In solidarity with Parisians and the rest of the world who are affected by the damage wrought on an historical & art heritage, French game developer Ubisoft will be giving players the chance to experience the Notre Dame Cathedral. Assassin’s Creed Unity will be free to download on PC starting next week until April 25. AC: Unity is set in 18th century Paris (specifically in the year 1789) during the French Revolution, which thus includes an accurate representation of the Notre Dame itself.
Ubisoft released a statement which reads in part, “Ubisoft wants to give all gamers the chance to experience the majesty and beauty of the cathedral. You can download Assassin’s Creed Unity on PC for free here, and you’ll own it forever in your Uplay games library.”
Besides offering the game for free for a week, Ubisoft has also pledged 500,000 euros to restoration works of the Cathedral.
The Assassin’s Creed video game franchise has gained a reputation for rendering historically-accurate landmarks in the ancient world and in past centuries, in which the game is usually set. For Assassin’s Creed Unity, the video game rendering of the Notre Dame Cathedral required 5,000 hours of work so as to faithfully reconstruct the historical landmark. This included the 140 stained glass structures, the almost lifelike gargoyle statues, and the cathedral’s iconic spire (the presence of which was critiqued by historians, as the spire was only added to the cathedral in the 19th century; as mentioned above, AC: Unity is set in 1789).
Assassin’s Creed is Ubisoft’s best-selling franchise and is also one of the highest selling video game franchises of all time. It depicts the centuries-old struggle between the Assassins and the Templars, the former being those who fight for peace with free will and the latter are the ones who desire peace through control. First released in 2007, the series has consistently received critical acclaim throughout the years. Assassin’s Creed Unity is the 8th major installment in the series and was released in November 2014 for PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One.
Source: Tech Radar