Assassin's Creed Shadows Close To Breaking Ubisoft's Steam Record

There was much concern about Assassin's Creed Shadows since a lot depended on the game for Ubisoft. Things, however, have turned in their favor as Ubisoft has announced that Assassin's Creed Shadows had a remarkable launch, with over 1 million gamers on launch day. It turns out that Shadows marks a key milestone in the long-running series and for Ubisoft at the same time.

While being the first game to transport players to feudal Japan, there was much debate about the game's settings, a setting that fans have wanted for almost twenty years. The excitement surrounding the game is clear to see, as AC fans are anxiously immersing themselves in the brand-new universe that Ubisoft has developed.

Even though Ubisoft was heavily criticized for their Ubisoft+ subscription services, they seemed to have gotten a good outcome from there, too. They opted to emphasize the total number of players instead of the raw sales numbers. This difference is likely caused by Ubisoft+, the company's membership program, which gives premium-tier members early access to new games without needing to buy them separately. Maybe that's why they're placing more emphasis on players than sales.

Although this does increase the total number of players, it does not imply that each of those 1 million gamers represents a sale. In a post that stated, "Assassin's Creed Shadows has already passed 1 million players, and it's not even 4 p.m. here in Canada", Ubisoft announced the news on its official X account. "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".

Ubisoft Québec, a studio that has grown into a powerhouse inside Ubisoft, oversaw the development of Assassin's Creed Shadows. The Québec crew has been the driving force behind several Ubisoft successful titles, including Assassin's Creed Syndicate, Assassin's Creed Odyssey, and Immortals Fenyx Rising. Shadows is the second Assassin's Creed game with a co-op protagonist developed by the studio, the first being Assassin's Creed Syndicate.

In contrast to Syndicate's more open-ended dual-character mechanics, Shadows imposes strict constraints on Naoe and Yasuke's gameplay style and mission design. While Yasuke is entertaining in his own way, he takes a more specialized approach to the game than Naoe does. Naoe reflects the whole variety of gameplay experiences that fans have grown to expect with Assassin's Creed. Although both characters can be controlled, the concept of having a dual protagonist is a little deceptive since certain tasks only work with one of them for story reasons.

It must be quite encouraging for Ubisoft that Assassin's Creed Shadows is receiving positive reviews despite the fact that it has caused a few challenges. They must be relieved that all of the responses and reactions have been mostly positive, both in terms of player interaction and critic reviews. Plus, more than 3,000 users have given the game a positive review on Steam. With almost 44,000 concurrent players at its peak on launch day, Shadows surpassed Assassin's Creed Valhalla and Origins in terms of concurrent player count.

The only other game in its league is Assassin's Creed Odyssey, which reached a maximum of 62,000 concurrent players. The Assassin's Creed Shadows launch was massive, and people are still talking about Assassin's Creed Shadows' graphics, plot, and gameplay, so it's likely going to be a highly talked-about installment in the series.