Strong Assassin's Creed Shadows sales continue but game trails Valhalla in player counts and revenue

With Assassin's Creed Shadows passing the 2 million player mark, Ubisoft is celebrating the title's reception. However, according to new sales data, it's not yet the most successful Assassin's Creed game. Insider Gaming obtained updated numbers from Ubisoft, which compares revenue to Assassin's Creed Valhalla. Video Games Chronicle has also added context showing the impact of Steam on player counts.

While Assassin's Creed Shadows saw around one million players on its first day, Valhalla attracted 2.55 million gamers. At this current pace, Shadows will see six million players in its initial month. That would fall short of the eight million players recorded by Valhalla. Assassin's Creed Odyssey started more slowly but eventually achieved 40 million unique players.

Tom Henderson of Insider Gaming notes that Valhalla launched in November 2020 during the pandemic boom in video game sales. As the months progress, Shadows could take over as the best Assassin's Creed game.

PC gamers often use Steam player counts to measure the success of a new release. Several prior entries in the franchise were not released on Valve's platform on day one. So far, Assassin's Creed Shadows has peaked at just under 65,000 concurrent players. That mark is outside Steam's top 10 current rankings, but the latest data reveals the game's immense popularity on consoles. 27% of total activations happened on PCs, with Steam as a major contributor. Even so, that leaves the bulk of its fanbase on the Xbox Series X and PS5.

Considering the repeated delays and controversy, Ubisoft can't have many complaints about its latest high-profile release. The publisher is facing financial strain, so only time will tell if Assassin's Creed Shadows can cure its woes. 

Readers can also check out Notebookcheck's first impressions of Assassin's Creed Shadows below: