One less launcher to open

Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown is the first Ubisoft game on Steam that does not need the Ubisoft Connect launcher. A background tool called Ubisoft Connect Services takes its place.

The features still come along

Cross-progression, cross-play, player safety, challenges and rewards all keep working. Ubisoft split the services from the app you had to log into.

“without requiring the Ubisoft Connect PC launcher to be installed or launched”

Ubisoft calls it step one

The company frames this as a first version and says it will keep iterating. Read that as: more games should follow if this one goes well.

“This first version is an initial step toward a smoother and more streamlined launch experience on Steam”

Nobody loved the middleman

Ubisoft Connect, the EA app, even the well-liked GoG Galaxy. Almost nobody opens a second client by choice just to reach a different shelf of games.

“You can use Ubisoft Connect to launch your games... but if you tell me you do, I'd think you a liar.”

Steam Machine is the real target

Handhelds and Steam Machine run games through Proton, where extra login layers break things. Killing the second client makes Ubisoft games work there and cuts support tickets.

Steam comments went positive

The announcement thread is almost all praise, with some players saying they will buy Ubisoft games again. Goodwill is something Ubisoft has been short on lately.

The catch nobody fixed

The Connect service underneath is unchanged, so family sharing may still misbehave and single-player games will likely still want an internet connection.