Ubisoft has announced a new cloud-native game development technology called Ubisoft Scalar.
Using this cloud computing technology, developers will leverage the power and flexibility of cloud computing for Ubisoft’s game engine to reduce reliance on player hardware and open up new possibilities for game development and player experience.
The technology takes the components and systems of traditional game engines and transforms them into microservices in the cloud — moving from today’s closed, single-processor systems to a distributed model that spans a potentially infinite number of machines.
The project will help establish a new game development framework focused on “creating the ideal game design and experience” rather than addressing traditional production constraints. Games using the technology can tap “unlimited amounts of computing power” to run anything from vast virtual worlds to previously unattainable simulations and environments.
Thanks to the flexibility of cloud computing, Scalar will enable developers to update and improve one service without disrupting other services, or even add new features to games without interrupting the game session, Ubisoft said. This means there will be no patches to download and no downtime for players.
Natively cross-platform and scalable, it allows them to say Scalar will allow players to “gather millions” in a single, shared virtual environment for new types of gaming and large-scale social experiences. Game worlds can also reach a new level of persistence, where player actions can have immediate and lasting effects on the environment, while opening the door to new forms of emerging gameplay.
The first Ubisoft studio to use this new technology will be Ubisoft Stockholm, which is actively developing new IP. More information about the project will be announced at a later date.