The physical version of Assassin’s Creed Shadows requires an online connection to install

Assassin’s Creed Shadows is the latest high profile single-player game that requires an online connection to install.

Pre-orders for Ubisoft’s game went live today coinciding with the announcement of its November 15, 2024, release date.

“Internet required to install the game,” reads a message on the box art for the product on retailers including GameStop and Best Buy.

While it’s not specified why players need an internet connection to install the game, this was also the case with Ubisoft’s Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora, and one will be required for Star Wars Outlaws too.

In Avatar’s case, a one-time internet connection was needed to download a day one patch in order to start playing the game.

For many players this won’t be an issue, as their systems are almost permanently connected online.

However, like other games that require online connections to play, it does raise issues of preservation, as if its servers are turned off down the line, it appears that the game will no longer be playable.

In March, Ubisoft said it was “decommissioning” online-only game The Crew “due to upcoming server infrastructure and licensing constraints”.

Further reading

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Ubisoft has delisted The Crew, which will no longer be playable from April 2024

Update: Ubisoft says it's necessary to shut down The Crew “due to upcoming server infrastructure and licensing constraints”

In response to such practices, the government has said that games companies have “no legal requirement in UK law compelling [them] to support older products.”

In addition to unveiling Assassin’s Creed Shadows and its two playable characters, Ubisoft today announced that it has cancelled The Division Heartland.