Ubisoft explains why Brexit London is the perfect backdrop for Watch Dogs Legion

Leading the charge for the Ubisoft E3 2019 press conference was a brand new title in the publisher's hacking series, Watch Dogs Legion. It's set in a post-Brexit alternative near future for the English capital of London, and we spoke to Sean Crooks, producer on Watch Dogs Legion to ask exactly why London makes such a compelling backdrop for the series.   

"London is one of the most surveilled cities in the world," said Crooks. "Also, its cultural backdrop, its history, the contrast between modern culture and very old English architecture is very intriguing. So when we look at the cities where we could possibly set this game all of those elements really made it stand out."

However, it's the unsettled nature of Brexit and the shadow it casts over Britain that really made it appealing to the team over at Ubisoft Montreal. 

"All the elements in the world that you see are based off lots of real-world problems that eventually contribute towards Brexit. So autonomy and loss of jobs because of it, global warming, all the other events that you see worldwide happening today," explained Cross. "I feel that all of those events that contribute towards Brexit also contribute towards the world state of Watch Dogs Legion. But, it's not just that, it's about everything that's happening in the world today and all of it has culminated to this one situation, a possible future, of Watch Dogs Legion."

It's not specified exactly when this high-tech, highly dystopian version of London is supposed to exist, but it's a scary look at how bad it could all get if drones, AI automation and more come into existence in the wake of Brexit madness. 

Want more Ubisoft goodness? Why not check out our pick of the best new games of 2019 and beyond?