Assassin’s Creed Shadows Hits One Million Players Just After Release

Ubisoft’s latest inclusion to the Assassin’s Creed franchise, Assassin’s Creed Shadows, has reportedly achieved a million players on launch day. The accomplishment marks the anticipation of the game, which is set in a Feudal Japan setting and has a dual protagonist system represented by the samurai Yasuke and the shinobi Naoe.

After some delay, Assassin’s Creed Shadows hit the stores on March 20, 2025, on PS5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC. It was well-received, garnering an average rating of 81 on OpenCritic, and a new record high in Steam player peak number of over 41,000, a record, as per SteamDB. The number is way ahead of the previous two games, Mirage and Valhalla, whose peak Steam players were 7,870 and 15,679 respectively.

A Strong Debut for Ubisoft

Ubisoft formally declared the milestone on Twitter, flaunting Assassin’s Creed Shadows as its most trending releases. The game has also topped the list in Steam’s Top Sellers chart, outpacing other best-releasing games in the works such as Monster Hunter Wilds and Split Fiction.

This success is good news for Ubisoft, whose 2024 so far has been tainted by disappointing releases like Star Wars Outlaws and XDefiant. If Shadows stays on track, the title can help redeem Ubisoft’s reputation and bring about stability amidst takeover rumors against the company.

Is it possible? Assassin’s Creed Shadows Hold Its Pace

Though launch-day sales are welcomed, Assassin’s Creed Shadows needs to maintain player engagement for weeks on end. Its open-world gaming, RPG elements, and solid storylines have been a hit, but ultimate success will depend on post-launch support, updates, and customer feedback.

At least for now, Ubisoft has plenty to celebrate in a record-breaking opening. If this keeps up, the game would make Assassin’s Creed Shadows one of the biggest recent successes of the franchise.