Facebook as reportedly signed a deal for VR game set in the Splinter Cell and Assassin’s Creed universes.
Facebook has signed an exclusive deal to bring VR versions of Assassin’s Creed and Splinter Cell to the Oculus platform. According to a report in The Information, the company is looking to strengthen it’s VR offering by signing exclusive deals for content, and by picking up development studios.
Ubisoft already has experience developing for the Oculus, with the launch title Eagle Flight, and Star Trek: Bridge Crew. Platform exclusivity is par for the course with VR headsets, and it looks like Facebook is trying to step up its game a little bit in this area.
The VR market is also very different now to when Oculus launched. Competition from industry heavyweights like Valve and Sony is fierce in the VR space, and despite their global presence, Facebook is still new players in the games market. The PSVR is the best selling headset to date, with the Oculus Go coming in second place.
A solid push for the number one spot, with the titles and developers to back it up, could see Facebook overtake their rivals in the VR space. Facebook recently named former Oculus content VP Jason Rubin as their head of “special gaming initiatives.” The report in The Information didn’t mention any developers that the company is looking at picking up, but even that market is heating up with both Sony and Microsoft seeming to be on the hunt for talent studios to pick up.
A dependable push into the gaming space might be just what Facebook needs to diversify their business model a bit, as the company is currently facing pressure over privacy and anti-trust concerns, as well as repeated criticism for their inability to properly moderate their platform.
