Ubisoft's Star Wars Outlaws Underperforms, Impacting Share Price
Ubisoft's highly anticipated Star Wars Outlaws, intended as a financial turning point for the company, has reportedly underperformed in sales, causing a dip in Ubisoft's share price. Despite positive critical reception, sales have been described as sluggish.
Share Price Decline
Following the August 30th release, Ubisoft's share price experienced consecutive declines on September 3rd and 4th, falling 5.1% and 2.4% respectively. This drop marks the lowest share price since 2015, adding to a year-to-date decline exceeding 30%. The company had positioned Star Wars Outlaws, along with the upcoming Assassin's Creed Shadows, as key drivers of future growth in its Q1 2024-25 sales report.
Revised Sales Projections
J.P. Morgan analyst Daniel Kerven lowered his sales projection for Star Wars Outlaws from 7.5 million units to 5.5 million units by March 2025, citing the game's struggle to meet expectations despite positive reviews.
Mixed Player Reception
While critics generally praised the game, player reception has been less enthusiastic, reflected in a Metacritic user score of 4.5/10. Conversely, Game8 awarded Star Wars Outlaws a 90/100 rating, hailing it as an exceptional title.
Ubisoft's Q1 report also highlighted a 15% increase in session days across consoles and PC, primarily driven by Games-as-a-Service titles. Monthly active users (MAUs) reached 38 million, a 7% year-on-year increase. However, the underperformance of Star Wars Outlaws casts a shadow on the company's immediate financial prospects, leaving the success of Assassin's Creed Shadows as a crucial factor in their recovery.
