Skull and Bones and Riders Republic In-Game Events Will Showcase Climate Change Impact

Skull and Bones and Riders Republic will both feature in-game events that highlight the impact of climate change. In recent years, video games have become increasingly active with political movements and global affairs. In 2020, amidst the Black Lives Matter protests, games like Call of Duty featured messages that spread awareness of the social issues that were being loudly discussed around the world. Although some have debated whether or not these messages are actually effective or not, it speaks to the increased visibility of these issues and that publishers are trying to get involved one way or another. Ubisoft looks to be the next major company to get involved with these kinds of matters.

Ubisoft has confirmed it will hold in-game events in Riders Republic and Skull and Bones. The Riders Republic event will be held later this year or early next year, but there won't be any additional warning. Players will be immersed into a wildfire when they boot up the game one day, creating an orange sky, smoke and fog, and make certain areas inaccessible. Players will then be tasked with identifying additional flammable areas within Sequoia National Park and participate in activities to protect them. After Skulls and Bones releases, Ubisoft confirmed that it will feature an in-game event that highlights the issues of "overfishing".

"Our first activation will address resource exploitation, showing what happens in the game world and the real world when the demand for sharks' fins results in the overfishing of sharks," said Ubisoft. "This first activation will be one of the seasonal live events in the game, designed to show and encourage collaboration, and instill in players the importance of raising awareness. As players contribute to community challenges, rewards will be unlocked for all players depending on the overall level of participation."

As of right now, Skull and Bones is rumored to release in November, but no release date has officially been announced. Ubisoft announced the news as part of UN's Playing for the Planet Alliance, a group of video game companies that are working to spread awareness regarding climate change.

What do you think of these in-game events? Let me know in the comments or hit me up on Twitter @Cade_Onder.