When Ubisoft first revealed Watch Dogs Legion's unique "NPC" gameplay, it seems safe to say it quickly became one of the most anticipated games of 2020. But then it was hit with an indefinite delay and mum's been the world ever since. All eyes are now on Assassin's Creed Valhalla, but reports do indicate that Watch Dogs will also release by this time next year.
Everything that has been shown so far paints an interesting and unique picture. Not only do players jump from character to character, with there being no main protagonist, but these characters range from an assassins granny to a NPC who randomly dies. Permadeath is also a legitimate thing, so Watch Dogs Legion is shaping up to be a new challenge rooted in the franchise's identity, with the classes adapting these identities into something unique.
Watch Dogs: Aiden Pearce and Marcus Holloway
Watch Dogs Legion may be devoid of a primary protagonist, but that hasn't been the case for past entries. The first game put players into the role of Aiden Pearce, a vigilante hacker who could do it all. He was stealthy enough to be mixed up with an assassin, he was high-tech enough to know that he wasn't, and when it came down to a gunfight, Pearce wasn't afraid. Watch Dogs 2 had a more...passive tone to the general feel, with non-lethal tactics being pushed over lethal ones, and Marcus Holloway being a lot less intense than Pearce. Nonetheless, he boiled down in similar terms: he was stealthy, was high tech enough to 3D print guns, and wasn't bad in a gunfight.
Reasonably speaking, that's a lot of skills for any single person, so it comes with a realistic twang that the 'NPCs' of Watch Dogs Legion have one of three classes (at least as revealed so far) that boil down these elements that made the first two games wholly Watch Dogs.
Watch Dogs Legion Classes
In Watch Dogs Legion, players will be able to take control of a plethora of characters, some of which will have unique details and abilities. Boiling them down comes out as three classes, though: the Enforcer, the Hacker, and the Infiltrator. These classes are rather self-evident, with the Enforcer focusing on combat, the Hacker focusing on all things related to electronics, and the Infiltrator being a sneaky class. These alone make it clear how they related to Pearce and Holloway, but that's a good thing.
These classes will influence gameplay, and across these NPCS, there will be similarities. But the unique skills found in Watch Dogs Legion, the unique characters, and all that will realistically bring these NPCS to life. One concern with such gameplay is how involved players can become with these characters, but the inclusion of permadeath, unique characters, and more will balance this out. Including the lifeblood into the core gameplay mechanics will help establish that, and so while the classes may not be "new," that Watch Dogs identity is all worth it.
Watch Dogs Legion is in development.