• Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.

Why is Ubisoft practically the only game company updating their games for PS5 / Series X?

It's kind of ridiculous how for some reason Ubisoft seems to be the only publisher who realizes they'll sell more games if they don't feel like slide-shows anymore. After playing 10 games in a row at 60fps, it's really hard to go back to anything less than that, which will absolutely affect your purchasing decisions. Why don't more developers seem to understand that?

[edit]

Of course, "Practically" is hyperbole. We all know there are various games from an assortment of developers that have been updated. But many of the most recent titles that other developers and publishers have released haven't received a 60 fps update, and Ubisoft is the only 3rd party publisher that seems to be putting this much focus on updating their games.

With the understanding that I'm sure these updates lead to a boost in game sales, I just have to wonder why this still feels like far more of an exception than it should be, rather than the rule.
 
Last edited:

Mr Hyde

Member
Games that received next gen overhaul. Off the top of my head

Resident Evil 2, 3 and 7 - native versions

Control - native version.

Metro Exodus - native version

Vampyr - 60fps patch

Psychonauts 2 - 60 fps patch

The Evil Within 2 - 60 fps patch

Dark Souls 3 & Sekiro - 60fps patch

Skyrim - native version

The Witcher 3 - native version

Shadow of the Tomb Raider - 60fps patch

Horizon, The Last of Us 2, Days Gone and Ghost of Tsushima all received 60fps patches.

And that's just a couple. So no, Ubisoft is not the only publisher or developer who updates their games for current platforms.
 

analog_future

Resident Crybaby
That's not even remotely true? There's a virtually endless list of Xbox One/PS4 titles that have been patched for current gen.

Off the top of my head:
  • The Last of Us Part II
  • Apex Legends
  • Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1+2
  • Death Stranding
  • Crysis Remastered
  • Star Wars: Jedi Fallen Order
  • Rainbow Six Siege
  • The Division
  • The Witcher 3
  • Uncharted 4
  • Skyrim
  • God of War
  • Elder Scrolls Online
  • Fall Guys
  • COD Warzone
  • Fortnite
  • Ghost of Tsushima
  • Forza Horizon 4
  • Gears 5
  • GTA V
  • Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice
  • What Remains of Edith Finch
  • Dying Light 1
  • Older Madden/FIFA games
  • FF VII Remake
  • Mortal Kombat 11
  • All the new Resident Evil games
  • Rocket League
  • Sea of Thieves

I'm sure there's literally dozens if not 100+ more if I actually bothered to look.
 
Last edited:
It's kind of ridiculous how for some reason Ubisoft seems to be the only publisher who realizes they'll sell more games if they don't feel like slide-shows anymore. After playing 10 games in a row at 60fps, it's really hard to go back to anything less than that, which will absolutely affect your purchasing decisions. Why don't more developers seem to understand that?

Yes they are and it's absolutely pathetic that there aren't more, especially from companies like Rockstar and other major publishers/devs whose games sold crazy amounts. They have no excuse. This is one area consoles are far behind PC.

I also think Microsoft has really let us down by closing their BC program before even updating a lot of their own xbox one exclusives like - Sunset overdrive, quantum break, ryse, and dead rising 3.

Or games like Mafia 1 Remake which came out 1 month before next gen consoles!

Gamers have been too passive ans accepting of this kind of disregard of these devs own games and their customers. It's not hard for them to make 60 fps updates in most cases.
 
That's not even remotely true? There's a virtually endless list of Xbox One/PS4 titles that have been patched for current gen.

Off the top of my head:
  • The Last of Us Part II
  • Apex Legends
  • Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1+2
  • Death Stranding
  • Crysis Remastered
  • Star Wars: Jedi Fallen Order
  • Rainbow Six Siege
  • The Division
  • The Witcher 3
  • Uncharted 4
  • Skyrim
  • God of War
  • Elder Scrolls Online
  • Fall Guys
  • COD Warzone
  • Fortnite
  • Ghost of Tsushima
  • Forza Horizon 4
  • Gears 5
  • GTA V
  • Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice
  • What Remains of Edith Finch
  • Dying Light 1
  • Older Madden/FIFA games
  • FF VII Remake
  • Mortal Kombat 11
  • All the new Resident Evil games
  • Rocket League
  • Sea of Thieves

I'm sure there's literally dozens if not 100+ more if I actually bothered to look.

