Ubisoft's Star Wars Outlaws Underperforms, Impacting Share Price
Ubisoft's highly anticipated Star Wars Outlaws, intended as a financial turnaround for the company, has reportedly underperformed in sales, causing a dip in Ubisoft's share price. This follows a first-quarter 2024-25 report highlighting the game, alongside Assassin's Creed Shadows, as key "value drivers" for the company's future.
Despite positive critical reception, sales have been described as "sluggish." J.P. Morgan analyst Daniel Kerven lowered his sales projection from 7.5 million units to 5.5 million units by March 2025, reflecting this underperformance.
Ubisoft's share price experienced consecutive declines on September 3rd, falling 5.1% on Monday and a further 2.4% by Tuesday morning. This marks the lowest point since 2015, adding to a year-to-date drop exceeding 30%. The company did report a 15% increase in session days across consoles and PC, largely attributed to Games-as-a-Service, with MAUs reaching 38 million (a 7% year-on-year increase).
The discrepancy between critical acclaim and player reception is notable. While Metacritic shows a user score of only 4.5/10, outlets like Game8 offer a more positive assessment (90/100), calling it an "exceptional game." Further analysis of Star Wars Outlaws' performance is warranted to understand the reasons behind the sales shortfall.
