Ubisoft kills its PC launcher for Steam releases, starting with Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown
One less launcher eating RAM, one less login screen between you and 60fps
Ubisoft announced it's removing the Ubisoft Connect launcher requirement for games bought on Steam. Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown is the first to get the treatment — buy it on Steam, click play, and you're in. No second launcher popup. No separate login. The change goes live with the next update.
This only applies to new Steam purchases. If you already own The Lost Crown (or any Ubisoft game) on Steam, you still need Ubisoft Connect. The company hasn't said when — or if — it'll retrofit older titles. Future releases will ship without the launcher from day one.
It's a welcome shift. Launcher overhead isn't huge on modern hardware, but it's one more failure point for login servers, one more password to juggle, and one more process eating RAM while you're trying to hit your frame target. Fewer moving parts means fewer things that can break at 2 a.m. when you just want to play.
If you're running The Lost Crown and had stutters tied to background launcher processes, check your settings one more time after the patch. We've got an updated playbook for Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown that strips the fat and keeps frames high.