"Assassin's Creed Shadows Surpasses 2 Million Players in Two Days, Outperforms Origins and Odyssey"

Ubisoft has celebrated another milestone for Assassin’s Creed Shadows, announcing that the game has reached 2 million players since its launch on March 20. This marks an increase from the 1 million players on its debut day, surpassing the launch figures of both Assassin’s Creed Origins and Odyssey. Ubisoft expressed gratitude to fans, stating, "Thank you for joining the journey in Feudal Japan!"

While Ubisoft has not yet disclosed specific sales figures for Assassin’s Creed Shadows, the game has emerged as the top-selling title on Steam. This is notable as Ubisoft recently returned to Steam after a period of exclusivity on the Epic Games Store for PC launches. At the time of this article, Assassin’s Creed Shadows achieved a peak of 58,894 concurrent players on Steam, ranking it among the top 30 most-played games on the platform. It is anticipated that this peak will increase over the opening weekend, potentially making Shadows the most-played game on Steam.

For context, Assassin’s Creed Origins had a peak of 41,551 concurrent players on Steam, while Odyssey reached 62,069. Meanwhile, BioWare's Dragon Age: The Veilguard, which launched on Steam on October 31, 2024, saw a peak of 89,418 players. It's important to note that the true concurrent player peak for Assassin’s Creed Shadows will be higher, considering its release on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X and S, platforms for which player numbers are not publicly disclosed by Sony or Microsoft.

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Assassin’s Creed Shadows faces significant pressure to succeed globally for Ubisoft, following multiple delays and the underwhelming sales of last year's Star Wars Outlaws. Ubisoft has faced several challenges recently, including high-profile flops, layoffs, studio closures, and game cancellations leading up to the release of Assassin's Creed Shadows. The situation has become so dire that the Guillemot family, Ubisoft's founders and largest shareholders, are reportedly in discussions with Tencent and other investors about a potential buyout that would allow them to retain control.

The game has not been without controversy, particularly in Japan. This week, IGN reported that Ubisoft released a day-one patch for Assassin’s Creed Shadows, making significant changes in response to concerns from Japanese politicians about the depiction of temples and shrines in the game. This issue was even discussed in an official government meeting where Hiroyuki Kada, a member of Japan's House of Councillors, brought it up, and Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba responded.

On Steam, Assassin's Creed Shadows has received a 'very positive' user review rating, with 81% of over 6,000 reviews being positive. IGN's review of the game awarded it an 8/10, praising it for refining the open-world formula Ubisoft has been developing over the past decade: "By sharpening the edges of its existing systems, Assassin’s Creed Shadows creates one of the best versions of the open-world style it’s been honing for the last decade."

For those eager to explore feudal Japan, IGN offers a comprehensive Assassin's Creed Shadows guide, including a walkthrough, an interactive map, and insights into crucial game details that are not immediately apparent to players.