A rumor has recently emerged about a potentialUbisoftgame that is taking clear and intentional inspiration from bothMinecraftandAnimal Crossing. Such a prospect is sure to have many gamers scratching their heads, so it’s worth getting into everything that is currently known about this rumored cozy game fromUbisoft, scant though the information about it may be.
News about thisAnimalCrossing-inspired titlewas first broken by Tom Henderson over at Insider Gaming. According to Henderson, he was in contact with anonymous contacts at Ubisoft who provided him with anecdotal information about the title, which is currently being calledAlterra. This contact explicitly describedAlterraas being similar to bothAnimal CrossingandMinecraft, while detailing some of its gameplay and structural components. At the time of writing, Ubisoft has not made any official comment aboutAlterra, but if the project is indeed in development, it’s probably only a matter of time before further news comes to light.
Ubisoft Is Allegedly Making Alterra, a Mix Between Minecraft and Animal Crossing
Alterra Will Reportedly Have Social Sim and Crafting Gameplay
According to Henderson’s report,Alterrais planned to feature a number of friendly anthropomorphic NPCs, known as Matterlings, who represent various natural elements. The way that players interact with these Matterlings seems to be similar to thedynamic between the player-character and villagers inAnimal Crossing, and this is likely to be whereAlterra’s rumored social simulation mechanics will come into play.
Matterlings have been described as being similar to Funko Pops in appearance.
The social simulation gameplay will be paired withMinecraft-like resource-gatheringand crafting mechanics, as players will be tasked with collecting element-specific materials for the aim of building new structures, et cetera. Apparently, players can interact with each other in these outer biomes, which sounds similar to how multiplayer works inAnimal Crossing: New Horizons. There will also be “enemies” in these zones, suggesting that the game will have some sort of combat system.Alterrawill reportedly be voxel-based, meaning that its visuals will be composed of cube-shaped elements arranged across a grid, contributing to theMinecraftsimilarities.
Insider Gaming’s report states that there will be “different [Matterlings] added throughout the game’s lifecycle,” pointing toward some degree of live-service elements inAlterra.
Alterra’s Reported Development Circumstances
Insider Gaming’s report also sheds a bit of light on the factors surroundingAlterra’s development. For one thing, it is allegedly being led by Patrick Redding, who waspreviously in charge ofGotham Knights, and coming from Ubisoft Montreal, the studio behind Ubisoft’s biggest franchises, includingAssassin’s CreedandFar Cry. The report noted thatAlterrahas been in development for approximately 18 months, indicating that it could be relatively early in its development, depending on its scope and potential obstacles faced by the studio.
Insider Gaming also claims thatAlterrawas born from aprevious voxel-based game that Ubisoft canceledafter four years of development. How much, if any, of that game’s content is being repurposed forAlterrais currently unclear.Alterrais reportedly “likely still a few years away,” so it could be a while before more information is revealed.
In the meantime,Alterrais certainly an interesting project to speculate about.Cozy gaming and Ubisoftaren’t exactly the most natural fit, but there’s always a chance that the company could do something special with a project emphasizing social simulation and crafting over open-world exploration, action, and other well-worn AAA staples. It’s also worth noting that Ubisoft rarely releases its games for a single platform, meaning thatAlterra, if successful, could serve as anAnimal Crossingcompetitor on non-Nintendo hardware.
