Nearly two years after it was revealed to the world, Ubisoft's hacker-centric open world action game Watch Dogs is finally almost here. Before you step into the shoes of grey hat hacker Aiden Pearce and explore his playground - a semi-fictionalized version of Chicago - take a moment to catch yourself up on all things Watch Dogs, starting with the game's impressive initial reveal.

E3 2012: Watch Dogs is Unveiled

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February 2013: Next Gen Dreamin'

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E3 2013: Watch Dogs' Next Big Day Out

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Bumps in the Road

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Preparing for Launch

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After more than two years in development, Ubisoft revealed Watch Dogs to the world at E3 2012.The game's near-future premise involves a single supercomputer controlling major cities. Our lives are controlled by computers, "but who controls the computers?" The game focuses on data turning against us. Data is interconnected and "everything can be hacked."In addition to a mood-setting teaser trailer, Ubisoft also showed off an extensive gameplay demo.Watch Dogs pulled down E3 awards from IGN and plenty of other outlets. Although it's always healthy to be skeptical of such an early look at any game, it's also always a good idea to reward promising, fresh ideas . IGN had the opportunity to speak with Watch Dogs creative director Jonathan Morin about the game, who explained the team's guiding philosophy.“A lot of games will go and invite the player to just explore the environment. We're letting you explore human beings as well. Pierce [the game’s main character] looks at the people around him in a different way. Every person is not a robot following a sidewalk. It's a human being, you can tap into his life, you can find new side quests, stories. So it's pretty much an action-adventure game, that pushes the limit of what it means to walk into a living, breathing city."The game is rooted in the issues facing all of us today, as we give ourselves over to social networks, and as the organizations that we use - banks, government, employers, retailers - demand to know more and more about us. Morin says, "A lot of people have been asking us where Watch Dogs comes from, what's the concept? Well, it's typical beer discussions about Facebook and information and what's happening in the world. Human beings are always reacting to technology in different ways."After the show, Ubisoft shared some insight into how they managed to keep Watch Dogs a secret , in a modern climate of leaks and early information.At the PS4 reveal event, Watch Dogs was confirmed as a Playstation 4 game , surprising no one. The announcement was accompanied by new footage specifically running on a PS4, according to Ubisoft. That same month the studio hired Pauline Jacquey as Managing Director.Ubisoft's Watch Dogs relationship with Sony would deepen just a few months later. In April 2013 the company announced the PS4 version of Watch Dogs would receive 60 minutes of extra content In April Ubisoft also revealed Watch Dogs' first release date : November 19. Four - yes four - distinct collector's editions were also detailed, including the ultra-special "Dedsec Edition.""The Dedsec Edition is the big one, and includes a figurine of player character Aiden Pearce, a steelbook and collector box, artbook and soundtrack, four augmented reality collectible cards and three badges, as well as a map of the game's Chicago. Additionally, three single player missions will be provided as digital content, adding around an hour of additional gameplay; the Palace Pack, centred on a police raid of an Internet mogul; Signature Shot, dealing with a biometrics weapon smuggled into Chicago; and the Breakthrough Pack, which tasks you with outing the criminals holding corporate CEOs to ransom."At E3 2013, Watch Dogs had another strong showing. The game was IGN's runner-up for Game of the Show , losing narrowly to Titanfall. Watch Dogs' E3 2013 gameplay demo impressed almost everyone:Keza and Marty were especially impressed with the demo. E3 2013 also brought fresh details on how Watch Dogs would integrate tablets and smartphones for a deep second screen experience.As Summer 2013 rolled on, Ubisoft kept all eyes on Watch Dogs thanks to a fresh look at CToS Multiplayer gameplay , a deeper dive into the game's hacking , and a brand-new trailer showing off the game's numerous awards. Animation Director Colin Graham also gave gamers a closer look at Watch Dogs' open-world take on the Windy City . We also received confirmation on Aisha Tyler's role At Gamescom in late August, Ubisoft announced that it has partnered with Sony and New Regency to develop a Watch Dogs movie , but given the history of films based on video games, no one should hold their breath for this one to officially move into production.Watch Dogs' road would get a little bit rockier though, starting with the disappointing (to some) news that Watch Dogs would run at 30 FPS , even on powerful next-gen hardware.The game's major delay would prove to be a much bigger disappointment, however. Originally scheduled for launch on November 19, with just one month to go, Ubisoft announced that the game would be coming out at least five months later , in Q2 2014. Ubisoft explained the delay on their official blog:"We know a lot of you are probably wondering: Why now? We struggled with whether we would delay the game. But from the beginning, we have adopted the attitude that we will not compromise on quality. As we got closer to release, as all the pieces of the puzzle were falling into place in our last push before completion, it became clear to us that we needed to take the extra time to polish and fine tune each detail so we can deliver a truly memorable and exceptional experience."Retailers are, of course, still honoring Watch Dogs preorders . The delay did impact Ubisoft's stock price , but not the company's optimism. It announced projected sales of 6.2 million copies - an aggressive target, to say the least.Following the delay, Ubisoft actually pumped the breaks on Watch Dogs chatter for the first time in several months. In an exclusive interview, Ubisoft's North American President Laurent Detoc explained why the company delays games , and why it's such an intense decision, each and every time. Subtle Watch Dogs references in Assassin's Creed 4 also kept the game in the news.Besides a strange trademark snafu , all remained quiet on the Watch Dogs front until March, when an official release date was first leaked , and subsequently confirmed by Ubisoft itself a few days later. Watch Dogs will be available globally on May 27, more than six months after it was originally expected.The release date news once again opened up the Wach Dogs floodgates. Confirmation of 8-player multiplayer PC specs , its 40-hour length and details on its Playstation-exclusive content all dropped in rapid succession. A new 'Welcome to Chicago' trailer also revealed plenty of new details to those paying close attention, including... a giant mechanical spider?As the months until Watch Dogs release melted into weeks, plenty more details began to firm up. Ubisoft confirmed the game wouldn't receive a demo . A 1 080p resolution on PS4 was also confirmed. Season pass details also snuck out into the wild. Finally, IGN had the opportunity to actually go extensively hands-on with the game , and came away impressed.

...Whew! That's a whole lot of rumors, trailers, gameplay demos, delays, and other ups & downs. In hindsight, the hype seems almost inevitable. Making AAA video games is incredibly expensive. Game companies have no choice but to focus on big brands and proven franchises. So when something brand new like Watch Dogs comes around, with seemingly the full weight of Ubisoft behind it, people can't help but pay attention.What do you think? Are you still hyped for Ubisoft's open-world epic? Or did the game's delay disappoint you enough to derail your hype train? Let us know in the comments below. And remember that you can count on IGN to bring you all the news on all the hottest games - from their announcement, to launch, and beyond.

Justin Davis is the second or third best-looking Editor at IGN. You can follow him on Twitter at @ErrorJustin and on IGN