, is now live. The Halloween-themed update introduces a wealth of new content to Rare’s shared-world pirate game, including some ghoulish new Voyages to undertake, as well as pets, cosmetics, and other rewards to earn.

Chief among the new content are the aforementioned Voyages, which will send you in search of Larinna’s missing Bilge Rat crew. As Rare warns, however, “an advancing threat spreads across the seas,” and you’ll have to contend with the Shadows of Fate as you explore the world.

There are also new challenges to complete and rewards to earn as part of the Fate of the Damned event. Rare says that additional challenges will be rolled out as the event rolls on, and new rewards will be made available, including the Soulflame weapons and lantern.

On top of that, the update introduces two new types of pets to go along with last year’s skeleton bird and marmoset: a skeleton cat and skeleton dog. You can acquire them from the Pirate Emporium. The Soulflame Ship Set has also been added to the Emporium, as have other cosmetics like new facepaints and the free Lantern Dance Emote.

Beyond that, the Fate of the Damned update also makes a variety of other changes and improvements, including fixing a number of bugs in the game. You can read the patch notes for the update below.

Fate Of The Damned Release Notes

Gameplay Improvements

Mysterious Notes

• When waking up at the start of a session, players may now find Mysterious Notes left beside them. Follow these notes to be directed to the various activities across the Sea of Thieves with each new content update.
• When collecting a Mysterious Note, a pop-up will now appear as the note is added to your inventory. All Mysterious Notes collected can be browsed within a new section in the Quest Radial.

In-Game Event Tracking

• The in-game menu now contains an Events tab, showcasing the current events taking place across the Sea of Thieves and tracking your progress through them.

Flameheart’s Range

• When a Flameheart Ghost Ship encounter is active, the area in which music and menacing remarks from Flameheart can be heard around the islands has been reduced.

Ashen Lords Balancing

• Ashen Lords now have reduced health.
• Cashing in an Ashen Winds Skull is now worth double the gold.
• When defeating an Ashen Lord, players will be guaranteed a Chest of Rage and a Ritual Skull as rewards, with all rewards gained from this encounter increased in value.

Emergent Captain Balancing

• Skeleton Captains, Key Masters and Guardians that appear emergently on islands have been reduced in difficulty.

Updates

Oh Gourd!

• With the Festival of the Damned season in full swing, Outposts are decorated with pumpkins in celebration of the ne’er-forgotten soul of the Ferryman.

Skipping the Intro Cutscene

• Players can now opt to skip the front end intro animation by enabling ‘Auto-skip Intro Animatic’ in Video Settings.

Shark Hunter Ship Set

• The previously unavailable Cannons, Capstan, Figurehead, Flag and Wheel are now purchasable for gold at any Outpost shipwright.

Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S Optimisations

• Sea of Thieves has been optimised in preparation for the next generation of Xbox consoles with Series S and Series X.

Accessibility

Auto-Move Accessibility

• Players can now bind a key to ‘Auto Move’, allowing their pirate to move forward in that direction until stopped.
• ‘Auto Move’ functions as expected while traversing land or swimming, but also applies forward motion to actions such as raising the capstan and climbing ladders. While players will still need to interact with these items to begin, the use of ‘Auto Move’ can remove the need for a held action during the interaction.

Narrate Emotes

• When ‘Let Games Read to Me’ is enabled, emotes performed by other pirates will now be narrated and described to the player.
• Hiding emotes that hide the player’s gamertag will not be narrated.

