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Ubisoft at E3 2019 announces Watch Dogs Legion, the latest in its dystopian hacking game series

The company's next big adventure game, out March 6, will be set in a post-Brexit London.

Ian Sherr Contributor and Former Editor at Large / News
Ian Sherr (he/him/his) grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area, so he's always had a connection to the tech world. As an editor at large at CNET, he wrote about Apple, Microsoft, VR, video games and internet troubles. Aside from writing, he tinkers with tech at home, is a longtime fencer -- the kind with swords -- and began woodworking during the pandemic.
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Watch Dogs Legion will be set in a dystopian London.

 Ubisoft

If art is social commentary, be prepared for a lot of art coming from Ubisoft . The game maker, which often swats at political themes in its games, has created a near-future dystopian nightmarish version of London.

The new game, called Watch Dogs : Legion, was announced during Ubisoft's press conference ahead of the Electronic Entertainment Expo, or E3, held in Los Angeles this week. The game, coming March 6, 2020, will feature many of the things we've come to expect from the series centered on hacking a network of government and paramilitary computers and devices in an effort to free the city from their grasp.

"Today, with Brexit, London is at a turning point," said Clint Hocking, Ubisoft's creative director for this Watch Dogs game, while on stage at Ubisoft's press event Monday. "History has proven time and again that where London goes, all of us go together."

It may seem unusual for a French video game company to create something like Legion, based on its neighbor across the English channel. Brexit itself has become a politically charged issue within the British government, particularly because of economists' fears about the long-term damage the move could have on economies around the world.

One of the things Ubisoft said will make the game stand out is that you can "recruit" every character you encounter in the game to your resistance fighting group. This, the company said, will give the game a more dynamic feel.

"Being a hero isn't just for someone else anymore, it's for everyone," Hocking said. "They are the stars of your story."

E3 press conferences

Saturday, June 8

Sunday, June 9

Monday, June 10

  • PC Gaming Show -- This annual PC Gaming Show is held at a theater a short walk from the Los Angeles Convention Center, but still draws a large crowd, filling the 1,700-person capacity Mayan Theater in downtown Los Angeles. Inside, the usual suspects, from Halo to Doom, were nowhere to be found. Instead, the crowd cheered for PC-centric games including Zombie Army 4, Baldur's Gate 3 and Terraria: Journey's End. (No, the game sequel problem isn't any better on PCs.) The highlight was a brief on-stage appearance by legendary game designer Yu Suzuki, responsible for classic such as Hang-On and Virtua Fighter. His long-awaited Shenmue 3 is expected in November, 18 years after Shenmue 2. 
  • Ubisoft -- The French gaming giant announced its next big dystopian hacking adventure game, Watch Dogs: Legion, launching March 2020. The new game is set in near-future post-Brexit London, where the economy is failing and government is breaking down. The company also announced a new television show, called Mythic Quest, that will launch on Apple TV Plus. And it celebrated the 10th anniversary of its Just Dance party games. 
  • Square Enix -- 6 p.m. PT (9 p.m. ET)

Tuesday, June 11

  • Nintendo (livestream only) -- 9 a.m. PT (noon ET)