In an interview with SegmentNext, Ubisoft Toronto's Kent Hudson says players can recruit and play as 20 characters per playthrough in Watch Dogs Legion.

"Players can recruit up to 20 different characters as part of their DedSec resistance and choose these from anyone they encounter in the open world of near-future London," says Hudson, a game director at Ubisoft Toronto.

Each of the recruitable NPCs have their own unique storylines, dialogue, and background. Additionally, each NPCs background informs their personality. Additionally, players will have to pay attention when it comes to choosing what NPCs to bring along to missions since each character has certain skills. With the ability to recruit 20 characters at a time, it can open up possibilities of multiple playthroughs with a different set of characters.

When asked if character deaths affect the game's story, Hudson also says that "while character deaths do not directly affect the story, each character you encounter and then recruit has their own level-up and progression, along with cosmetic customization. They also speak to you during missions and chime in with helpful effects during gameplay if they have the team assist trait. Also, the trait they have before recruitment gives them access to a set of perks that aren't always available to other characters of the same class."

Watch Dogs Legion launches on March 6, 2020 on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Google Stadia, and PC. The game is available for preorder on Amazon now.