from Ubisoft XChallenging is an arena shooter featuring a well-known cast from the publisher’s range of shooter and action-adventure franchises. Players can jump into a match straight from Splinter Cell as an Echelon spy or use Watch Dogs hackers to confuse their enemies. It’s a nice premise backed by competent, crisp gameplay – but does the game manage to make these matchups memorable?
XChallenging is a free-to-play, fast-paced, competitive shooter in which players can choose from one of five factions: the Libertad Revolutionaries from Far cry 6; ex-Ghost Recon specialists known as Phantoms; agents of the spy agency Echelon; DedSec street hackers; and the Cleaners, former cleaners with a penchant for fire from the Division games. Ubisoft previously described the game as partially a “punk-rock mosh pit”, with previous material being significantly more colorful.
The XChallenging preview available to press was much more visually restrained, with free use of tacticool style. This is great for gameplay as it’s easy to read enemy movements as well as your own squad. But it lacks a certain je ne sais quoi; the closest I can say to trying to summarize the game’s identity is that it’s Tom Clancy’s Smash Bros.
Players face each other in 6v6 battles on maps that are both original XChallenging And which are borrowed from Ubisoft’s Far Cry and Tom Clancy games. There are arena style maps for that XChallenging‘s Domination and Occupy game modes, then more linear paths for Zone Control and Escort.
Once the game kicks off, players can liberally switch between the factions and different armor. Factions are the game’s character classes; each player will spend a lot of hands-on time on a weapon, but with a faction they have access to additional powers and abilities. Libertad, for example, are great medics and healers on the battlefield, while the Cleaners excel at area control thanks to their generous use of fire.
This game can cause itching for those who feel valorant is a bit too slow, or for those who find the focus on Overwatch’s unique hero abilities overwhelming. There are fun tools and Easter eggs for each faction. DedSec can unleash the Infiltrator Spiderbot on an enemy’s face, blocking their view and forcing them to swing and fumble cartoonishly. The Cleaners have Joe Ferro, their worker boss with the Noo Yawk accent, announce the matches for them.
But XChallenging also doesn’t measure up to the casts of other contemporary shooters. DedSec, Phantoms and Echelon are all techies. Perhaps this is why the division is represented by the Cleaners – they are one of the few groups in the setting that are not also tech guys. The Cleaners are also downright villains; they spend their time in The Division setting fire to asthmatics and burning children alive. I’m not morally against the concept of putting pyromaniacs in your game, but the Cleaners are still painted with the same vaguely heroic brush as everyone else. Their inclusion feels like it ticks a necessary box rather than being a true homage and tribute to the Division franchise. It also weakens any sense of personality in the rest of the factions.
This sense of wasted potential is felt everywhere XChallenging, even though the gameplay is slick and technically proficient. I have never encountered a spark that ignited genuine enthusiasm or excitement. XChallenging is fine, but in a market already flooded with a variety of great shooters, it doesn’t stand out. Even the name is confusing; it sounds like a 2006 Halo clone or a gamer energy drink. While playing XChallengingI was wondering who this game is for.
Ubisoft plans to add new factions every three months, so it’s possible we could see something completely different, like a modern take on Assassin’s Creed. For now, XChallenging does not elevate any of the characters or gadgets it takes from the Ubisoft catalog. It’s also hard to think of too many interesting additions that aren’t just more soldiers with cool tech.
XChallenging lacks the indulgent joy of a good crossover, without any original or exciting ideas to make up for it. It begs the question: Why get all these franchises in a room if you’re not going to do anything wild or fun with it?