This is unexpected: Ubisoft is developing an "Animal Crossing" - "Minecraft" crossover

Ubisoft Montreal has been working on a rather atypical game for the studio with the working title "Alterra" for 18 months. This is reported by the magazine "Insider Gaming", citing unnamed sources. There has not yet been an official announcement about the game. However, the magazine has apparently seen early screenshots.

Explore islands, build to your heart's content and interact with others

"Alterra" is said to be inspired by "Animal Crossing" and "Minecraft". It is a voxel-based world in which players can mine resources and build "whatever they want" - similar to "Minecraft". To begin with, you will start on a home island, where you will interact with the NPCs, so-called "Matterlings", following the example of "Animal Crossing".

Later you can leave your home island and explore new islands with different biomes. There you will also find rare materials and Matterlings adapted to the biome. The characters will have large heads on small bodies, reminiscent of Funko Pop figures. "Alterra" is designed as a multiplayer game so that you can play together with others.

The video shows you what is known so far in English. However, the images come from "Animal Crossing", "Minecraft" and "Funko Fusion".

According to "Insider Gaming", "Alterra" has already been in development for 18 months. The release of the new game is not expected for a few years.

How does "Alterra" fit into Ubisoft's strategy?

The last few years have not been easy for games giant Ubisoft. There have been mass redundancies, disappointing sales of the high-potential "Star Wars: Outlaws" and the postponement of the release of "Assassin's Creed: Shadows" until next year. These signs make it clear that Ubisoft is in turbulent waters.

Just six months ago, Ubisoft announced a new strategy. The studio intends to focus on its major open-world series such as "Assassin's Creed" and games-as-a-service (GaaS) titles such as "Rainbow Six Siege". Some games were cancelled as a result. The aim is to minimise risk: popular game series should ensure cash flow and genre experiments are not to be expected.

This is why "Alterra" comes as a surprise. Perhaps Ubisoft wants to take a slice of the "Animal Crossing" and "Minecraft" pie for itself. These two brands are among the most successful games of all time. It is possible that "Alterra" could also develop into a GaaS title, with Ubisoft constantly releasing new content. This could keep players engaged with the game in the long term and generate constant revenue.