XDefiant could finally go toe-to-toe with Call of Duty in 2024
The shooter genre is in a state of flux right now, and anyone can admit that some new competition could be just what players need. After a few periods of shakiness over the years, Call of Duty once again has total dominion over the space.
Even though tactical shooters like Rainbow Six Siege and VALORANT have their place, arcade shooters have been cornered for too long. XDefiant proved itself as a fascinating competitor to Call of Duty, bringing free-to-play arcade action to life in its multiplayer beta with squads styled after factions across Ubisoft's many franchises.
XDefiant was a compelling idea, and it seemed to work for a while before players trailed off near the end of the beta. But now, it looks like it's time for the game to strike back for good and secure a full release to potentially rival CoD in 2024.
XDefiant finally has a release window
Click to enlargeA new earnings call from Ubisoft has opened a window that fans can peek through to the inside of the gaming giant's business workings - and along the way, it has revealed some interesting details.
Most compelling of the bunch is the news about the launch of XDefiant, the free shooter title that has sat dormant since the closure of its beta in June 2023. The company hasn't announced a release date, but rather a deadline for the game's launch. It's a quick turnaround has shocked fans of the game.
XDefiant is confirmed to be released at some point between now (February 9) and March 31, 2024. This means that the game could have a good headstart on Call of Duty's rumoured Black Ops Gulf War release later in the year.
Ubisoft appears to have fixed XDefiant's Netcode problems
Following the closure of the XDefiant beta, the team clearly had a lot of work to do in order to make the game ready to ship, and it looks as though they've made some big moves to make that happen.
Mark Rubin, former Call of Duty Executive Producer, moved to work on the competitor and has an update. On Twitter in January, Rubin explained that the Netcode issues that had been reported had been addressed. That's along with a new addition of a fresh party system to the game.
There may still be work to do on XDefiant, but the release of the game isn't that far off. With Ubisoft's shooter apparently here within two months, the team will have to get cracking. Get ready for war.