Fixed Issues

Gameplay

• When performing an emote, you should now consistently perform that action for any players observing you.
• When a Megalodon appears alongside a Sloop, it should now circle the ship and more frequently find opportunities to attack while the ship is moving.
• Reaper’s Chests earned from the Fort of the Damned should now have a Reaper’s Beacon.
• Ashen Artifacts dropped by Ashen Skeletons now provide Emissary Grade progression when taken.
• Firebombs should now deal consistent damage to animals.
• When a player has acquired the maximum number of food items, the number shown should now be marked in red.
• After lighting all the Flame of Fate beacons at the Fort of the Damned, Graymarrow should climb out of the ground instead of appearing from nowhere.
• There is now a loading screen while going through the Pirate Legend Hideout waterfall entrance.
• When at Ancient Spire Outpost, players should now safely teleport to the intended location.
• The Legendary Skeleton Exploder Commendation should now be visible to players in their reputation page under Gunpowder Skeletons in the Bilge Rats tab.
• The Commendation counters shown on the reputation pages now more accurately represent players’ progress with a Trading Company.
• Quickly pressing the primary use button/key while holding a pet should no longer disable the ‘give pet’ animation.
• The ‘Drop Capstan’ tutorial prompt now resets properly if the player’s ship sinks while on-screen within the radius of the Maiden Voyage island.
• When playing with Korean language settings, players are once again able to offer their soul to the Ferryman to skip the revival duration.

Ancient Treasure Vaults

• The Ancient Vault Key will now disappear once the Vault is complete.
• If an Ancient Vault is active, that Vault will no longer be selected for use in another crew’s Tall Tale.
• If an Ancient Vault becomes active, other crews will be notified that the Vault is unavailable when approaching the door.
• Rowboats should no longer clip through the Ancient Vault door.
• It should now be less likely for players to have more than one torn map piece per island.

Tall Tales

• ‘Heart of Fire’ – The lever in Stitcher Jim’s Hideout now works repeatedly as intended.
• ‘Heart of Fire’ – Dying and then being revived in lava now properly kills the revived player again.
• ‘Heart of Fire’ – This Tall Tale no longer shows as ‘New’ in the Tall Tales tab.

Pirate Emporium

• Switching currency should now properly update the price in the item preview window.

Environment

• Emergent locations on Discovery Ridge for animal crates and Gunpowder Barrels have been updated to ensure they can be reached by players.
• When engaging the Skeleton Fort on Sailor’s Knot Stronghold, upon reaching the Skeleton Lord players should no longer become stuck in the Fort wall during combat.
• The rocks near Dagger Tooth Outpost now have appropriate collisions.
• Players can no longer get stuck in the Pirate Legend Hideout and appear in the sea near the Sea Dogs’ Arena.
• Players should no longer be safe teleported when moving around the Vault entrances.
• The walls of the tunnel outside the Vault on Mermaid’s Hideaway should be visible at all times.
• The corrupt textures in the Kraken’s Fall Vault have been removed.
• The dust/rock VFX will no longer be floating near the Kraken’s Fall Vault rock door.
• Players should no longer be able to dig the ground inside the weapon and equipment shops on Outposts.
• There is no longer a hole in the western rock outcrop on Shores of Gold.
• The skull lamp at Marauder’s Arch should now be attached to a post and no longer floating in mid-air.

Visual and Audio

• When following an ‘X Marks the Spot’ Map, the ‘thunk’ sound can now be heard upon digging at the right location.
• When the Ashen Curse is equipped, it should now appear while on the Ferry of the Damned.
• The Hunter Figurehead, Crab Figurehead and Parrot Figurehead now have the correct icons when viewed in the Ship Customisation Chest.
• Players should now be able to scroll down to the last option on the Video Settings page.

The Arena

• The last crew to vote for the migration after the contest will no longer be stuck on the ‘recording results’ message and instead migrate as intended.

Custom Servers

• Steam players should now be able to join an active custom server after receiving an invite.
• Players should no longer be able to browse the store at North Star Seapost while on a Custom Server.
• Players should no longer be able to browse Larinna’s Black Market while on a Custom Server.

Steam

• Players who unlocked incorrect achievements on Steam before June 3rd 2020 will now have the incorrect achievements removed upon next login (but if the achievement was legitimately earned since then it will stay).
• Players who have not had their Xbox achievements carried over to Steam will find their achievements correctly synchronised when logging in following the Fate of the Damned update.
• When attempting to join a game without an invite on Steam, players will now be shown the correct notification message.

