Ubisoft in Crisis: Stock Plummets as Investors Lose Faith in Leadership
Ubisoft is in serious trouble, and the signs are growing more dire by the day. Last week, the gaming giant's investors were disappointed with early sales numbers for Star Wars Outlaws, causing the stock to crash. Shares plummeted more than 10% back then, dropping Ubisoft's market cap in Paris to below €2 billion at the time. The outlook last week was grim, to say the least... and now?
It's gotten a LOT worse since then...
Today, things have only gotten worse, with the stock falling another 9%, bringing the company’s market value down to a mere €1.7 billion (US$1.9 billion)—its lowest point in nearly a decade.
Dr. Serkan Toto (@serkantoto on X), the CEO of Japan game industry consultancy (http://kantangames.com) Stated:
Part of Ubisoft's crisis stems from putting all their eggs in two baskets: Assassin's Creed: Shadows and Star Wars Outlaws. Both titles were touted by executives as blockbuster hits in the making, promising to captivate gamers and deliver massive returns. Yet, early rumored numbers regarding sales and preorders are painting quite the bleak picture for both, revealing that these assurances may have been little more than desperate attempts by Ubisoft's leadership to buy themselves a few more months before reality set in. It's becoming increasingly clear that these promises were hollow, made to just momentarily appease investors... while ignoring the real underlying problems. Let's be honest - real gamers following this situation closely aren't surprised by this downturn. We saw it a mile away.
The company's troubles run far deeper than just a few poorly performing games. Ubisoft has also made the controversial decision to inject DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) ideologies into its content, a move that's alienated a significant portion of gamers. The audience response has been as predicted by many—negative and dismissive—though Ubisoft either didn't anticipate this reaction or chose to ignore it altogether.
The question now looms: Can Ubisoft turn the ship around? With the current leadership—the same executives who boldly declared that players should "get comfortable with not owning games"—still steering the company, the answer seems ...doubtful. Gamers have grown increasingly frustrated with Ubisoft’s agendas, reused assets, and the generic, repetitive gameplay that has characterized many recent titles in addition to the obvious over-the-top DEI injection.
The notion of paying for a game without actually owning it has only fueled frustrations. A complete overhaul in leadership and strategy may be the only path to redemption, but for a company that's already losing investor confidence at a staggering rate, it may already be too little... too late.
~Smash