{"id":66883,"date":"2014-05-20T18:19:14","date_gmt":"2014-05-20T16:19:14","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/onsoftware.en.softonic.com\/?p=66883"},"modified":"2025-07-02T00:41:06","modified_gmt":"2025-07-02T07:41:06","slug":"watch-dogs-aiden-pearce-is-another-boring-anti-hero","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cms-articles.softonic.io\/en\/watch-dogs-aiden-pearce-is-another-boring-anti-hero\/","title":{"rendered":"Watch Dogs’ Aiden Pearce is another boring anti-hero"},"content":{"rendered":"

I must confess: I was impressed when Ubisoft introduced Watch Dogs to the press at E3 2012<\/a>. Two long years later, I’ve completely changed my mind<\/strong>. Frankly, with just a week left until it’s release, I don\u2019t expect much from this new game.<\/p>\n

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\nAs I said back then<\/a>, I followed Watch Dogs closely during its development. Where the game once created surprise and expectation, it all seems to have blown away in the past few months.<\/p>\n

The gaming world has changed a lot<\/a> in two years, and the tricks<\/strong> of the new Ubi game no longer impress me. Why am I not particularly fond of Watch Dogs? Let me explain why I won’t be lining up on May 27th to buy the game.<\/p>\n

A sedated Tom Cruise<\/h3>\n

The game’s creators have said it themselves<\/a>: \u00a0it won\u2019t be easy to grow attached to Aiden Pearce, the Watch Dogs anti-hero. Personally, I feel no empathy<\/strong> for this sedated Tom Cruise clone. Taciturn, rough, and with an explosive temper, it almost makes me miss the deplorable Ezio from Assassin’s Creed II<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"Watch<\/p>\n

I feel no empathy for this Tom Cruise clone on Valium.<\/em><\/p>\n

Do we know anything about his personality, his desires, or motivations? Apart from a vague story of revenge<\/strong>, we have nothing. At a time when video games give life to heroes as complex and intricate as those in Papers, Please<\/a>, The Last of Us or The Walking Dead<\/a>, the Watch Dogs hero seems like a relic of the past.<\/p>\n

United Colors of Ubisoft\u2122<\/em><\/h3>\n

In addition to his unpleasant personality, our poor hero Aiden seems to be a victim of a typical pathology we find in games from the previous generation: he is the stereotype<\/strong> of your average white male hero in his thirties, a change for Ubisoft, who, in the past, wouldn\u2019t hesitate to include characters of a Persian<\/a>, Arab<\/a>, American-Indian <\/a>or Caribbean<\/a> descent.
\n\"Video<\/em><\/p>\n

The average hero with brown hair in his thirties, or, zero originality in gaming.<\/em><\/p>\n

I won’t even mention all the other stereotypical characters we find in the game, with the Asian assassin<\/a>,\u00a0African-American gang leader<\/a>, and\u00a0punk hacker<\/a>.<\/p>\n

No imagination<\/h3>\n

Becoming a character who spends his days playing with a smartphone doesn\u2019t make me dream. That\u2019s what I do in reality all day. All things considered, Watch Dogs is more depressing<\/strong> than anything else.<\/p>\n

\"Watch<\/p>\n

I found an open wi-fi… Yippee!<\/em><\/p>\n

The game takes place in a future that is so close to the present, that most of the super powers<\/em> of our dear Aiden aren’t really that extraordinary. So, yes, while the game may be more realistic, I think I’d quickly get bored<\/strong> if my options are limited to disrupting traffic, creeping Facebook accounts that belong to people I don\u2019t know, or watching videos from surveillance cameras.<\/p>\n

All quiet on the Western front\u2026<\/h3>\n

\"watch<\/p>\n

Aiden Pearce\u2019s hallucinations remind me of Saints Row and GTA missions…<\/em><\/p>\n

Although Ubisoft\u2019s game will launch\u00a0May 27th<\/strong>, you can experience some of its key mechanics playing other games that are already available. Inspiration? Emulation? Coincidence? Judge for yourselves.<\/p>\n

Assassin’s Creed (doesn\u2019t matter which)<\/strong><\/p>\n

In each episode of this excellent saga, you become a vigilante on the margins of society throughout an adventure rooted in the real world<\/strong> that will lead to a more complicated plot. Sound familiar?<\/p>\n