Watch Dogs Coming In 2013?

One of the highlights for E3 was Ubisoft's sandbox action game Watch Dogs. Unfortunately, we might have to wait a long time to play this game. Ubisoft provided a 2013 release window but quickly retracted it.

When they showed off the first gameplay demo for Watch Dogs on Monday, Ubisoft declined to mention a release window. Then, the the official Watch Dogs twitter (via GT) reported that the game would arrive in 2013 on PC and consoles.

The tweet has since been removed, though. It looks like they don't want to make any promises before they're sure of a 2013 release. Argh.

Watch Dogs imagines a near future in which all people live under constant surveillance. All electronic devices are hooked to a central operating system called ctOS. Watch Dogs' protagonist has figured out a way to control this system and he'll utilize this power to unravel a conspiracy.

The scale of the game seems massive. You're able to wander the city and manipulate electronic devices in order to complete missions. For example, you can change traffic lights to make an enemy's car crash or disrupt cell phones to distract guards. The amount of player freedom promised by the game's premise makes a lengthy development understandable. Granted, Ubisoft Montreal has some experience with open-world games from Assassin's Creed and Far Cry but Watch Dogs seems to offer a radically different experience than those two titles.