That Ubisoft/Kojima April Fool's joke was pretty elaborate! Snake running around MGS4 dressed as Altair, looking for all the world like it was actually in the game...so would it surprise you to hear that it wasn't really a gag? Yeah, that's right. It was announced at the MGS4 wrap party today that MGS4 players will indeed be able to unlock an Assassin's Creed outfit for Snake (we won't tell you how), which were it not for the silver moustache and trademark cigarette would have you thinking Altair himself had time-travelled his way into the final Metal Gear title. How's this happening? Why's this happening? Who knows, the mind boggles.

You know, I don't play Assassin's Creed, I don't own a PC, don't game on PCs, but every time I watch this video I feel a mixture of amusement, sympathy and outrage. Plus I love the jolly music. I imagine it as an accompaniment to some poor bastard stepping on rakes and skateboards cleaning out his garage. Or a Rube Goldberg contraption gone horribly wrong.

And Rube Goldberg describes this Mousetrap of a quit process to a T. The comments on the YouTube vid page helpfully point out he can Ctrl-Alt-F4 on this but, really, unless this is a sick joke, what goddamn imbecile speced out this process? Two load screens. 11 steps. A buck-thirty on the clock. "Loading?! No! I want to quit! Fine ..."

Assassin's Creed, I Can't Quit You [YouTube]

Ubisoft: Years Of Assassin's Creed To Come

Assassin's Creed as a brand will be around for "years to come," Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot said during today's conference call.

Assassin's Creed has sold 6 million units since launch, Guillemot said, as he summarized a corporate strategy that relies on enduring in-house brands balanced against the introduction of new franchises.

No mention of February 2008's Assassin's Creed: Altaïr's Chronicles for DS was made during the call, but Ubisoft's enthusiasm for the original game's "better-than-expected" performance seemed to indicate an interest in more adventures for Altaïr in the future.

Ubisoft Sees 36 Percent Sales Jump In FY 08

Ubisoft sales jumped nearly 37 percent during their latest fiscal year, which ended last month, rocketing from $1.07 billion to $1.46 billion over the year, the company announced during their annual call today.

The jump was mostly due to Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Vegas 2 and Assassin's Creed doing better than expected, they said. Vegas 2 sold close to 2 million, while 6 million copies of Assassin's Creed were sold. Ubi said they were also happy with their Games for Everyone brand, which includes titles like My Word Coach and My French Coach and brought in $361 million.

Assassin's Creed PC Patched, DirectX 10.1 Support Silently Killed Off

Assassin's Creed Digitally Arrives A Little Late

The arrival of Ubisoft's catalog on Steam continues to clunk along, as gamers hoping to be "one of the first to play the PC adaptation of Ubisoft's Assassin's Creed" find themselves without a playable version. The PC port is currently on sale at traditional retail locations but the digital unlocking won't happen until 5 PM PDT, it seems. It's an unusual exception in the Steam world, where those awake at 12:01 PDT the day off can burn the midnight oil with their pre-loaded purchases.

The same holds true for Direct2Drive and Ubisoft's own digital store, should you shun Valve's service. It's bad form, we think, but if you're flustered by the lack of Assassin's Creed on your Windows machine, we'd definitely suggest getting in touch with Ubisoft to voice your concerns about the matter.

You Got Assassin's Creed In My MGS4!

Assassins's Solid [YouTube - Thanks furilla187!]

Jade Raymond and Patrice Desilets and the entire Assassin's Creed development team did an excellent job to create the game.

Free Running Through Popular Culture

In an article over at Gamasutra, Andy Robertson takes a look at the use of popular culture in video games, specifically Parkour (or Free Running). He takes an in-depth look at some of the games that have used Parkour, namely Crackdown and Assassin's Creed, and discusses what they did really well, and what leaves much to be desired for free-running fans.

The biggest difference between the two games is that Assassin's Creed allows the users to do just about anything, moving up and over the whole sandbox environment using Parkour-style moves, but doesn't reward players for the fluidity and beauty that authentic Parkour demands. On the other side, Crackdown has specific Xbox Achievements that encourage players to be more fluid and artistic with their movements, but permits fewer grab points and forces the player into a more linear, less free and experimental path. What Robertson doesn't refer to is the upcoming game Mirror's Edge, based solely around the art of Parkour. If these two elements are married in Mirror's Edge, it could be a big Free Running hit. Then again, if it's only those elements, I can't imagine long-term play possibilities for the game.

Game Culture Vultures: Parkour

Some footage of Assassin's Creed running on the DS. Sadly, we can't see the Ouendan-style torture sequences (yes we can, after the jump!), but what we can see is that they've actually done a fairly good job of replicating the PS3/360 versions when you consider the limitations of the hardware. The pick-pocket sequence is a neat touch, too. The "sleeping" guards, however...hmm.

