Ubisoft has closed the free games promotion for the time being. If you haven't already activated your free game install, it won't work. We'll have more news on these games if and when they become available again! Here's the official word from Ubi:

The Ubisoft Labor Day promotion for US residents only making the PC games Prince of Persia: Sands of Time, Far Cry, and Rayman Raving Rabbids available for ad-supported freeplay has now closed. Thank you for your interest in the program. For more information about these and other Ubisoft titles, please visit http://www.ubi.com.

My original post follows:

Just before the weekend kicked off, Ubisoft quietly launched a series of titles that -- I can almost guarantee -- will shake up the games business. You can now play the full versions of Far Cry (single-player), Prince of Persia: Sands of Time, and Rayman: Raving Rabbids for FREE on your PC. [Download links removed]


Of course there's no such thing as a free lunch. The games are supported by advertising -- visible in the menus or during the loading time between levels. There are even short video ads. (If there was such a thing as a free lunch, it would probably taste a lot like McDonalds -- one of the major sponsors you'll see as you play the games.) Because the games are paid for by advertising, you can only play them if you're in the U.S. for the time being and you'll have to keep a live 'net connection (no word yet on whether or not ads will roll out for other regions). Don't want ads wrecking your Far Cry experience? Just buy the game for $10 bucks. Either way is a good deal; How you want to play is up to you.

Ubisoft is being relatively quiet about its new experiment in game distribution, but I think these games will have a big impact. And not just because the free version of Far Cry was downloaded over 80,000 times in one weekend. For years game developers and publishers have wrestled with what to do with 'back-catalog' games. (Warren Spector had a great rant back at GDC 2005 that still sticks with me). There's no aftermarket for games: after a few weeks on the shelf, they slide into a bargain bin, and then disappear from stores altogether. It's not like the movie industry, where international releases, pay-per-view, premium cable, DVD-releases, rental, and network television premieres all contribute to a film's bottom line well after its heyday in the box office.

But Ubisoft is trying to change the game. And they're bringing out the big guns! Prince of Persia: Sands of Time may be four years old, but it was one of the best titles of the last console generation and the graphics hold up great today. Similarly, Far Cry was one of the best PC games of 2004 and still looks (and plays) spectacular. These are Ubisoft's biggest names and best franchises, the bread-and-butter of the company. By turning them into ad-supported products, they're brought back into the spotlight (great for driving up hype for sequels). But more importantly, they start bringing in some revenue again. Depending on how popular the ad-supported versions are, Ubisoft can start raking in ad sales.

As gamers, you and I don't really care about how and where Ubisoft makes some cash. But we DO care that games like this can continue to make money. If publishers can count on more revenue from each product, they can afford to be more creative and take more risks. This is a good thing all around -- another way to get us out of the current rut of sequels and licenses. Gamers who can't afford to buy tons of games can enjoy big hits for free, and publishers are able to count on more revenue per title.

What happens next? The industry is waiting to see what's going to happen with Ubisoft's experiment, but afterwards, you're likely to see more and more of yesterday's big titles made available as free downloads. This could be the start of something big.

      -Fargo