Star Wars fans have been eager to get their hands on Star Wars Outlaws since it was first announced back in 2021. Unfortunately, this eagerness hasn’t translated into sales numbers, as Ubisoft’s share price has dropped to its lowest level since around 2015 following the game’s release late last month.
According to Reuters, the company’s share price is hovering around $16.80, its lowest point of the last year. Over the past six years, Ubisoft’s share price value has dropped by around 85%. The reason for the current drop is both poorer than expected sales for Star Wars Outlaws at launch and a massive decline in player interest in the company’s free-to-play game XDefiant.
“Star Wars Outlaws has struggled to meet our sales expectations despite positive critical reviews,” said JP Morgan analyst Daniel Kerven.
It was expected that the open-world adventure title would reach 7.5 million sales by the end of March 2025, but Ubisoft has now lowered this number to 5.5 million.
Unfortunately, in a July quarterly earnings call Q&A by Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot, it was confirmed that the game boasted the highest marketing budget for any game released by the studio to date.
“What we are factoring in is a strong launch,” Guillmot said. “That’s the fact that it’s among the most awaited games of the industry this year and reflecting a really strong positive community sentiment, and also the fact that we are coming with the biggest marketing campaign ever so far for a Ubisoft game.”
Star Wars Outlaws was released on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC on August 30, 2024.
