Ubisoft’s Free-to-Play Shooter XDefiant Sets May 21 Release Date, Reveals Seasonal Roadmap
XDefiant, Ubisoft’s free-to-play first-person shooter, finally has a release date. After hitting delays, the game’s preseason will launch on May 21 across PC, PS5 and Xbox Series S/X via Ubisoft Connect. According to the studio, XDefiant will feature five different game modes across 14 maps at launch. Players will start out with 24 weapons and 44 attachments and can try out five playable factions inspired by Ubisoft franchises.
Ubisoft also provided a brief roadmap for the online shooter, detailing planned season content drops after the launch of the preseason. According to studio, the XDefiant preseason will last for six weeks before the first season begins. The game will get a new season every three months, with each new season bringing new weapons, maps, events, and a new faction.
In its first year, XDefiant will add four factions, 12 weapons and 12 maps on top of the content present at preseason launch. The five factions at launch will be based on familiar groups from Ubisoft games like Far Cry, Splinter Cell and Watch Dogs. These will include Echelon, Phantoms, Cleaners, Libertad and Dedsec (after unlocking or purchasing). The game will also launch with five modes — Domination, Hot Shot, Occupy, Escort and Zone Control.
XDefiant was delayed in September last year with the game failing its console certification with PlayStation and Xbox. The game was initially expected to launch in the summer of 2023, before certification issues pushed the likely release to October 2023. XDefiant was delayed again, with the game targeting a 2024 release window.
Ubisoft also held a closed beta in April 2023. In our impressions from the closed beta session, we found that XDefiant would likely find it difficult to stand out in a market saturated with online shooters and dominated by Call of Duty, despite its slick execution.
XDefiant was first announced in 2021, promising “fast-paced 6-v-6 arena combat with faction-based abilities.” The game will go live May 21 at 10am PT/1pm ET, or 10:30 pm IST.
