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Ubisoft's latest sales report details the company's proposed fourth quarter fiscal year releases -- the period beginning January 1, 2010 until March 31, 2010. It's pretty much everything we expected, with profits for Ubisoft relying on four key titles, three of which are on the PC platform: Assassin's Creed II: Director's Cut, Red Steel 2, The Settlers 7: Paths to a Kingdom and Silent Hunter 5: Battle for the Atlantic.

However, other notable titles will also release during this window, including Racquet Sports and the upcoming Assassin's Creed 2: Multiplayer on iPhone -- oh, and a bunch of new Imagine games, obviously. Outside of detailing these games, Ubisoft also announced that its popular Anno series is coming to the iPhone. Exact details on the game haven't been revealed, but it's a safe bet that city planning and real-time strategy will somehow be involved. Head past the break for the full list of releases.

Source - Ubisoft Q3 sales report [PDF link]

According to a recent Ubisoft press release, launched alongside its Q3 earnings report, either this year or the next will see the introduction of what may be the company's most profitable property to date -- Imagine Town, an online extension of the popular series of casual DS games. Little is known about the platform so far, though the presser stipulates that it will be "a virtual world" which will be seamlessly folded into "UbiWorld™, the portal dedicated to young girls." (In any other context, that would be an extremely creepy thing to say.)

We realize this news probably means very, very little to you, so allow us to frame it to you in a different way: Imagine Town is going to be the thing that lets Ubisoft afford to make Beyond Good & Evil 2. See, now you're interested.

Or, it'll be a Holiday 2010 present, depending on how heavily you drop those hints and how desirable you find Ghost Recon: Future Soldier's "cutting-edge technology, prototype high-tech weaponry, and state-of-the-art single-player and multiplayer modes." Developed by the GRAW veterans at Ubisoft Paris, Future Soldier promises to "go beyond the core Ghost Recon franchise and deliver a fresh gameplay experience, with an unparalleled level of quality that will excite long-time fans and newcomers alike." Yes, this is definitely from a press release.

A multiplayer beta is scheduled to start in Summer 2010, with invitations tied to another of Ubisoft's freshened franchises, Splinter Cell: Conviction (which is but a stone's throw away from release). The offer is currently extended only to the Xbox 360 version of Conviction -- and aside from Microsoft's system, no platforms have been explicitly mentioned in Future Soldier's announcement. He's from the future, so Facebook is a likely candidate.

Update: According to one of Ubisoft's Twitter accounts, the "same experience, same development team and same release date" will be coming to PlayStation 3. Ubisoft's Kimi Matsuzaki also noted that PC details would come "later."

The news, as presented in EndWar voice-command style:

-- VG247, report, EndWar sequel, halted.

-- Ubisoft, elaborate, "on the backburner."

-- Joystiq, clarify, "on the backburner?"

*END TRANSMISSION*

The first Far Cry may seem a bit ancient if you've never played it before, but Far Cry 2 is still a very viable source for securing your quota of fun. Each are 50 percent off on Steam this weekend -- Far Cry for $5 and Far Cry 2: Fortune's Edition for $10.

If you're wondering what all of the hullabaloo is about, this collection of words should help clear it up for you. Or you could just check out this image in our gallery. If you click through the images fast enough, it's almost like you're playing the game!

Okay, internet, deep breath. In. Out. Good. Now, the news: It turns out that the recently revealed iPhone title, Assassin's Creed II: Multiplayer, is totally, 100 percent NOT the multiplayer Assassin's Creed game that Ubisoft announced last month. While Ubisoft didn't see fit to respond to our (multiple) inquiries, the company informed MTV's Multiplayer that the two different projects are, in fact, two different projects. Specifically, when asked if the iPhone game and the multiplayer project were the same, an Ubisoft representative responded, "Nope."

Of course, that doesn't mean it's not another iPhone game. We'll just have to wait and see.

Word around the campfire is that Splinter Cell: Conviction has a release date. No, for real this time. Those other two times were just to test your resolve. According to IGN, Ubisoft has announced Sam Fisher's latest adventure will hit the Xbox 360 and PC on April 13, 2010. Poking fun at itself, Ubisoft evidently delivered a rock with the new date etched on one side to the site. Get it? The date is set in stone! Oh, those crazy French-Canadians!

If you're asking yourself, "Where's Joystiq's rock?," the answer is simple: Had Ubisoft delivered one to us, we'd use it to break the windows at the Ubisoft Montreal offices for making us wait this long for Badass: The Game. This way is just safer.

We thought that, for a change, we'd give you the facts before we got into the crazy, reactionary speculation. There is a page on Ubisoft's website announcing an odd-looking, top-down multiplayer game for the iPhone called Assassin's Creed II: Multiplayer. In it, you attempt to kill three other players across WiFi before they kill you. Last month, Ubisoft announced a new Assassin's Creed game with a multiplayer mode that would feature Assassin's Creed II star Ezio. It did not note a platform. OK, facts out of the way.

BWAH?! It's not, right? No, they can't be the same thing. At least, we're pretty sure they're not. ... You know what? We're just going to call Ubisoft. Well, it's early on the West Coast yet. We'll email. Don't you worry, dear reader, we're going to get this all sorted out.

[Via Touch Arcade; thanks, Colmiak]

Like, for serious this time! We know the game initially snuck into the App Store, only to evade our attempts to download by vanishing into the night almost as quickly as it came, but now it's back for good. Ubisoft has announced that iPhone and iPod Touch users can now download Assassin's Creed II: Discovery for $9.99 -- around twice the cost of hiring a pack of 15th-century prostitutes to distract some guards for you. Nowadays, you don't even want to know how much that costs. Thanks, inflation!

