Ubisoft Explains Hiding Files That Give Watch Dogs Better Graphics

The hidden files that give Ubisoft’s latest game Watch Dogs graphics similar to those originally shown at E3 2012 were disabled, among other things, to ensure that the game would run more stable and improve the overall gameplay.

Ubisoft said in a statement in response to speculation that appeared online after the files were found. A modder found this one while sifting through all of the game’s files; released a mod earlier this week that turns the graphics back on. As a result of the mod, users will have the same visual representation as shown at Ubisoft’s E3 presentation in 2012.

In a post on the official Watch Dogs site, Ubisoft said that the development team is committed to making the games it releases run optimally on every platform. The company acknowledges that the PC version of Watch Dogs contains a number of hidden files that contain old render settings. These files have been disabled for several reasons, according to Ubisoft, including their potential impact on stability, performance, and overall gameplay quality.

While Ubisoft says it appreciates the enthusiasm of modders, the company also warns that the mod released earlier this week could have negative effects on the game in some cases. These effects could range from performance issues such as lower frame rates, to making the game unstable. Watch Dogs is an open-world action game from Ubisoft released on May 27 on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 3, Xbox One and Xbox 360 and Windows. Within a week, the game would have sold more than four million times.