There are also endless games that still HAVENT BEEN PATCHED!

RDR2
MAFIA REMAKE/Mafia 2 remaster/Mafia 3
Dishonored 2/Death of the Outsider
Far Cry 4/Far Cry Primal/New Dawn/Far Cry 3 "classic"/Blood dragon "classic"
Last Guardian
Gravity Rush 2
Driveclub
Bloodborne
The Order 1886
Divinity original sin 1 and 2
Pillars of eternity 1 and 2
Wasteland 3
Ryse son of rome
Sunset overdrive
Dead rising 3
Quantum break
Gears 1 ultimate
Gears 4 (only 1080p/60 with Xbox one s graphics)
Assassins Creed 3 remastered
AC ezio collection
AC Unity/AC syndicate (unplayable on ps5)
Ghost Recon wildcards
Watch Dogs 1 and 2
Forza Horizon 3

There's a lot I'm forgetting too I'm sure
 

Bernardougf

Gold Member
Games that received next gen overhaul. Off the top of my head

Resident Evil 2, 3 and 7 - native versions

Control - native version.

Metro Exodus - native version

Vampyr - 60fps patch

Psychonauts 2 - 60 fps patch

The Evil Within 2 - 60 fps patch

Dark Souls 3 & Sekiro - 60fps patch

Skyrim - native version

The Witcher 3 - native version

Shadow of the Tomb Raider - 60fps patch

Horizon, The Last of Us 2, Days Gone and Ghost of Tsushima all received 60fps patches.

And that's just a couple. So no, Ubisoft is not the only publisher or developer who updates their games for current platforms.
Not related .. but is evil within 2 any good ? Didnt play the first game
 

skit_data

Member
I think it’s crazy some publishers don’t update them. Yeah, it’s probably not just flicking a switch but it can’t involve that much effort as long as there’s a PC version running at 60fps.

Prime example: Arkham Knight. How can it not be a priority to get one of the arguably best looking games of last gen running at 60fps on PS5 in order to hopefully sell some more copies. There’s probably some cost/profit analysis behind it but it’s sort of a head scratcher.

Edit: Oh and RDR2, goes without saying. That one is even wierder because the game is without a doubt still selling pretty well.
 
Last edited:

Von

Member
It’s most likely to make some bank since there’s fuck all going on for them? That’s my wager. If they had their annual releases, with other IPs launching yearly they wouldn’t be taking this route.
 

oji-san

Banned
I say thanks to every dev that update their game to 60fps, it actually made me try and love games like Vampyr and A Plague Tale.
It seems that yeah Ubisoft do take notice and update some of their games and for that they deserve our thanks.
 

01011001

Banned
There are also endless games that still HAVENT BEEN PATCHED!

RDR2
MAFIA REMAKE/Mafia 2 remaster/Mafia 3
Dishonored 2/Death of the Outsider
Far Cry 4/Far Cry Primal/New Dawn/Far Cry 3 "classic"/Blood dragon "classic"
Last Guardian
Gravity Rush 2
Driveclub
Bloodborne
The Order 1886
Divinity original sin 1 and 2
Pillars of eternity 1 and 2
Wasteland 3
Ryse son of rome
Sunset overdrive
Dead rising 3
Quantum break
Gears 1 ultimate
Gears 4 (only 1080p/60 with Xbox one s graphics)
Assassins Creed 3 remastered
AC ezio collection
AC Unity/AC syndicate (unplayable on ps5)
Ghost Recon wildcards
Watch Dogs 1 and 2
Forza Horizon 3

There's a lot I'm forgetting too I'm sure

some on your list don't take FPS boost on Xbox into account and some are outdated.
the PS5 back compat version of Syndicate was patched recently for example.
 
Last edited:

Doom85

Member
Not related .. but is evil within 2 any good ? Didnt play the first game

You need to play them in order. First one is really good but has quite a few flaws in the gameplay and story/characters. The second game fixes all those issues and is downright excellent.
 

adamsapple

Or is it just one of Phil's balls in my throat?
Not related .. but is evil within 2 any good ? Didnt play the first game

Yes, it's arguably much better than the first. But the story is a direct continuation, so unless you look up or play the first game, it will be a bit confusing.
 

