Ubisoft Starts Abandoning Ubisoft Connect for "Simpler Launch Experience

Ubisoft has officially announced an alternative to Ubisoft Connect, its third-party launcher that has been known to cause stickiness with SteamOS, Linux, and other systems that require translation layers to function. Ubisoft Connect will not be going away completely, but, starting with Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown, Ubisoft is testing Ubisoft Connect Services—a new Steam tool that enables cross-progression, cross-play, challenges and rewards, and player safety, independently of the Connect launcher.

The decision to move away from Ubisoft Connect as a hard requirement for game launching was likely spurred on by the increasing reliance on tools like Proton and Steam's new Arm and Android compatibility tools, FEX and Lepton. Ubisoft says that the testing version of Ubisoft Connect Services is "an initial step toward a smoother and more streamlined launch experience on Steam," and it promises to build on it and improve Ubisoft Connect Services as more players use it, eventually also rolling it out for more games.