Ubi career games target young boys

While Ubisoft has touted its mass market brand as Games for Everyone, the target audience of the line so far has clearly been young girls. The French publisher is apparently trying to expand that, as today it announced a new series to join the Imagine, Petz, and My Coach brands in the Games for Everyone stable.

Aimed at boys between the ages of 5 and 8, Jake Power will serve as a counterpart to the publisher's job-focused Imagine series for girls. The first wave of the series will allow players to walk the thin blue line in Jake Power Policeman, dive headlong into a raging inferno in Jake Power Fire-Fighter, and "become the country's most famous handyman" in Jake Power Handyman. Jake Power will adopt his civic duty roles in Nintendo DS games this November, while fixing the porch will have to wait until early 2009.

Ubisoft also unveiled another title targeting young boys, but apparently one not covered by the Games for Everyone brand. Set for release this fall, Combat of Giants: Dinosaurs pits dino versus dino in one-off melees or tournaments. Players will pick their paleo-pugilists from one of 26 species (ranging from "ravenous predator" to "peaceful herbivore"), and then outfit them with a variety of special items to give them an edge in combat.

Finally, the publisher confirmed another expansion to its Petz brand with the Petz Rescue series. The new line will focus on conservationist themes and allow players to care for and save a variety of domestic and exotic animals. The franchise kicks off in October with the release of three different DS titles: Petz Rescue Wildlife Vet, Petz Rescue Endangered Paradise, and Petz Rescue Ocean Patrol. Wildlife Vet will also appear on the Wii.