Ubisoft: Immortals Fenyx Rising is Free – What's the Catch?

Immortals Fenyx Rising Free? More Like Ubisoft Apologizing for Something

Alright, so Ubisoft's giving away Immortals Fenyx Rising. Free. As in, zero dollars. Supposedly, it's to celebrate five years of Ubisoft Connect, their… ecosystem. Yeah, that's what they're calling it. An "ecosystem." Give me a freakin' break.

The "Gift" That Keeps on Giving (Data)

Let's be real: this ain't generosity, it's damage control. They canceled the sequel, right? The one that was supposed to be all Hawaiian/Polynesian themed? Scrapped it to focus on Assassin's Creed Shadows. Which, offcourse, is probably gonna be another microtransaction-laden mess.

They claim Immortals Fenyx Rising "found a modest audience," but then admit sales were way lower than Assassin's Creed Valhalla. Translation: it flopped. According to Immortals Fenyx Rising Is Now Free to Grab on Ubisoft Connect, the game is available on Ubisoft Connect.

So now they're giving it away. Like tossing scraps to the pigeons in the park. "Here, play our mediocre game! Please don't forget we exist!"

And don't even get me started on Ubisoft Connect. Cross-play, cross-progression, cross-platform achievements... Sounds great, right? Until you realize it's just another layer of DRM and data collection. They want you locked into their "ecosystem," tracking every move you make.

I mean, seriously, does anyone actually like these launchers? Steam's bad enough, but Ubisoft Connect? It's like they saw Steam and said, "How can we make this even more intrusive and annoying?"

The fact that they are celebrating this thing should be considered a crime against humanity.

The Illusion of Choice

Polygon said it "can't help from becoming a game that shoves you down a path." Ain't that the truth. Open-world games are supposed to be about freedom, about exploration. But increasingly, they're just checklists disguised as adventure. Go here, collect that, kill this, repeat ad nauseam.

And Immortals Fenyx Rising is no exception. It's a perfectly competent game, I guess. Bright colors, Greek mythology, the usual Ubisoft open-world formula. But it's also utterly soulless. It's like they took all the popular open-world games, threw them in a blender, and then slapped a fresh coat of paint on the result.

Speaking of paint, where's the innovation? Where's the risk-taking? Ubisoft used to be a company that pushed boundaries. Now they're just churning out sequels and rehashes, afraid to try anything new.

And the DLCs? Heavily discounted, naturally. Because why not squeeze a few more bucks out of the suckers-- I mean, players who actually bother to claim the free game? $2.80 each, or $7 for the season pass. It's like a clearance sale on digital garbage.

I remember when games were complete experiences on their own. Now, it's all about nickel and diming you for every last piece of content.

Then again, maybe I'm just getting old and cranky.

Acquisition Speculation

Oh, and here's the kicker: Ubisoft delayed their financial results, sparking rumors of a possible acquisition. Tencent, maybe? Or some other faceless megacorp ready to swallow them whole.

So, is this free game a last-ditch effort to inflate user numbers before the sale? A way to make the company look more appealing to potential buyers? Probably.

Honestly, the whole situation feels like a slow-motion train wreck. A once-great company, desperately clinging to relevance, giving away its assets for pennies on the dollar.

So, What's the Catch?

There's always a catch. Ubisoft ain't giving away Immortals Fenyx Rising out of the goodness of their hearts. They want your data, your attention, and your willingness to buy their next overpriced piece of DLC. Don't fall for it. Just download the game, play it for a few hours, and then uninstall it. That'll show 'em.