Having spent an, let’s just say, intimate morning on the tube it was a relief to arrive in Paris. Greeted by a coach which most of us could get on, we arrived in a hotel on the Seine not far from the Eiffel Tower. A truly beautiful spot, except for the building in front that blocked my tower view! Regardless, there were too many other sights to see, many of which were rooftop gardens that looked more like they were on land than on a building.

As was the main foyer for the Ubidays extraordinaire which welcomed everyone with a spring themed crispness in the heart of the Louvre. The French muscle of the industry was flexed and tensed, was preparing us for it’s line up. Although I was looking forward to seeing what they had, I couldn’t help thinking about wondering around the Louvre after the “main event”. Either way, having an empty museum in the middle of the night was pretty cool.

Hosted by Vernon Kay and shown to our seats by hostesses wearing the coolest orange aprons, we saw a catwalk of games, developers and directors each showing off their next big titles all due out before the end of the year. Phrases like “exciting” and “world exclusive” were continuously used, and each time I’d cringe. Each time though I was surprised and, dare I say, impressed. Each game was exciting. Each game was different. And each game looked like fun.

After an intro from Kay and a show from Alain Corre, Ubi executive director for EMEA (Europe, Middle East, Asia-Pacific) we were show the first trailer and demo of ‘Far Cry 2’.
It’s important to note that no comparison can be made with the previous game. There is no point in comparing it to the previous installation at all. This is a totally different beast that is set in the heart of the African savannah with militiamen as your enemy rather than the impossible mutilated monster/alien types, nor will you be on an island. Instead you’ll be able to stroll the whole world seamlessly, without having to wait for load up screens. The demo was clean, it was impressive, it made you want to play. Not only that, but you have a 50 square kilometres of seamless strolling, or driving, or flying world in which to roam freely. You’ll also have some cool kit that helps you in the field, like a monocular that allows you to identify points of interest on your battered map. It was described as the developers as a “human drama” with the living world as “just a backdrop” to the story. And man, it’s beautiful. Real weather simulation means things like starting a fire on the dry, grassy savannah will depend on direction of wind. Ultimately you’re going to have to think about everything you do. Still, we’re hoping the “human drama”, which we didn’t see much of, side meant to draw you in to the story line isn’t too bad, but being a mercenary never really is.

And mercenary is something of a trait that the new ‘Prince of Persia’ has. Not really a prince, and no one knows if he’s really from Persia, but hey, you assume the role of a desert guerrilla that is ultimately tamed by a beautiful woman. Meeting Elika, his light in a desert storm (incidentally, there is no ‘Sands of Time’ rewind option), convinces him to go on a war against the darkness. Apart from a teaser trailer and some art work, there wasn’t much more to report on the night. We did get a word with Chris Easton, one of the community managers, so see what he had to say about the forthcoming title.