Ubisoft Cancels Upcoming Far Cry Game After Years of Development

Ubisoft has reportedly just canceled its upcoming Far Cry extraction shooter under the codename Project Maverick, but it appears to be more of a genre pivot rather than a full-blown cancellation.

News about Project Maverick's development began circulating in 2023, but not much information was available except that it was going to be an extraction-based shooter set in the Alaskan wilderness, where players would fight to survive against harsh weather conditions, wildlife, and each other.

According to new reports, Ubisoft has now decided to scrap the extraction element and turn Project Maverick into an open-world FPS codenamed Project Kodiak.

In the last few years, the video game industry has changed drastically, as technological advancements are changing the way games are being developed, physical media is on its way out, and AI is being used to increase profit margins.

As times change, we've seen many companies abruptly change their strategic approach, and the last couple of years have been especially ripe with studio closures, mass layoffs, and game cancellations, and Ubisoft is no exception.

In January, Ubisoft announced it would be restructuring into five 'Creative Houses', and focusing on developing new games for its most popular titles, such as Assassin's Creed, Rainbow Six, Ghost Recon, Splinter Cell, The Division, and Far Cry.

Far Cry games are being handled by Ubisoft's creative house #1, also known as Vantage Studios, who are currently developing Far Cry 7, codenamed Project Blackbird, as well as Project Kodiak, which takes the place of the extraction shooter, Project Maverick.

According to a report from Insider Gaming's Tom Henderson, Project Kodiak is already in development and will be an open-world FPS focused on player-driven stories and player interactions.

There's not much information currently available about Project Kodiak, and we likely won't have an official reveal for this game for quite some time, as Henderson's report suggests this game is still several years away from release, and is described by an anonymous source as "really ambitious".

When word hit the street that Ubisoft was developing a Far Cry extraction shooter, which was rumored to be a PvPvE experience, many gamers were surprised and intrigued, as this is not the genre that Far Cry became famous for.

At least for now, it appears Ubisoft is putting a lid on the Far Cry extraction idea and is going back to their bread-and-butter of open-world FPS.

Project Blackbird is Making Good Progress

While there has been no official reveal from Ubisoft regarding either of these upcoming Far Cry games, Project Blackbird is reportedly making good progress and will likely be the next Far Cry game to be released.

According to Insider Gaming's report, in an internal interview at Vantage Studios, Charlie Guillemot referred to Project Blackbird as "Act One," which hints at the possibility that they have plans to use Blackbird as the starting point for numerous mainline Far Cry games, contingent upon a successful launch and positive reception.

The unfortunate reality is that while Far Cry fans can't help but get excited about new games in the pipeline, it's too early to tell whether Project Kodiak or Project Blackbird will actually materialize, as games being abruptly canceled continue to happen on a regular basis.

Ubisoft recently launched Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced, which has garnered very positive reviews, sparking some hopes that Ubisoft may finally have their ship sailing in the right direction once again, but despite the game's success, 51 developers from Ubisoft Barcelona are reportedly being let go.

These developers, most of whom worked on Assassin's Creed: Black Flag Resynced, have reportedly been coordinating strikes over the last several weeks as a result of the proposed layoffs.