Over time, game developers have pushed the boundaries of what's possible, but no matter what someone can dream, there is always a limit when it comes to computing power on local hardware. As games become more complex, the engines needed to build them do, too. The result is an increasingly complex set of interconnected, moving gears that are exponentially more difficult to update and improve. What if those component game engine parts weren't interlocking gears, but could be separated, iterated on, and tested entirely independent of one another? Those are the questions Ubisoft Stockholm set out to answer when they began development on Ubisoft Scalar.
Ubisoft Scalar is a new foundational technology that enables Ubisoft titles to utilize the power of the cloud to ensure that developers aren't limited by time or hardware, but by their imaginations. The result could enable game worlds that are bigger, more social, and richer than anything that's ever been seen before at Ubisoft. To understand more about Ubisoft Scalar and the possible implications it has, we spoke with Ubisoft Scalar Product Director Per-Olof Romell, Ubisoft Stockholm Managing Director Patrick Bach, and Ubisoft Scalar Technical Director Christian Holmqvist.
When we talk about the cloud, people often associate that with streaming games, but that's not what we're talking about with Ubisoft Scalar, right?
PR: Exactly. It can be confusing, but we're not talking about game streaming. It's the difference between cloud streaming and cloud computing. Cloud streaming is a distribution model; it improves people's access to games, but it doesn't change, in essence, what games are, or the quality of them. The game is still being run on a single-processing machine placed remotely and then streamed via the cloud to your screen. It's a bit like if you had a console placed very far away, and your internet connection is replacing a very long HDMI cable to your TV. What Ubisoft Scalar is focused on is cloud computing. Cloud computing – what Ubisoft Scalar enables – means the processing power for a game isn't tied to a single machine, but a decentralized computation system. The processing is taking place in the cloud. This eliminated the limits of local hardware for players, improves the quality of games, and opens up new possibilities for game developers.
Can you give us an idea what Ubisoft Scalar changes, both on the developer side and on the player side?
PR: Ubisoft Scalar is a production tool that opens up the possibilities of cloud for our games, removing that traditional barrier of the local hardware you have at home and widening the field of what types of games can be created. It is a tool to open up new possibilities for creatives, and due to that I expect to see a broader spectrum of games coming out of it in the future.
What types of new games can players expect thanks to Ubisoft Scalar?
CH: One very important aspect that Ubisoft Scalar brings is that services are always available. The game is always running, and it's always possible to update pieces of it. Developers can create very rich worlds that can develop, evolve, and change as players are playing them. It brings a much closer connection to developers and players.
PB: It will become possible to have more players in a single shared world, which I think will introduce new social experiences that we haven't seen before. You can also create world simulations on a scale and to a complexity we've never seen before. When you add that to one of the pillars and strengths of Ubisoft – building worlds – it allows us to build bigger and richer worlds for players to experience. We'll be able to push the boundaries of what games can be. It's a new challenge for game designers, and it's going to lead to new experiences.
Ubisoft Scalar Promises To Change The Way Developers Make Games
The new cloud-based development technology frees developers from the limits of local hardware.
news.ubisoft.com
