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

Assassin’s Creed Shadows achieved a remarkable milestone by surpassing 1 million players on its launch day, Ubisoft announced. The game, which hit the shelves on March 20 for PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X and S, reached this impressive figure before 4pm in Canada. Ubisoft expressed their gratitude on social media, stating, "It's not even 4pm here in Canada and Assassin's Creed Shadows has already passed 1 million players! 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 the 1 million player milestone is a significant achievement, it's challenging to fully assess the game's success without sales figures or targets from Ubisoft. However, it's clear that Assassin’s Creed Shadows is currently the top-selling video game globally on Steam, based on Valve's revenue chart. Early data from Steam also shows that the game reached a peak concurrent player count of 41,412 on its launch day. Given that the game was released on a Thursday, it's anticipated that these numbers will increase over the weekend, providing a clearer picture of its performance in the coming weeks. Notably, neither Sony nor Microsoft disclose player numbers publicly.

For comparison, BioWare’s single-player RPG, Dragon Age: The Veilguard, launched on Steam on October 31, 2024, and peaked at 70,412 concurrent players.

The Complete Assassin's Creed Timeline

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Assassin's Creed Shadows faces substantial pressure to perform well globally for Ubisoft, especially following delays and the disappointing sales of last year's Star Wars Outlaws. The company has also experienced several high-profile flops, layoffs, studio closures, and game cancellations leading up to the release of Assassin's Creed Shadows.

The game has not been without controversy, particularly in Japan. IGN confirmed that Ubisoft released a day-one patch for Assassin’s Creed Shadows addressing concerns from some Japanese politicians regarding the depiction of in-game temples and shrines. This issue was even raised in an official government meeting by Japanese politician Hiroyuki Kada, with a response from Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba.

Assassin's Creed Shadows - Early Skills Tier List

Assassin's Creed Shadows - Early Skills Tier List

On Steam, Assassin's Creed Shadows has received a 'very positive' user review rating, with 82% of nearly 4,000 reviews being positive. IGN’s review of Assassin’s Creed Shadows awarded it an 8/10, praising the game for refining its open-world mechanics and delivering one of the best iterations of the series in the past decade.

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