It has only been a month since the reveal of Watch Dogs: Legion and you can tell I’ve been very excited by it. I have been since it was revealed the first time in 2017, and the rumors started surrounding it. I’ve also spoken about my own love of the music in Watch_Dogs 2, with Run The Jewels being the best influence to come out of that game. Going so far to say that they have defined the decade, not for their political comments, nor for their more general rap style, but their overall ability to talk about something without being polarizing. However, that’s not why we’re here.

Watch Dogs: Legion presently has a campaign going with HitRecord. You may remember the company that is headed by Joseph Gordon-Levitt, or that guy you’ll confuse for James Gordon in Gotham and was at E3 last year. Levitt, speaking for HitRecord, came out to announce that they are in a partnership with Ubisoft to find content for their upcoming Beyond Good and Evil 2 release. A production (that to our knowledge) is still open, and you can still put contributions towards.

Well, with that Ubisoft have announced they’re continuing their work with HitRecord to find ten music tracks for the upcoming release of another game. With Watch Dogs: Legion set to release this coming March, eight whole months away, they are asking for submissions. In the press briefing by Ubisoft, they detail some frequently asked questions, mostly about money. Each contribution completed, submitted, and installed into the game will be worth $2,000 each.

At the time of writing, the Legion HitRecord page has five pieces in the concept stage from several genres: dark electronic, “battle metal,” uptempo hip-hop, “funk pop,” and aggressive grime. However, all these projects require specific skill sets that are not held by the creators. Some of the skills being asked for (again at the time of writing) are, writers, vocalists, musicians, among other things, but most simply the vocal hook.

One would have to assume that with the January 2020 deadline, there should be more progress than conception. However, if Ubisoft believes that HitRecord is the future of their content, especially player made content, this is how to do it.

Nonetheless, there is one question that is yet to be answered. Is this a cheaper option? I’m not actively trying to tear down the reputation of Ubisoft or HitRecord, however, most established musicians and composers receive royalties or larger sums of money for their productions. When we’re talking about wannabe professionals and active professionals, it is a world of difference. Take, for example, the $2,000 and split that over a small team for one three-minute song. Four people receive $500 each.

Now take the industry standard, according to Careersinmusic.com, composers will receive $30,000+ for what is half an album’s worth of music. This works out to $1,000 a minute, meaning Ubisoft and HitRecord would expect each track to be about two minutes. With a larger team, it still seems to be a cheaper option for Ubisoft in the long run.

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