Yes. A lot of those IPs finally became DRM-free as a result. Something I very much support.

You would think that but I think one key lesson from the 2008 financial crisis and the game industry crash of 1983 is that no company is truly safe. If you engage in bad business practices and release poor products, you are liable to fail no matter how big you are.

In 2008, Lehman Brothers collapsed. This was one of the biggest investment banks in the US whose whole business was about managing risk and making money and they declared bankruptcy and closed shop. If someone like Lehman Brothers can fail, anyone can. THe only reason why Goldman, Morgan, and Merrill "survived" was because the US government believed these banks were too big and their collapse would have a detrimental impact on the US economy. Not only are companies like Ubisoft or EA not as big as these banks, gaming is not "essential" like banking so if they collapse, I dont see the government giving out handouts to save them.

I also dont think consolidation is likely since in a crash, companies also tend to try to secure their own survival. More likely other big companies like Amazon or Google will step in to acquire. To be honest, if a gaming crash does happen, I think the only companies that will be safe are Nintendo, Valve, and EA.

*whirlpool of uncertainty looms in the distance*
Captain of the USS Gamesburg: "Full Steam Ahead"

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My aren't you generous? I'd go as high as 25 cents and a stale gas station turkey sandwich. Final Offer.

If you say so (most of these are franchises I have little interest in, so I don't know what was available how and when). I still imagine that should Ubisoft go down in similar style chances are at best 50/50 whether more of their games end up DRM free, or instead the ones currently available here disappear in a puss of smoke.

Maybe. But you might also get to see an entirely different logo for the next Beyond Good and Evil, Settlers or Rayman. Will something, probably the most mainstream series get eaten up by the big players? Yes. Will everything? No.

Considering what Ubi is currently doing, IPs going somewhere else is an avenue for improvement, more than anything else. As the end user, I care about having good games to play, which Ubisoft is not providing. And obviously, that's the general sentiment, seeing their situation at the moment.

Will be very interesting to watch what happens in February, when the already delayed AC Shadows is planned to come out. I wouldn't call it a stretch that their survival now pretty much depends on that one.

Not as bad as the suggestion that Apple or Amazon would want to buy Ubisoft I saw in a different forum though.

"Our company is STILL tanking. Should we release soon and try so recoup some of the dev money"
"Nah, I have a better idea: we'll virtue signal some more by waiting until black history month instead"

Ubi stock receives a bump after talks about a buyout surface:

https://www.investing.com/news/stock-market-news/ubisoft-jumps-on-report-tencent-guillemot-family-considering-takeover-bid-3649451

Tencent is of course involved :)

"Thwee fitty, our finah offa!"

If they do get acquired I hope it's by a company more open to DRM free gaming...... or at the very least put more games on other PC stores.