The Ubisoft Forward 2023 is a wrap, and Ubisoft showed off a lot of its plans for the rest of 2023 and beyond. From a huge gameplay chunk of Star Wars Outlaws, to a release date for Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora, to updates on a trio of Assassin's Creed titles, Ubisoft packed a lot into this summer's showcase. In case you missed any of it or want to watch some trailer footage again, read on to learn everything announced at the Ubisoft Forward 2023.
Star Wars Outlaws Gets 10-minute Gameplay Showcase
Star Wars Outlaws was announced as part of 2023's Xbox Games Showcase, but Ubisoft waited for its own presentation to share the first look at gameplay. Outlaws is in development at Massive Entertainment, and Ubisoft is calling it the first open world Star Wars game.
The gameplay showcase showed off combat, including how adorable companion Nix can help protagonist Kay Vess in the heat of battle. We also saw Kay riding a speeder, deciding if she wanted to bribe an Imperial officer, and eventually hopping into a ship to escape into hyperspace.
Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora Gets a Release Date
Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora is finally coming on December 7, 2023. The first-person action adventure will see players control a Na'vi trained by the RDA to fight against her own people. But the Na'vi eventually reconnects with her heritage, learning Na'vi weapons and skills to prepare for the RDA's inevitable return. Ubisoft showed off a new trailer and gameplay breakdown of the long-awaited title, showing gameplay that reminded us of Far Cry.
Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown Gameplay Revealed
Following the announcement last week at Summer Game Fest, Ubisoft unveiled gameplay for Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown. The 2D action Metroidvania is "semi-open world", and more areas open up to you as you gain new powers and improve your skills. We saw a lot of the game's fast-paced sword combat, with plenty of flashy finishing moves on some of the tougher enemies. Time powers are also present, but sometimes your enemies will use them against you. Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown is launching on January 18, 2024 on all platforms.
In Assassin's Creed Mirage, Direct Combat Is a "Back-up Solution"
Ubisoft shared an extended look at Assassin's Creed Mirage gameplay, showing off the back-to-basics stealth-centric gameplay. The gameplay focused on the concept that there's always a discreet way to take out your enemies, whether that's through Basim's hidden blade, blow darts, or smoke bombs. The game takes place in 19th century Baghdad and will follow Basim in a "tragic coming of age story". The game launches on October 12.
Assassin's Creed Nexus Features the Return of Classic Assassins
Assassin's Creed Nexus is the franchise's first foray into VR, and it will feature a three-pronged story starring a trio of returning characters: Assassin Creed 2's Ezio, Odyssey's Kassandra, and AC3's Connor. The game takes Assassin's Creed's classic stealth assassination gameplay and brings it to the first-person perspective, where players will still be able to use the hidden blade, sword, smoke bombs, bow, and more. The game is coming to Meta Quest 2, and does not yet have a release date.
Assassin’s Creed Codename Jade Lets You Fully Customize Your Assassin
Codename Jade is the upcoming Assassin's Creed mobile game, and Ubisoft revealed it's set to enter a public testing phase later this month. And, in a series first, players can fully customize the appearance of their assassin, including gender, clothes, and more. The game takes place during China's Qin Dynasty, between the events of Assassin's Creed Odyssey and Origins.
The Crew Motorfest Arrives This September
The Crew Motorfest now has a release date of September 14, 2023. This is the third installment of The Crew franchise, but it's the first to see the series leave the continental U.S. Instead, The Crew Motorfest takes drivers to Hawaii, where it appears to emulate Forza Horizon's festival format. In addition to cars, players can expect to control bikes, boats, and aircraft, as well.
Captain Laserhawk: A Blood Dragon Remix Gets First Trailer
Captain Laserhawk: A Blood Dragon Remix is a new anime coming to Netflix later this year. It's based on the Far Cry 3 Blood Dragon expansion. We got a teaser trailer revealing that the show will star various Ubisoft characters from outside of the Far Cry universe.
XDefiant Coming This Summer, Open Beta Next Week
XDefiant is Ubisoft's upcoming free-to-play first-person arena shooter, and the company revealed it's coming sometime this summer. Before its official launch, Ubisoft is holding a open session from June 21-23 on PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC. Ubisoft also detailed its launch plans, which include 14 maps, five factions, five modes, and 24 weapons. In Year 1, Ubisoft will add four more factions, 12 new weapons, and 12 new maps.
Skull and Bones Closed Beta Coming in August
The long-delayed Skull and Bones is getting a closed beta from August 25 to August 28. You can register now at the game's official website. The beta's announcement was accompanied by a live musical performance set to a montage of Skull and Bones gameplay.
Tom Clancy's The Division: Resurgence Is Coming This Fall
The Division: Resurgence is an upcoming mobile game based on the Ubisoft co-op shooter franchise. We got a new trailer for the mobile title and a release window of Fall 2023.
Ubisoft Sizzle Reel Reveals Jet Set Radio and Halo Crossovers
A sizzle reel revealed Anno 1800 celebrating 25 years on PC and console, For Honor Year 7 Season 2 starting on June 15, Trackmania out now on PC, Xbox, and PlayStation, a new planet coming soon to Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope, a Roller Champions and Jet Set Radio crossover, Master Chief and the Aribeter joining Brawlhalla, a free trial for Rocksmith+ on PC and Mobile, The Crew 2 Season 8 Episode 2 out now, a new Skate add-on coming to Riders Republic on September 26, and Rayman coming to Sparks of Hope later this year.
For more Summer of Gaming highlights, see:
- Xbox Games Showcase 2023 Announcements and Xbox Extended Showcase Announcements
- Capcom Showcase 2023 Announcements
- PlayStation 2023 Showcase Announcements
Ubisoft Forward 2023: All Games
Here's everything announced and shown at Ubisoft's June 2023 showcase event.See All
Logan Plant is a freelance writer for IGN covering video game and entertainment news. He has over seven years of experience in the gaming industry with bylines at IGN, Nintendo Wire, Switch Player Magazine, and Lifewire. Find him on Twitter @LoganJPlant.