Yves Guillemot has made the tough decision to delay the upcoming Assassin’s Creed project and moved the release date to the following year. Although recent reports suggest that the game is said to be polished and playable, the game developers thought it would be best to double dip and make more improvements for a better and more ideal reception during the release day. Guillemot has faith in the developers and wanted to reaffirm that the studio’s main objective is to make great games without getting involved with different agendas.
The delay was not well-received by the gaming community, especially after the lackluster performance of Star Wars Outlaws, fans would have wanted another game from the developers to close out the year strong. Guillemot must have weighed his options carefully and made a tough decision for the company’s well-being.
Yves Guillemot Thought It Would Be Best to Delay the Newest Assassin’s Creed
The gaming community had high hopes after Massive Entertainment was announced to be working on an original open-world Star Wars game set between Episode 5 – The Empire Strikes Back and Episode 6 – Return of the Jedi which is the height of the original trilogy. Unfortunately, technical setbacks and other performance issues convinced the fans that his project was not the ultimate Star Wars experience they deserved or wanted. The game did alright and earned some goodwill from most players due to the Star Wars lore whereas the critics society tore it to shreds after experiencing enough technical problems.
CEO Yves Guillemot is rocked by how Star Wars Outlaws greatly underperformed, and how it failed to meet expectations. The CEO released an internal memo for Ubisoft staff. Within that memo, Guillemot decided it was best to move the release date of Assassin’s Creed Shadows to 2025. While the memo claims that the video game is practically done and at a premium state, the game developers will include more content and likely prioritize quality assurance to avoid the same dumpster fire of a launch Star Wars Outlaws had.
Rumors and speculations are circling the internet suggesting that the delay occurred due to some endorsement of propaganda which Guillemot quickly squashed. Guillemot reiterated that Ubisoft is a video game company that prioritizes creating entertaining content for the gaming community. The delay was meant to give the teams enough time to work on all ports and for the game to be well-optimized for various platforms for a same-day release date. The only agenda Guillemot is interested in promoting is to give the gaming community a great gaming experience.
Ubisoft is not in the best spot after the recent shortcomings of Star Wars Outlaws and could have factored into the company stocks plummeting to a new low. The gaming community anticipated Assassin’s Creed Shadows to help the company recover from the losses and put them back on track to develop more high-quality games that the company was renowned for and could appeal to the general gaming community.
Ubisoft Is Having a Streak of Bad Luck and the Next Assassin’s Creed Could Help Lift the Curse
Delays in video game development are nothing new and come as a package deal for as long as one can remember; however, it can be disappointing to see developers get cold feet when the initial release date is closing in. Guillemot must have come to his senses and realized the initial version prepared by the developers wouldn’t be enough to win back the favor of the gaming community, he would prefer to delay the game and avoid repeating the same mistake made with Star Wars Outlaws.
The postponement of a game release can benefit the development process by allowing the game developers more time to refine and improve the project. In the case of Assassin’s Creed Shadows, Ubisoft recognizes the potential of the game and the current challenges they are facing. The game developers are committed to taking all necessary measures to ensure a successful and smooth launch, which will ultimately help them overcome their current difficulties.
Guillemot saw the bigger picture and realized he only had limited options. The company is not doing great, especially after the shortcomings of recent projects and allegations of endorsing certain agendas, it is not a bad idea to pump the brakes and evaluate the situation to assess their best options moving forward. Delaying a game can have great results and all the gaming community had to lose was time which is a great deal for a great experience that is not all that terrible.
Ubisoft is a massive gaming company that has been around for the past few years. Perhaps this will all be remembered as a minor inconvenience for the studio and staff to overcome in the coming months. The gaming community had high expectations from this company, especially after all the great games released in the past. Hopefully, Guillemot’s master plan will pan out the way he hoped to salvage the company and restore the reputation of Ubisoft.
What are your thoughts about Yves Guillemot’s internal memo? Let us know in the comments section below!
