Ubisoft and Assassin's Creed: More content or filler in their video games?

Assassin's Creed II proved that it's not always about hours of gameplay, but rather about story and solid gameplay. However, according to Alex Hutchinson, former director of Assassin's Creed III and Far Cry 4, Ubisoft began intentionally lengthening its titles . The goal was to combat the resale of physical games and keep players engaged for longer.

At the time, GameStop dominated the secondhand market. Ubisoft needed gamers to keep the discs in their consoles to maximize direct revenue and offset the high production costs of its blockbuster titles.

To achieve this, RPG mechanics, side quests, and open-world expansions were added. This allowed for increased game length without significantly increasing development costs. Hutchinson states:

"Designers were asked to add game time, which seemed like the most professional solution for players in a franchise where multiplayer had never quite worked."

The result: titles like Assassin's Creed Origins and Odyssey can exceed 200 hours of gameplay , although much of that time comes from side activities or forced exploration.

This approach has advantages and disadvantages. On the one hand, players enjoy rich, expansive worlds. On the other, filler can overwhelm the experience , leading to criticism that the content is repetitive or artificial.

Other industry studies show that inflated games seek to retain players in a competitive digital marketplace , where Fortnite, Call of Duty, and EA Sports FC battle for constant user attention. Loyalty has become more important than physical resale.

Today, the digital format dominates, and resale is no longer a significant threat. However, Ubisoft maintains its focus on long-form games , but the trend is toward balancing quality content with significant hours of gameplay. Assassin's Creed Mirage could mark a shift: offering better content and less filler , prioritizing the experience over artificial length.

This shift reflects how video game companies are adapting to new monetization and loyalty strategies, such as Game Pass or extensive multiplayer services.

Ubisoft taught the industry that more isn't always better , and that the pressure to extend a game's length can lead to mixed experiences. For gamers, the key is to choose games that combine a solid story, exploration, and engaging mechanics , without sacrificing quality for quantity.