One of the most promising-looking Wii U exclusive games is now multiplatform.
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“We heard from many Xbox and PlayStation owners and Rayman fans who told us they really wanted to play Rayman Legends on their current system,” Ubisoft chief marketing officer Geoffroy Sardin said in a statement. “We decided to give the fans what they wanted while at the same time broadening the audience exposed to this innovative and memorable game.”
In its debut at E3 and in the demo currently available on the Wii U, Rayman Legends includes many gameplay elements specific to the features of Nintendo’s newest home console. An entire character operates solely based on touch-screen controls using the GamePad. The publisher didn’t specify how it will adapt these mechanics for Sony’s and Microsoft’s machines.
While losing the Rayman Legends exclusivity is a minor blow for Nintendo, Ubisoft is likely only looking to make a larger return on its investment. The combined install base of the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 is well over 100 million units worldwide. The Wii U only has a fraction of that. If the game needs more time, that’s going to cost more money. The publisher’s accountants probably did the math and realized the game needs a wider audience to make a profit.
We’ve contacted Ubisoft to determine why it is delaying the Wii U version, and we will update this story with its response.