Pre-orders for Assassin’s Creed: Shadows are encouraging, Ubisoft said during its 2024-25 third-quarter earnings call on Thursday. The Japan-set action role-playing game will launch on March 20 and is the first mainline Assassin’s Creed game since 2020’s Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla. The publisher didn’t reveal pre-order numbers for the game, but said they were in line with 2018’s Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey.
“Assassin’s Creed: Shadows” pre-order “Stable Tracking”
Ubisoft needs Assassin’s Creed Shadows to be a commercial success after major games like Avatar: Pandora’s Frontier, Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown and Star Wars: Outlaws fail to meet the company’s sales expectations. The French developer expects its biggest franchise to perform well after its shares hit a 10-year low following the release of Star Wars: Outlaws in August 2024.
Ubisoft said in its Q3 2025 earnings report that pre-orders for AC Shadows were “steadily growing” and were “in line with pre-orders for Assassin’s Creed Odyssey, the second most successful game in the series.”
The publisher also highlighted “positive previews” of the game. It is worth noting that “Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey” has sold more than 10 million copies. Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla remains the most successful game in the series, reportedly having generated $1 billion in revenue.
Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot said that “AC Shadows” will be the most ambitious “Assassin’s Creed” game to date.
He said in the financial report: “We are fully focused on the upcoming launch of Assassin’s Creed: Shadows on March 20. Early previews have been good, praising its narrative and immersive experience, both characters playing a key role in the game’s storyline, and the gameplay quality and complementarity provided by the dual protagonist approach.”
“I would like to commend the incredible talent and dedication of the entire Assassin’s Creed team, who are working tirelessly to ensure that Shadows delivers on the promise of the most ambitious entry in the series to date.”
Ubisoft also reported that its net bookings for the third quarter were €301.8 million (approximately Rs. 2,745 crore), in line with its revised expectations. Guillemot said the company’s cost-cutting measures are progressing well and will reduce the fixed cost base by more than 200 million euros (approximately Rs. 1,819 crore) by the end of the 2024-25 financial year compared with the 2022-23 financial year. The cost cuts were driven in part by closing four studios and reorganizing at three other locations. More closures and reorganizations will follow. “We plan to continue our efforts in fiscal 2026 and significantly exceed our initial goals,” Guillemot said.
The twice-delayed Assassin’s Creed: Shadows was originally slated to launch in November 2024, but was later pushed back to February 14, 2025. When announcing the delay, Ubisoft said it needed extra time to further polish the game. Last month, the game was delayed again to March 20 for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series S/X.