In Bid To Save XDefiant, Ubisoft Is Giving Away $9 In Currency

Summary

• Ubisoft's live-service free-to-play shooter, XDefiant, is reportedly on borrowed time, with a deadline given to improve internal metrics.
• And so, in an effort to save the game, Ubisoft is giving away $9 in in-game currency to players over the next two weeks.
• The timing of the giveaway is curious, as reports of a dwindling player base are recent, and Black Ops 6 just ended its beta period.
• XDefiant's Twitter account affirms the giveaway is to celebrate Season 1, though that is likely only part of the case.

If recent rumors are anything to go off, then Ubisoft's live-service multiplayer shooter, XDefiant, is on borrowed time.

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According to a recent report from Insider Gaming's Tom Henderson, the team at Ubisoft San Francisco has until the end of Season 3 to improve the game's numbers or risk losing support altogether.

Ubisoft Will "Pay" You To Play XDefiant

And so, in an effort to save XDefiant and boost its diminishing player base, Ubisoft is giving away $9 in currency to players. From now through September 24, 900 coins or the equivalent of $9 real-life dollars will be given out, along with multiple weapon and XP boosters.

The official XDefiant Twitter account notes that the giveaway is in celebration of Season 1. However, its timing is certainly curious. That's because Call of Duty Black Ops 6's beta officially ended this morning (Sept. 9). More curiously, the promo has been timed to start at the same time the beta ends, 10:00 a.m. PT.

But beyond that, of course, are the optics surrounding the game, particularly in the wake of Concord's abrupt shutdown. As Henderson noted in his report, the game is currently struggling to maintain a 20,000 concurrent base across all platforms, though that number could potentially be even lower.

That figure is a massive drop compared to the insane numbers the first-person shooter launched with. Back in May, the game reportedly landed 1 million unique players within hours of its launch. That figured ballooned to a reported 8 million players in its first week. Since then, the game has declined rapidly in its playerbase, owing to a variety of factors, including content and Netcode concerns.

As of this writing, XDefiant is planned for four seasons, per its Year 1 roadmap. However, as Henderson reported, internally, Season 3 is the make-or-break point. It doesn't help that Black Ops 6 and its day-and-date Game Pass release loom in the coming weeks, particularly as Season 3 is set to take shape.

In many ways, this feels like a "Hail Mary" on the part of Ubisoft, and only time will tell if this promotion is successful enough to keep the game alive long-term.

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