Bernd Diemer, who has previously worked on titles such as Crysis, Star Wars: Battlefront 2, Horizon Zero Dawn, and Battlefield V has joined Ubisoft as their new editorial VP. This move to Ubisoft will see Diemer focus on the in-game social experience for players in upcoming service games. In a statement Diemer said:

I am honored to join Ubisoft and gain the opportunity to collaborate with talented global teams to shape the future of social experience in Ubisoft’s games,” said Diemer in a statement… They’re known to be catalysts for dynamic and diverse communities, enabled by innovative features and powerful brands that allow players to come together. I am excited to partner with the group’s teams around the world to bring social experience in our games to new heights.

Bernd Diemer – Editorial VP at Ubisoft

It isn’t a surprising move for Ubisoft to hire Diemer to focus on in-game social experiences as live service games now have the added social challenge of becoming hubs for social communication and events similar to Fortnite. In a press release, Ubisoft’s senior vice president Marie-Sophie de Waubert noted that games are now “more than entertainment.”

Today, games are more than entertainment: they are virtual spaces where people can build connections and share meaningful experiences… Social experience is an increasingly essential element of Ubisoft’s strategy to reach new audiences and we look forward to welcoming Bernd to the Global Creative Office, where he will work closely with our production teams to deliver on our vision of games as places where every player can be their authentic self and find their community.

Marie-Sophie de Waubert – Senior Vice President at Ubisoft

Ubisoft recently announced the cancellation of Project Q, an unannounced PvP project the studio was working on. Despite this, Ubisoft is set to launch 11 different games with varying IPs over the course of the Fiscal Year 2024 (April 2023 – March 2024) such as Assassin’s Creed Mirage and Skull & Bones. It will be interesting to see if Diemer’s involvement stretches over to titles like The Division Heartland and xDefiant. Whether Ubisoft will treat future projects with the same “Metaverse” quality of products like Fortnite will have to remain to be seen but needless to say given Diemer’s recent appointment we may not see any major implementations until further down the line.