Ubisoft challenge Steam and Origin with Uplay, From Dust and Driver: San Francisco are £1

Ubisoft have launched a new online store called Uplay , bringing another contender into the increasingly crowded digital distribution race.

, bringing another contender into the increasingly crowded digital distribution race. The downloadable client can be used to buy and launch Ubisoft games, and has a range of community features like Xbox Live style avatars and achievements designed to "strengthen your gaming relationship with your friends." There are better rewards than points on offer on the store front right now. Daily deals are offering a small selection of titles for £1 each.

Ubisoft are hosting From Dust, Silent Hunter 5, HAWX 2 and Driver San Francisco for a pound, and are running discounts of up to 75% on Anno 2070, the Assassin's Creed series, Splinter Cell: Conviction, Prince of Persia: Forgotten Sands, Might and Magic Heroes VI and more. The £1 deals are set to change daily, so it might be worth checking back tomorrow if you don't fancy today's collection, though £1 for From Dust strikes me as a worthwhile punt.

The new-look Uplay replaces Ubisoft's old system (also called Uplay) which gave each game its own separate launcher. There was some controversy recently when a security risk was discovered in the Uplay browser pluginthat offered hackers a backdoor entrance to users' PCs. Hopefully the new Uplay client is a bit more secure. EA have leveraged their huge catalogue to drive buyers to Origin. Does Ubisoft have the lineup to achieve similar success?

It already feels like there are too many separate clients cluttering up my desktop, though those £1 deals sure are tempting. Will you be downloading Uplay?