Ubisoft Unveils Major Final Update for XDefiant: Essential Patch Notes Inside

Less than two months after affirming it would not occur, Ubisoft recently declared that XDefiant will be shutting down next year – in fact, new users are unable to download or play the game immediately. Nevertheless, the team at Ubisoft San Francisco still has one final update prepared for release, and the patch is currently being deployed across all platforms – including Xbox.

According to our primary report, XDefiant Season 3 features a collaboration with Assassin’s Creed, introducing several new factions to the game; including one based on the company’s famous historical series. It feels unusual to release this update now – but evidently, this content was completed before Ubisoft decided to discontinue the game in summer 2025.

For those who can still play XDefiant until then – here are the complete patch notes for Season 3:

XDefiant Season 3 Patch Notes

Factions

New Faction: Assassins

• Hiding in plain sight for centuries, the Assassins have fought a secret war against their ancient foes, the Templars, to ensure human freedom. Assassins blend rigorous combat training, unique weaponry, and an intuitive sense to locate and eliminate their targets. Their iconic Hidden Blade enables a one-hit melee kill.
• The Assassins receive combat guidance from Rebecca Crane, the brilliant mind behind the Animus 2.0, an advanced version of the device allowing Assassins to relive genetic memories. She mentored some of the series’ most well-known Assassins, including Desmond Miles. With Crane’s expertise, the Assassins operate in the shadows to defend the light, fighting oppression with lethal force.

New Faction: Wolves

• Former special forces turned rogue, Wolves utilize a range of Skell Tech drones for offensive and defensive actions. The Wolves’ trait allows the pack to remain undetected by AI capabilities and gadgets. Their Legion drone functions like a homing proximity mine, while the Stolas serves as a mobile turret. Finally, their formidable Drone Swarm provides unparalleled area denial.

New Faction: Blood Dragon

• Highly lethal cyber commandos from a dystopian future where cyborgs and mutants converge. Use your cyberstrength, throw deadly shuriken, strike with your shock punch, or deploy the Killstar laser to inflict massive damage.

Fixes and Adjustments:

Cleaners

Resolved several system issues with the Cleaners’ Incinerator Drone when Hijacked by a DedSec player:

• The Drone no longer explodes next to the player who Hijacked it.
• The Drone now leaves a complete fire trail back to its point of origin.

Echelon

• No longer suffers a 50% reduction in flash grenade duration debuff.

Phantoms

• AEGIS – Addressed an issue where shots were not registering at close range.
• Blitz – Increased movement speed to truly “Blitz” your opponent.

DedSec

• Spiderbots 2.0 – We heard your feedback. Spiderbots, DedSec’s notoriously irritating electro-minions, are now less intrusive and more of an area-denial threat. When activated, Spiderbots will now follow their deploying player for 30 seconds, emitting an electromagnetic pulse that disrupts all enemy equipment within a 10-meter radius. Thus, the era of Spiderbot face-hugging comes to an end.

Highwaymen

• M79

1. Fixed a glitch that could prevent the ability from activating immediately after a weapon swap.
2. This should now deal damage while at different elevations.
3. Improved handling and reload speed.
4. Cooldown reduced to 40 seconds.

• Buzzsaw Launcher

1. Increased ammo capacity.
2. Resolved issues related to damage inconsistencies.

Maps

New S3 Maps

• Mykonos (Arena): Experience the island of Mykonos just like the ancient Greeks did, albeit with more rooftop skirmishes, in this new setting for Season 3. Your journey includes racing through market stalls, seeking rooftop access for elevated positions, and leaping across boat decks in high-risk flanking maneuvers.
• El Barrio (Arena)
• Jorvik (Linear)
• Animus Anomaly (Tactical): Where worlds collide in Animus Anomaly, a new corridor-style map for Season 3. Take shelter among Viking castles, navigate the waterways of ancient Greece, or stand out in the new Defuse tactical variant of BOMB!.

Upcoming Maps – These maps were originally planned for future seasons but are too enjoyable to hold off on!

Arena

• Carlyle’s Lab
• Enchanted Woodland
• Killstar Temple
• Razia’s Realm
• Skell City
• West End

Linear

• Skell Complex
• Esperanza
• Himalaya

Fixes and Adjustments:

• Changes have been made to invisible collisions and areas where players could jump to locations that were beyond the intended bounds of the map.
• Modifications to some maps where scrap turrets were improperly placed.
• DUMBO has decorated the space to be more festive for the holidays.
• Players can no longer climb or jump into areas that were meant to be inaccessible in some maps, where they were using El Remedio to heal teammates and engaging in other sneaky exploits.
• Many maps have undergone improvements to mantling, which should now be reliable in various locations that were previously unworkable.
• Map voting enhancements.

