Assassin's Creed Unity's digital recreation of Notre-Dame could help in rebuilding efforts

Following the heart-breaking disaster that was the fire that engulfed the Notre-Dame de Paris, Ubisoft has decided to donate €500,000 “to help with the restoration and reconstruction of the Cathedral.” Along with the donation, Ubisoft is also giving away Assassin’s Creed Unity for free on PC. [caption id=“attachment_6467501” align=“alignnone” width=“1280”]  Notre-Dame cathedral in Assassin’s Creed Unity. Image: Ubisoft.[/caption] But what’s the game got to do with it, you ask? Assassin’s Creed Unity is set in Paris in 1789 during the French Revolution. The protagonist Arno, gets caught in the Revolution that eventually takes him into the ranks of an Assassin. It included some important historical events like the storming of the Bastille and the execution of King Louis XVI. Considering how important the Cathedral is to Paris, the game featured an almost perfect digital replica of the building. Ubisoft game designers literally spent years recreating the cathedral as a 1:1 digital replica within the game. While there are some differences – the in-game cathedral is represented as it was in the 1800s – it’s still one of the best approximations we have. Given the damage to the real-world cathedral, historians and restorers should be able to bank on Ubisoft’s vast trove of data on the structure. The idea of being able to walk inside the Notre-Dame and climb the spires will sound incredible for people who haven’t played the game. If you wish to explore the cathedral and of course, play the entire game,  Assassin’s Creed Unity can be claimed for free from Uplay, Ubisoft’s gaming client. The offer will be running between 17 April at 07:30 pm to 25 April at 12:30 pm IST. If you claim the copy during this period, you will own the game and it will stay in your Uplay library forever. The offer isn’t available on Steam.