If you click on a link and make a purchase we may receive a small commission. Read our editorial policy.

Assassin's Creed Mega Bloks deal to expand brand's audience to kids

Assassin's Creed is a mature-rated franchise, because it's about killing people, but Ubisoft is hoping to bring younger fans into the fold.

assassins_creed_mega_bloks

The Assassin's Creed Mega Bloks set announced earlier this year is an example of how Ubisoft is trying to get kids interested in the brand, according to Ubisoft international brand manager Yannick Spagna.

Speaking on a panel at the GameOn Finance conference in Toronto last week, as reported by GamesIndustry, Spagna said Assassin's Creed isn't in need of the extra revenue licensing deals brings in.

"On a big IP, like Assassin's Creed or that type of game, I think now the idea is to reach a maximum of people, so it's not about needing advertisement to get additional revenue," he said.

"For big IPs, smart brands are the best partners. They do a line with Mega Bloks together. On their side, it's nice because toys are looking for the hype around video games. And we are looking for a new audience: kids, children, it's more like that."

Speaking to GI later, Spagna emphasised that Assassin's Creed the game is not suitable for kids, but the brand is, in the same way that kids too young for The Lord of the Rings films and books can still enjoy the merchandise.

"If you think about it, we could even do an Assassin's Creed game tailored for kids. Imagine a Lego game," he mused.

"It would mean changing a lot of things. I played hours and hours of Lego Lord of the Rings, and you kill people but not kill people, because they're Lego characters."

I feel Ubisoft may have something of a hard sell ahead of it with parents of young kids. After all, The Lords of the Rings does not have a word directly related to murder in its title.

Sign in and unlock a world of features

Get access to commenting, homepage personalisation, newsletters, and more!

Related topics
About the Author
Brenna Hillier avatar

Brenna Hillier

Contributor

Based in Australia and having come from a lengthy career in the Aussie games media, Brenna worked as VG247's remote Deputy Editor for several years, covering news and events from the other side of the planet to the rest of the team. After leaving VG247, Brenna retired from games media and crossed over to development, working as a writer on several video games.

Comments