Game Modes

New Modes:

Defuse

• This season welcomes the introduction of Defuse, a tactical and slower-paced variation of BOMB!. Teams take turns planting and defending bomb sites, but every player has only one life. Defuse is designed for play on a new “corridor” style map, in this case, the Animus Anomaly created specifically for this category.

Vs

• Details coming soon…

Bots

• There’s now a Vs Bots option where you can also compete against various levels of computer opponents. You’ll even earn XP by battling bots, although at a slower pace compared to human adversaries.

Lum Hunt

• Capture them while you can; Lums (entities of pure energy with an extraordinarily cheerful demeanor) have been scattered around the Enchanted Woodland in this version of Hot Shot. They are also available in Private Matches.

Tilt

• Now featured in our Linear playlists, this mode is a simultaneous contest over who can push Carlos the most, poor robot.

Turbo XD

• Soar your way to triumph in this gravity-defying mode.

New Event Modes Playlist

• From one-shot kills to headshots only, and even no abilities allowed, there’s a little something for everyone in this playlist. With no one around to name them, we wish you the very best of luck figuring them out.

Fixes and Adjustments:

• Team balancing has been revamped to ensure the fairest matchups.

BOMB!

• Numerous quality-of-life improvements have been made to the BOMB! spectator camera.
• Planting and defusing behavior has been enhanced to ensure it does not interfere with other game functionalities like checking the scoreboard.

Private Match

• Resolved an issue where the lobby menu would turn blank after another player accepted a private match invitation.
• Now allows you to select the server you wish to play on.

Ranked

Ranked BOMB!

• With Ability Restrictions still in place, we’ve taken it one step further and you will only be permitted to use your skill once per life.
• The round timer in Ranked BOMB! has changed from 2 minutes to 1 minute 30 seconds, plant and defuse times adjusted, and Round 11 will go to the highest scoring team.

Top 500 Leaderboard

• Season 3 marks the introduction of the Top 500 leaderboard, showcasing the top 500 players globally each season as they progress through the ranks until the season concludes. These elite players are displayed in descending order of total Negative Points earned in the current season. Highlighting a player on the Leaderboard reveals the following stats:

1. Current rank insignia and RP total.
2. Win/Loss: Player’s ratio of victories to defeats.
3. Kills/Deaths: Player’s ratio of kills to fatalities.
4. Average Score/Minute: Player’s average points per minute.
5. MVPs: Number of times the player has received MVP status.

Ranked Badge in HUD

• Show off your ranked tier right in your heads-up display for everyone to see.

New Ranked Rewards

• Exclusive Season 3 specific Ranked Rewards are now available (for all players).

Fixes and Adjustments:

• Matchmaking levels have been disabled, and joining for development has been enabled to make matches easier to find.
• The forfeit timer duration has been reduced from 20 seconds to 5 seconds.
• Players are no longer removed from active Ranked game sessions after accepting an event invite for a Private Match.
• A new menu experience has been added, allowing players to view games and return to the Ranked menu tab to claim rewards, check stats, and explore the Top 500 leaderboard.
• Domination and CTF have been removed from Ranked playlists.

Weapons

Assault Rifle

• FAMAS – The FAMAS operates as a burst-fire rifle similar to the M16A4 but with a quicker ADS time, mobility, and firing rate. However, it has a slower reload speed and less damage per shot.
• G36K

Submachine Gun

• M1928

Light Machine Gun

• MG5 – Despite its shorter range and lower ammunition capacity compared to other belt-fed LMGs, the MG5, with its higher rate of fire, provides a powerful and adaptable option for those who can handle its challenging recoil.

Marksman Rifle

• M1A – An agile workhorse designed for medium-range confrontations, the M1A offers a rapid firing rate but causes less damage per shot compared to other marksman rifles.

Sniper Rifle

• SRS

Pistol

• Diceros

Fixes and Modifications: Sawed-off Shotgun Balance Adjustment

• The range and damage capabilities of the Sawed-Off Shotgun have been adjusted to better focus on its intended role as a short-range kill finisher, preventing it from eliminating fully healthy opponents with a single shot.

1. Short Range decreased from 8m to 6m
2. Medium Range decreased from 12m to 10m
3. Short Range Damage decreased from 12 to 11
4. Bullets Per Round decreased from 12 to 9

• Adjusted smoke grenade effects so certain cosmetic skin elements will no longer be visible through the smoke, while also enhancing the size, shape, and transparency of the smoke particles and operational radius.