Should we see the glass half full or half empty? In any case, Ubisoft has published rather disappointing results for the first half of 2024. The company’s managers, however, see some reasons for hope. Let’s take stock.
A worrying drop in turnover
The French company thus announces a turnover down 19.6% for the first half of the year compared to 2023. It stands at 671.9 million euros. As for its reference indicator, net reservations, they amount to 642.3 million euros.
Ubisoft acknowledges that its Star Wars Outlaws game has underperformed and is performing below expectations, despite “strong reviews and user scores on First Party and Epic Games Stores”.
In a press release, the co-founder and general manager of the company, Yves Guillemot, rightly emphasizes about this title:
To succeed, we must double down on execution and reinforce a player-centric mindset in everything we do. For example, we’re improving the quality of Star Wars Outlaws, including actively responding to player feedback through title updates as we prepare for the Steam launch, the first story pack, and the upcoming holiday season .
Austerity cure at Ubisoft
The company also began a cost reduction plan at the beginning of 2023 which had a severe social impact leading to a reduction in its workforce by more than 2,000 people in two years. Ubisoft currently has 18,666 employees.
On this subject, the manager mentions “strict control of recruitment, targeted restructuring and a reduction in external spending. » He adds: “In the first half of the year, we have already achieved more than 200 million euros in savings compared to two years ago on an annualized basis. There is still work to be done to support strong cash flow generation going forward. »
Very lucrative sagas
Finally, and it’s always interesting to know, Ubisoft revealed the gains recorded by these big franchises since their launch. Thus, Assassin’s Creed, the new part of which is due to be released in February 2025, has brought in 4 billion euros in ten years. This is better than Raibow Six and Far Cry which allowed him to pocket 3.5 and 2 billion euros. Finally, The Division, Ghost Recon and Just Dance each exceeded one billion euros in revenue.