Doom85

Member
you have that backwards my dude

Season 4 No GIF by The Office


I’m just going to reuse a quote I used years ago.

Part 1 was pretty good but it had a lot of flaws. One of them is no longer an issue, but the game was embarrassing on launch in how glitchy it was to the point of even occasionally crashing. Not to mention how garbage the forced widescreen was. Beyond that though, the game is SO uneven. The first 9 acts are generally pretty good (even if the first chapter is just unnecessarily slow-paced and basically Outlast but not as good. Then the rest of the game becomes nothing like the first chapter in gameplay, so weird) but after that, GOD. Some people bitch about the Island in RE 4, I mean I liked the Island even if I admit the Village and Castle were better, but I have barely anything positive to say about the city chapters in EW 1. Just a mess.

The character development is basically non-existent, Ruvik gets fleshed out, but Sebastian's entire backstory is left to notes and not mentioned ONCE in the main game, Joseph has a single plot element and zero characterization, and Kidman is meant to be a certain Resident Evil character clone but done far less effectively. Leslie and the doctor....exist. And the plot mostly boils down to, "we're in someone's mind, and it's pretty fucking obvious whose it is." Thankfully some ambience and some good gameplay elements help, but good lord did this game need more time in the oven.

Evil Within 2 thankfully addressed all these issues. All the characters are fleshed out in-game. There's no dip in quality in the chapters. The game ran fine at launch. The story has a few twists and turns and has a more logical progression whereas 1 was mostly random events/locales under the "justification" of "well, we're in a crazy mind, so fuck it we can just go anywhere!" There's FAR more stuff to do gameplay-wise, if you just run from main objective to main objective you're missing out on some good shit, and the map actually makes it clear what auto-locks you into story (and definitely makes it clear when going to a point will make the map no longer visitable) whereas the first game was basically like, "hey, do you want main path or a side path with some good shit? We're not making it clear at all which is which! Oh, you picked the wrong path and now can't check out the side stuff, well fuck you then!" And anyone who tries, "hey, it makes the game hard!", puh-leeze, fucking Soulsborne doesn't do this shit, it's just bad game design plain and simple.

I'm sure there are those who legit liked the first game more, I don't get it, but you do you. But to me, EW 2 is everything a game sequel should be in fixing all of the issues of the prior entry. I got the platinum last year after several playthroughs and had a blast each time.
 

Kilau

Gold Member
A interesting list would be games that have received either a free current gen update or free current gen version.

Maybe even take out the games that are online only.
 

T-Cake

Member
Probably getting ready for the launch of Ubisoft+ on consoles. They want you to shell out more money so it's in their best interest to have all the games that are available to be the best they can be.
 

01011001

Banned
Season 4 No GIF by The Office


I’m just going to reuse a quote I used years ago.

EW2 plays like ass compared to the first game.

simple the act of drawing your weapon and aiming is downgraded to such a degree in EW2 that it instantly loses.

EW2 also feels worse in terms of character movement and general combat.

the removal of the Matches, one of the main standout game mechanics of the first game, also made EW2 way more generic.
it has basically nothing that makes it unique gameplay wise anymore.

EW2 making it more obvious what the main path and the side stuff is is absolutely not significant imo.

the first one controls better, has better combat, and feels more unique.
you can instantly feel that Mikami didn't direct the second game. I at first didn't know this and wrote in another forum I think something along the lines of "how could Mikami let the game get released with these shitty controls", and then someone pointed it out to me that he wasn't directly involved in the development, at which point all made a lot more sense.
 
Last edited:

ReBurn

Gold Member
There's probably some formula they use to decide whether the cost to update them will result in enough revenue to make it worth it. Ubisoft pushes sales for their older titles much harder than most other companies. Most of them seem to take the approach that they've made all of the money they're going to make on their back catalogue and the cost to update them wouldn't be worth it.
 
Plenty of developers have gone back and patched their games for PS5 & XSX,

That's not even remotely true?

"Practically" is hyperbole, but I never said the only games that are getting updated are from Ubisoft. It's about what they're doing as a publisher. We all know there are various games from an assortment of developers that have been updated. But many of the most recent titles that other developers and publishers have released haven't received a 60 fps update, and Ubisoft is the only 3rd party publisher that seems to be putting this much focus on updating their games.

