Ubisoft Delays Assassin’s Creed Shadows to 2024 Following Star Wars Outlaws Underperformance
Ubisoft has announced that Assassin’s Creed Shadows, originally slated for release later this year, will now be delayed until February 2024. According to Ubisoft, the decision was influenced by the “softer than expected” sales of their recent open-world title, Star Wars Outlaws.
“While Assassin’s Creed Shadows is feature complete, the learnings from the Star Wars Outlaws release led us to provide additional time to further polish the title,” Ubisoft told investors.
Alongside this news, Ubisoft revealed that Star Wars Outlaws will launch on Steam on November 21, signaling an end to the company’s Epic Games Store exclusivity deal, which had been in place since 2019. When Assassin’s Creed Shadows launches in February, it will be available on Steam from day one.
Star Wars Outlaws, which was released in August, received generally positive reviews, including one from PC Gamer, with critics noting it as a “very good Star Wars game.” However, despite these reviews, Ubisoft acknowledged that the game underperformed in terms of sales. Ubisoft remains optimistic about the game’s future and plans to release a series of updates and patches to improve player experience in hopes of boosting its long-term performance, especially during the holiday season.
While some may question whether delaying Assassin’s Creed Shadows is the right response to Outlaws missing its early sales targets, Ubisoft seems committed to ensuring that the extra time will result in a more polished and successful launch. The end of Epic exclusives and the move toward simultaneous Steam releases is another sign of Ubisoft’s evolving approach to PC game distribution.