Download Assassin's Creed II: Discovery - $9.99

First reaction: lolwhut? Of course casual gamerz haven't hurt the hardcore. Hardcore have mad skillz.

Second, more thoughtful reaction: Oh -- Cowen and Company's Doug Creutz was speaking in terms of business. That makes a little more sense. Speaking to Edge, Creutz espoused his belief that "non-traditional" formats like the iPhone and social gaming have not hurt the core gaming market. Rather, said Creutz, "We believe that these newer gaming media represent a distinct and non-competitive market segment from console gaming, which is dominated by the core gamer." He elaborated that while casual titles didn't fare as well in 2009, the sales of core titles were still strong (a reasonable belief).

According to Creutz, the "difficulties" faced by the industry are the result of the "relatively slow uptake" of the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, thanks in large part to their high price points. However, now that both the PS3 and 360 have reached mass market prices, the console cycle will "reaccelerate to the benefit of the publishers that are positioned to take advantage."

Creutz sentiments seem to be in line with many of the major game publishers, as both Capcom and EA have expressed dissatisfaction with the Wii market, with a Capcom spokesperson outright declaring, "If you're not Nintendo, it does seem harder to make money on the Wii today compared to the PS3 and the Xbox 360". Meanwhile, Ubisoft has announced that it plans to "refocus" its efforts on the Xbox 360 and PS3 in 2010.

As spotted by Joystiq's sister site Big Download in a recent gameplay trailer, ex-Ensemble Studios co-founder Bruce Shelley is working on Ubisoft's next installment in the Settlers series, The Settlers 7. Oh, what's that? You've never heard of the Settlers franchise? That's okay, we're right there with you.

Popular in Europe (like Jerry Lewis, but less obnoxious), the city-building sim developed by Blue Byte Software will apparently get Shelley's input as a "game design consultant" -- and considering the pedigree that comes with Shelley, we have to imagine that, If you're into that kind of thing, it's time to start getting totally psyched. The game is currently in beta and will be headed to PCs in "late March."

The sequel to one of the Wii's best (and best-known) games dropped this week with approximately zero fanfare. Yes, No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle is in stores now. Reviews are starting to come in for Suda 51 and Grasshopper Manufacture's latest -- let's find out if the new story and new bosses hold up to the first extraordinarily bizarre game, and if the removal of the navigable Santa Destroy is truly a good thing.

• GameSpy (5/5): " If Metroid Prime can be imprudently named "the 'Citizen Kane' of gaming," this is gaming's "Wu-Tang Forever" -- an intensely focused return to gritty braggadocio form, backed by high production values and a gang of inimitable emcees."
• 1UP (A-): "By being the high-quality, consistently enjoyable action game it wanted to be the first time around, Desperate Struggle is now a must-buy, and at the very least, finally makes the series deserving of the evangelism surrounding it."
• Gamepro (4.5/5): " It's evident from the game's tutorial battle that Suda has paid close attention to what his fans wanted out of a No More Heroes sequel, and Desperate Struggle delivers from start to finish
• Game Informer (8.5): "In interviews about the game, Suda51 implied that he was reluctant to do a sequel -- usually a bad sign -- but perhaps forcing his team to focus on refining a single idea was the best thing that could have happened. In No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle, they have crafted everything fans could want out of a sequel. All the bad stuff from the original is gone or fixed in some way, and all of the good elements are magnified and improved."

Writing for MCV, Ubisoft managing director Rob Cooper has laid out his company's hopes for the UK game industry in the next decade. He writes a great deal on ELSPA's role in championing the industry to the UK government, specifically regarding things like tax breaks and game rating issues. Regarding an issue closer to gamers' hearts, Cooper discussed where games are headed in the years to come. "Where once fuzzy pixels danced around on the screen," says Cooper, "now we expect everything from the visuals and sound effects to the dialogue of our characters – along with the emotions they can portray – to be more finely tuned."

He cautions the industry however, noting that such finely tuned products require higher studio costs. He elaborates that there is "no point" in raising game budgets if they cause profits to dwindle or, more importantly for consumers, cause prices to become "horrifically high." We're inclined to agree.

It's an interesting piece, and definitely worth a read for anyone who enjoys a little inside baseball.

Initially scrapped from the main game due to time constraints, Battle of Forli seems like an acceptable casualty in Ubisoft's war to complete Assassin's Creed 2. Considering the grandeur of Ezio's quest, it's easy to see why this man got left behind -- or woman, rather.

In a significant upgrade from her brief role as glorified gondola tutorial, Caterina Sforza assumes the role of leader and custodian of Forli, the drab, melancholy settlement that acted as a rest stop on the way to Venice in Assassin's Creed 2. Ezio's unacknowledged meddling with 15th-century history proves to be the biggest draw of this DLC subplot, even though most of his participation involves putting sharp things through soft spots.

PC gamers have long been vocal about intrusive DRM programs hidden in their games. With illegal game downloads in the millions, publishers are desperately trying to find new solutions in the war against piracy. Ubisoft's upcoming The Settlers 7 will introduce a new DRM model for the company, one that doesn't require disc authentication and allows multiple installations across multiple systems. "If you own a hundred PCs, you can install your games on a hundred PCs," Ubisoft's Brent Wilkinson told GameSpy.

Central to Ubisoft's new DRM plan is its online integration. Like select Steam games, Ubisoft will require players to log-in with a Ubi.com account in order to play, even for single-player games. As a plus, the online connectivity allows saves to be stored on Ubisoft's servers, meaning players can resume a game from any computer they own. Wilkinson dismissed concerns that some players may not have a ready internet connection: "We think most people are going to be fine with it. Most people are always connected to an Internet connection."

But just in case you aren't, may we suggest AOL dial-up? It's the future, we swear!

[Via BigDownload]