XDefiant fans hoping the Ubisoft FPS was going to make the 2023 calendar year have had their dreams dashed after an update from executive producer Mark Rubin revealed the game’s party system and netcode had thrown a spanner in the works.
It’s been over a month since the last update to the game’s development was given, but as Rubin explained in a Dec. 5 tweet, the XDefiant team has been hard at work ironing out the kinks that have stalled the FPS’ much-anticipated release. “I know people were excited to play after the last test and so I know it’s tough having to wait,” Rubin began, before detailing the issues he and his team have encountered.
The main issue XDefiant devs had encountered involved the game’s party system; an essential feature that allows players to party up with friends regardless of platform. The feature has been breaking down when inviting players from other consoles. To try and resolve the ongoing party issues, Rubin and the XDefiant dev team have been forced to turn to other systems in other Ubisoft titles instead. While the game could have launched without this feature, Rubin thought it would be too strange to have a multiplayer title without parties.
He also mentioned improvements needed to be made to the game’s netcode—a particular element dissuading players after a patchy open beta experience. Rubin puts the issue down to a “critical bug” in XDefiant’s security software designed to uncover hackers. “This bug was manifesting itself as random frame spikes,” Rubin explained, adding the team was also in the process of shifting to Linux server infrastructure and had “one last bug to fix” regarding server stability.
Unfortunately, with the team taking time off for the holidays, hopes for a 2023 release have been quashed. “When we are back… we will be testing for submission, fixing any last-minute bugs, and then getting everything ready to go live,” Rubin said.
After originally stating the game would be ready to go in the summer, delays after issues arose during a beta test pushed the title back to October where it would face stiff competition against the Modern Warfare 3 release. Another delay on Oct. 10 due to “inconsistencies in the game experience” meant XDefiant would also miss its November date. Given how well-received MW3’s multiplayer has been, it’s probably for the best XDefiant dodged the FPS giant.
Given the mention the team plans on going hard with marketing in anticipation of XDefiant’s release, it’s pretty safe to assume we’re at least two to three months out from getting our hands on the first-person shooter again.
The question is, with competitors like Call of Duty and THE FINALS likely up and running at full steam by then, will players’ waning interest hold up for XDefiant’s release?
It’s going to take an incredibly smooth launch and something truly groundbreaking for XDefiant to crack the FPS gaming sphere like it was on track to do back in August. Only time will tell whether it can recapture its audience by then.