Performance and Stability

• Improvements to server performance reducing latency, lag spikes, ‘rubberbanding’ and server correction during gameplay.
• Improved client stability when loading into The Arena tavern upon selecting Duo Sloop Open Crew.
• Improved client stability when idling on the Ferry of the Damned for an extended duration.
• Improved server stability when progressing through Tall Tales.
• Improved Xbox loading times from when a player sets sail on the front end to when they arrive in the world.
• Improved and optimised client performance.
• Optimised a range of islands across The Devil’s Roar to improve client performance.
• Camera movement should now feel smoother when using the mouse and keyboard on Xbox consoles.

We’re hiring! IGN is hiring roles in all departments, but we (as editors) are especially excited about these jobs in the Editorial department:

Streaming Editor

We are looking for a streaming editor to lead our coverage of emerging and established streaming platforms in both the entertainment and gaming space, from Netflix and HBO Max to Twitch and YouTube. You’ll be covering a wide range of streaming topics, helping us identify and report on the industry trends, programming, and personalities that are driving conversation, as well as offering thoughtful follow-up commentary and analysis. You’ll also have the opportunity to contribute to our traditional movie, TV, and games coverage. More info and application here.

News Reporter, Editor – IGN’s news team is looking for a new content creator to help us not just research, write, and edit the stories we already specialize in, but share stories our readers and viewers haven’t yet discovered themselves. Based in either the UK or US, you’ll be working with the executive editor of news, the news team, and a pool of freelancers, you’d be reporting on day-to-day breaking stories (across gaming, movies, TV, tech, comics, and science) and pitching thoughtful follow-ups. Your work could span anything from investigative reports and op-eds to community deep-dives and video breakdowns. While you’d be based within the news team, your work will cross over with features, previews, and more – you’ll become a major part of not just how we tell stories, but how we create them. We have offices in both the UK (London) and the US (Los Angeles, San Francisco), so you will need to apply to whichever is nearest: More info and application (US). More info and application (UK).

 

Image: Dramatization of what it’s like to work at IGN.

If you want to write for IGN but the above gigs don’t suit you, you have some options: We have (other) jobs available all over the globe! And we’re always on the lookout for great new freelancers. Apply to freelance.

IGN’s editorial team is made up of all kinds of people that share a common love of games, TV, movies, comics, tech, board games, and all things geeky. We strongly encourage people of every race, gender, sexual orientation, and background to apply.

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If you have any other questions about jobs at IGN, we encourage you to contact the people working in those jobs — Twitter is a good place for that. Here’s a list of what everyone on the content team does at IGN. See you there!

 

The Ascent, which was once set to be a launch title for both the Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S, will now be released in 2021.

Originally revealed at Microsoft’s first next-gen Inside Xbox broadcast, The Ascent is an action-RPG set in a cyberpunk world and appears to be a wonderful mashup of Diablo and Judge Dredd, as we have previously noted.

Developer Neon Giant has also shared a new video that showcases the development and highlights a few features coming to The Ascent when it is released on Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, Xbox One, and PC in 2021. It will also be available for Xbox Game Pass subscribers at launch.

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We featured The Ascent as our IGN First game for May 2020 and took a look at gameplay, concept art, how it originally became an Xbox Series X launch exclusive, and much more.

The Ascent has you taking on the role of an indentured worker who will dive deep into ‘The Ascent Group’ arcology, a self-contained corporate-run metropolis stretches high into the sky and is filled with “creatures from all over the galaxy.”

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It’s an adventure that can be played solo or with up to four players in co-op modes and is targeting 60 fps and full 4K support on Xbox Series X alongside “amazing gameplay performance for the new generation of console players.”

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Have a tip for us? Want to discuss a possible story? Please send an email to [email protected].

Adam Bankhurst is a news writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @AdamBankhurst and on Twitch.