Assassin’s Creed Shadows Hits 1 Million Players on Launch Day: Ubisoft

Ubisoft announced that Assassin’s Creed Shadows attracted over 1 million players on its launch day. The game was released on March 20 across PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X and S platforms. Just before 4pm in Canada, Ubisoft shared the exciting news on social media, stating, "It's not even 4pm here in Canada and Assassin's Creed Shadows has already passed 1 million players!" They expressed heartfelt gratitude to the community, saying, "Thank YOU from the bottom of our hearts for joining this adventure in Feudal Japan. We are beyond excited to start this journey with you!"

While reaching 1 million players on launch day is a significant milestone, it remains challenging to fully assess the game's success without specific sales figures or targets from Ubisoft. However, Assassin’s Creed Shadows is currently the top-selling video game globally on Steam, based on Valve’s revenue charts, indicating strong financial performance on the platform.

On Steam, Assassin’s Creed Shadows achieved a peak concurrent player count of 41,412 on its launch day. Given its Thursday release, it is anticipated that these numbers will increase over the weekend. We'll have a clearer view of its performance on Steam in the coming weeks. Neither Sony nor Microsoft disclose player numbers, making Steam's data crucial for gauging early success.

For perspective, BioWare’s Dragon Age: The Veilguard, which launched on Steam on October 31, 2024, reached a peak of 70,414 players, highlighting the competitive nature of game launches.

The Complete Assassin's Creed Timeline

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The launch of Assassin's Creed Shadows comes at a critical time for Ubisoft, following delays and the commercial disappointment of Star Wars Outlaws last year. The company has faced several challenges, including high-profile flops, layoffs, studio closures, and game cancellations leading up to this release.

Assassin's Creed Shadows has also been embroiled in controversies, particularly in Japan. IGN confirmed that Ubisoft released a day-one patch addressing concerns from Japanese politicians regarding in-game representations of temples and shrines. This issue was significant enough to be discussed in an official government meeting, where Japanese politician Hiroyuki Kada and Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba addressed the matter.

Assassin's Creed Shadows - Early Skills Tier List

On Steam, Assassin's Creed Shadows has been well-received, earning a 'very positive' user review rating with 82% of nearly 4,000 reviews being positive. IGN's review scored the game an 8/10, praising it for refining its open-world mechanics and stating, "By sharpening the edges of its existing systems, Assassin’s Creed Shadows creates one of the best versions of the open-world style it’s been honing for the last decade."

Amidst these developments, reports suggest that Ubisoft’s founding Guillemot family and its largest shareholder are in talks with Tencent and other investors about a potential buyout deal that would allow them to retain control of the company.