Ubisoft Launches Internal Investigation Promising Drastic Changes

A day after abruptly canceling its Tokyo Games Show appearance, Ubisoft‘s 2024-2025 fiscal year reportannounced the delay of Assassin’s Creed: Shadows and the launch of a company-wide internal investigation, among other changes.

The report came after the company’s stock plummetedpast its previous low point of $16.42 to $12.72 today. Their revised FY24-25 net bookings are around $371 to $392.2 million.

Although the report didn’t emphasize Star Wars: Outlaws‘ shortcomings, calling its launch “soft,” it seems the game hit where it hurts.

In a massive departure from usual Ubisoft dealings, the French developer has announced that Shadows will be delayed until Feb. 14, 2025 with a day 1 Steam release. This decision was made after considering “players’ feedback, and as an illustration of our player-centric approach.”

There was no word on whether Steam releases would be an ongoing policy.

The game will also be available to all players simultaneously and preorders will be rewarded with the first expansion for free.

Star Wars won’t be left to the winds, however. The report outlined planned updates and a Nov. 21 Steam release to “position Star Wars Outlaws as a strong long-term performer.”

At the end of the report, CEO Yves Guillemot promised they’re “launching a review aimed at further improving our execution.”

Between all the legalese jargon, Ubisoft basically admits it lost a lot of money and fans this year. We can expect more information come Oct. 30 as Ubisoft releases its first half of the year financial report (H1).

The CEO is Dead, Long Live the CEO

Anyone following Ubisoft’s 2024 saga might notice that Mr. Guillemot’s statement did not respond to a certain challenger.

Earlier this month, a minority shareholder, AJ Investments, represented by its founder Juraj Krupa, issued an open letter to Ubisoft’s stakeholders criticizing management.

Krupa alleged that the Guillemot family acted with Chinese conglomerate Tencent to artificially devalue Ubisoft stock, so the Guillemots could buy back cheaper and gain more control over the company they founded.

The letter threatened that if restructuring demands – with a new CEO being one of them – aren’t met, Krupa would bring minority shareholders together against management.

Mr. Guillemot’s statement in the report left out any mention of the open letter. While the internal investigation could be a reply, it’s a stretch as Guillemot’s status as CEO won’t be disputed by it.

Starting an internal investigation into Ubisoft is a good decision, given the way this year has gone, even if it alludes to Guillemot’s increasing control over the company.

Still, as Ubisoft fans have learned, promises and investigations don’t mean anything till a finished game goes beyond mediocrity for a change.