Assassin's Creed PC Out In March, Brings Exclusive Content

New York Times: 2007 Was A "Sea Change" In Gaming

The broadening of the video game market may seem like either old news or one in a series of many buzzwords to gamers, but the New York Times writes today that the numbers back it up. Citing NPD sales figures, the Times calls the make up of 2007's best selling titles "clear evidence of a sea change" that the market is shifting from lonely single player experiences to a multiplayer driven industry. With the exception of Assassin's Creed, the rest of the last year's top ten is all about shared experiences, whether via Guitar Hero, Wii Play, Halo 3 or Call of Duty 4.

And let's not forget about World of Warcraft, largely responsible for a billion dollar year for Blizzard.

That's all been written about before, as has the article's other argument, that top-tier review scores don't equal top-tier sales figures, but it's sounding more provable than ever. It's also a warning, of sorts, to those who bemoan a video game future devoid of 40-hour gameplay experiences, boundary breaking graphics and blockbuster production values. If the market doesn't care about those things, why should publishers? A record $18 billion year in the US is sure to have a huge effect on how games are made forever.

In the List of Top-Selling Games, Clear Evidence of a Sea Change [New York Times]

This week's Best Buy Ad lists two of the biggest titles of last year BioShock and Assassin's Creed each for $39.99. Also avialable is Enemy Territory: Quake Wars for $19.99 and an online only deal that will net you two games priced $19.99 each for $30. Some of the titles offered in that deal include COD 2, Viva Pinata, LEGO: Star Wars II, Red Steel and a ton of PS2 titles. The weekly ad deals last until next Saturday but the online offer has no stated ending date. If you want cash in on the hidden gems though, I would jump on it ASAP.

Best of the Sunday Ad Video Game Deals (1/20 - 1/26) [CheapAssGamer]

If you missed out on Assassin's Creed when it first came out and have been looking for an excuse to pick it up, this might be your chance. Target is offering Ubisoft's latest for $38 on both Xbox 360 and PS3. This deal is not available online so you'll have to haul your can down to the store if you want to get your hands on this one. Also available at the same price is that other Ubisoft game, Raving Rabbids 2. Hmmmm, rough choice...

Best of the Sunday Ad Video Game Deals (1/13 - 1/19) [CheapAssGamer]

Wii Wins the Amazon Christmas

Amazon is just giddy with excitement. The holidays are over and they are bursting at the seams with money spent on presents. Their annual "We made a shitton of money during the holidays" press release went out this morning and in it the the Wii as their top selling console and Call of Duty 4 as their top game.

While they don't release any specific numbers for their video game sales, they do say that Amazon sold Wii system "at approximately 17 per second when they were in stock."

Here's the top ten current lists of video game and hardware sales on Amazon:

Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare for the Xbox 360
Super Mario Galaxy
Wii Nunchuk control
Wii Play with Remote
Wii Remote
Wii Charging Station
Wii
Assassin's Creed for the Xbox 360
Wii Zapper with Link's Crossbow Training
Playstation 3 Wireless Sixaxis Controller

The PSP 2K, in the number 12 spot, was the next best-selling platform after the Wii

Amazon.Com Best Sellers [Amazon]

Assassin's Creed Success May Have Slayed EA's Buyout Chances

Did Altair's impressive killing of the competition fend off an attack from megapublisher EA? With Ubisoft boasting of 2.5 million copies of Assassin's Creed being sold so far, leading to raised sales expectations and a boost in the French publisher's market value, Financial Times posits that it may now be too expensive for EA to snap it up. Given that Ubisoft has also decided to push a few titles into its next fiscal year, the decision to invest heavily in Ubisoft Montreal's big budget action game is looking to pay off in spades.

While EA still has a stake in Ubi, the latter may have a better chance of remaining free of the EA collective for a bit longer if its fortunes continue. No pressure or anything on Assassin's Creed II, ladies and gentlemen. It's just that the future of the entire company is riding on it. Take your time.

Ubisoft's assassin and the creed of creative defence [Financial Times]

Assassin's Creed Kicking Sales Ass...ass

There must be some big grins over at Ubi's Montreal Studios today.

Ubisoft just announced they they expect to sell more than five million copies of the game in 2007-2008, up from the initial forecast of three million, based on early sales. The game managed, they say, to sell more than two and a half million copies in less than four weeks worldwide and currently is one of the top selling PS3 titles. Ubi says that Assassin's is currently the fastest-selling NEW IP ever in the U.S. (That means not including sequels like Halo 3).

Better still the game's tremendous sales, coupled with a big jump in the company's casual games, is pumping up the company's sales forecast for 07-08 to $1 billion, 218 million, up from $1 billion, 196 million.

Yves Guillemot, chief executive officer of Ubisoft, is downright giddy:

"With the exceptional performance of Assassin's Creed(TM), the fastest-selling new video game intellectual property in the U.S. ever, Ubisoft's teams have once again demonstrated their expertise in creating and promoting major brands. These regular-sequel franchises are a source of very high profitability both in the short and long term. Drawing on its strong internal development capacities, Ubisoft is currently in an ideal position to continue to develop numerous new creations - an essential condition for winning market share and ensuring strong growth going forward."

Hit the jump for the full release.