With the understanding that I'm sure these updates lead to a boost in game sales, I just have to wonder why this still feels like far more of an exception than it should be, rather than the rule.

Anyhow, I'm going to just add this to the OP. It's my fault for not being clear enough in the first place.
 
Last edited:

diffusionx

Gold Member
I don't think it's reasonable to expect devs to go back and patch years old games out of nowhere. Like, some of the games mentioned in this thread haven't had a patch in 5+ years, at some point you have to draw the line.

What is weird is games that are still being updated, like RDR2, no excuses. Rockstar is so weird and annoying.
 
Last edited:
the first one is way better.

EW2 removed any mechanic that made the first one stand out and made the controls worse in every way.

EW1 is basically a spiritual sequel to Resident Evil 4, EW2 is generic stealth horror gameplay.
Bro you have my sword here 100%, Evil Within is literally Resident Evil 4.5 in every single way from a gameplay perspective and will probably be better than the actual RE4 remake.
 
I don't think it's reasonable to expect devs to go back and patch years old games out of nowhere. Like, some of the games mentioned in this thread haven't had a patch in 5+ years, at some point you have to draw the line.

What is weird is games that are still being updated, like RDR2, no excuses. Rockstar is so weird and annoying.
Yeah, it's really more when a developer can't even update their most recent game or two that doesn't make much sense to me. RDR2 is a perfect example. Or when games as a service titles don't get updated, but the publisher expects people to keep spending money in their game. Fallout 76 comes to mind.

Before older games go on PS Plus Extra or Gamepass, Sony and MS should pay premiums for developer willing to update their games. I kind of wonder if that happens already.
 

Doom85

Member
EW2 plays like ass compared to the first game.

simple the act of drawing your weapon and aiming is downgraded to such a degree in EW2 that it instantly loses.

EW2 also feels worse in terms of character movement and general combat.

the removal of the Matches, one of the main standout game mechanics of the first game, also made EW2 way more generic.
it has basically nothing that makes it unique gameplay wise anymore.

EW2 making it more obvious what the main path and the side stuff is is absolutely not significant imo.

the first one controls better, has better combat, and feels more unique.
you can instantly feel that Mikami didn't direct the second game. I at first didn't know this and wrote in another forum I think something along the lines of "how could Mikami let the game get released with these shitty controls", and then someone pointed it out to me that he wasn't directly involved in the development, at which point all made a lot more sense.

Second one controls way better. Also, sounds like you didn’t upgrade your crouch speed and stamina meter. That’s on you, not the game.

How was matches unique? That sort of mechanic was done all the way back in Resident Evil 1 Remake.

LOL, him not directing 2 worked out for me. Evil Within 1 does not control as tightly as Resident Evil 4. And again, those last few chapters of 1 are mostly embarrassing, like holy shit did it feel like they stopped caring by that point.
 

Quezacolt

Member
Ubisoft isn't the only one, but at this point, they need all the good press they can get, no matter how little it is.
 

01011001

Banned
Second one controls way better. Also, sounds like you didn’t upgrade your crouch speed and stamina meter. That’s on you, not the game.

it doesn't, I could go into detail as to why but I feel like I would need to explain half the terms I'd use, which would result in a wall of text.

but tldr: awful reacion curve, bad dead zone, animation lag, input lag, bad visual feedback.

How was matches unique? That sort of mechanic was done all the way back in Resident Evil 1 Remake.

if you think the matches in EW1 are like the matches in RE1, you clearly don't know how to use them correctly, which I assumed you wouldn't

LOL, him not directing 2 worked out for me. Evil Within 1 does not control as tightly as Resident Evil 4. And again, those last few chapters of 1 are mostly embarrassing, like holy shit did it feel like they stopped caring by that point.

it doesn't feel as good as RE4, but almost no game that's similar to it does, not even the remake of RE4 (which controls terribly in comparison)

but on a scale of RE4 to RE4 Remake, EW1 is closer to RE4, and EW2 is basically off the scale in RE4 Remake's direction.
and I take bad story any day above bad gameplay.
 
