Ubisoft has announced that Assassin's Creed Shadows surpassed 1 million players on its launch day.
The highly anticipated title launched globally on PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X/S on March 20. Just before 4PM Canadian time, Ubisoft celebrated the milestone on social media, stating: "It's not even 4pm here in Canada and Assassin's Creed Shadows has already passed 1 million players!"
The company's message continued: "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 represents a significant achievement, the true commercial success remains unclear as Ubisoft hasn't disclosed specific sales figures or targets.
The game currently ranks as the top-selling title globally on Steam, where Valve's charts organize products by revenue generation. This indicates Assassin's Creed Shadows is currently outperforming all other titles on the platform in terms of revenue.
Early Steam concurrent player data reveals the game peaked at 41,412 simultaneous players on launch day. Given the Thursday release date, analysts expect these numbers to rise throughout the game's first weekend. Neither Sony nor Microsoft disclose player counts for their respective platforms.
For context, BioWare's single-player RPG Dragon Age: The Veilguard launched on October 31, 2024, achieving a higher Steam peak of 70,414 concurrent players during its debut.
The Complete Assassin's Creed Timeline
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Assassin's Creed Shadows carries significant expectations for Ubisoft following multiple delays and last year's disappointing sales of Star Wars Outlaws. The company has faced numerous challenges including high-profile flops, staff reductions, studio shutdowns, and title cancellations leading up to this release.
The game has also generated controversy, particularly in Japan. IGN recently confirmed Ubisoft discreetly implemented a day-one patch addressing concerns from Japanese politicians regarding in-game temple and shrine depictions.
Remarkably, Japanese politician Hiroyuki Kada raised questions about the game during an official government session, prompting a response from Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba.
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On Steam, player reception remains strongly positive with an 82% approval rating from nearly 4,000 reviews. IGN's official review scored the game 8/10, praising: "By refining its established systems, Assassin's Creed Shadows delivers one of the strongest iterations of the open-world formula the series has developed over the past decade."
Meanwhile, reports suggest Ubisoft's founding Guillemot family - the company's largest shareholders - have been in discussions with Tencent and other potential investors regarding acquisition options that would allow them to maintain operational control.