Last edited:

rofif

Banned
It’s often just smal setting tweak. It’s really annoying why some games have not received updates. Even Sony could do it. Don’t need a developer.
We know that for example Last guardian runs at 60fps unpatched. Probably just 60fps=1 toggle lol.
 
Last edited:

01011001

Banned
It’s often just smal setting tweak. It’s really annoying why some games have not received updates. Even Sony could do it. Don’t need a developer.
We know that for example Last guardian runs at 60fps unpatched. Probably just 60fps=1 toggle lol.

Last Guardian crashes at a certain point tho unpatched right?
I wonder if that is directly caused by the unlocked framerate or something else.

if it is the framerate, or linked to it, then I assume they don't wanna debug it.
if not, then it's kinda ridiculous indeed.


but yeah, especially games that have 60fps+ PC versions have no excuse really... at least from bigger publishers.
because patching still costs money I'm pretty sure on both consoles, so even changing a .ini file would cost them the patch certification fee.

but there are games that still get actively parched/supported that don't do this which is really fucking odd.

not even just 60fps, but Apex Legends for example still has no 120fps mode on console even tho it should run absolutely without issue between 90fps and 120fps by simply changing the FPS lock setting. and it's not like they are afraid to release a mode with uneven framerates given how the game ran on last gen
 
Last edited:

Doom85

Member
it doesn't, I could go into detail as to why but I feel like I would need to explain half the terms I'd use, which would result in a wall of text.

but tldr: awful reacion curve, bad dead zone, animation lag, input lag, bad visual feedback.



if you think the matches in EW1 are like the matches in RE1, you clearly don't know how to use them correctly, which I assumed you wouldn't



it doesn't feel as good as RE4, but almost no game that's similar to it does, not even the remake of RE4 (which controls terribly in comparison)

but on a scale of RE4 to RE4 Remake, EW1 is closer to RE4, and EW2 is basically off the scale in RE4 Remake's direction.
and I take bad story any day above bad gameplay.

Evil Within 2 controlled fine to me. And also didn’t launch in an embarrassing state compared to Mikami’s prior work.

It’s using resources to deal with a seemingly dead enemy. Remind me how one dealt with preventing Crimson Heads again?
 

01011001

Banned
Evil Within 2 controlled fine to me. And also didn’t launch in an embarrassing state compared to Mikami’s prior work.

you can play EW1 now on PC, in gamepass, and it runs absolutely fine. so that's an issue of the past.
and bad tech, just like a bad story, is still better than bad gameplay.


It’s using resources to deal with a seemingly dead enemy. Remind me how one dealt with preventing Crimson Heads again?

so you indeed don't know how to use matches in EW1...
you can use them for crowd control, combo kills, and simply as a way to get out of hairy situations.

if you use them like in RE1 you're using them wrong.
 
Mind-blowing rockstar ignoring RDR2.
Just fired it up after 2 years of not playing. I must admit, God of War is a great fucking game, but RDR2 is also amazing. Wow, i forgot how good it was. Its definetly in a category of its own as an immersive, survival open world simulator set in the late 1800s. Just needs some QOL updates and it shoots up my list as best games ever.
 
Last edited:

Damigos

Member
Sadly, its the only thing ubisoft does lately that i like.
EA is the worst one..still waiting for the NFS Heat update to unlock fps to 60
 

yurinka

Member
Many other developers also updated them.

Regarding Ubisoft, maybe it's because many Ubisoft games are GaaS that are still getting post launch content many years after release and are still making money so these projects can afford it.

Also in addition to this and partly due to this, because the percent of their revenue that comes from legacy games is pretty high. So even for games that aren't GaaS they also update them because know that maybe this or in future years they'll continue selling.

And well, when I did work there years ago one of my jobs was to be in charge of collecting feedback, suggestions and issues reported from fans. The most popular ones, if there was budget available for the project and people in charge of address it wasn't busy with something else more prioritary tasks, and wasn't a too big change that needed too much work, the stuff was adressed when possible. So maybe a ton of their fans asked them for these next gen versions.
 
Last edited:

lh032

I cry about Xbox and hate PlayStation.
im still waiting for 60fps fallout 4.

PHHHIIIILLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL
 

Zimmy68

Member
I'm guessing the answer is simply, they want to sell Ubisoft+ and making it worthwhile to play old games helps.
 
Top Bottom