In a new financial update for investors, Ubisoft revealed that sales for Star Wars Outlaws were "softer than expected."
"Despite solid ratings (Metacritic 76) and user scores across the First Party and Epic stores (3.9/5) that reflect an immersive and authentic Star Wars universe, Star Wars Outlaws initial sales proved softer than expected," the publisher wrote. "In response to player feedback, Ubisoft’s development teams are currently fully mobilized to swiftly implement a series of updates to polish and improve the player experience in order to engage a large audience during the holiday season to position Star Wars Outlaws as a strong long-term performer."
Star Wars Outlaws was released for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC (via the Ubisoft Store) on August 30th. Although the game received positive feedback from critics, it did suffer from numerous technical issues at launch. Ubisoft may be committed to fixing these issues, but the damage may already be done.
In addition to the glitches and bugs, Ubisoft was already facing backlash for some of its monetization practices, including gatekeeping certain missions behind the Season Pass as launch day DLC. There was also a vocal minority of people on social media expressing their displeasure over playing as a female in the game, which has become par for the course anytime a female-led video game gets announced.
In addition to the letter to investors, Ubisoft also posted to fans on social media, thanking them for their support and promising to bring changes to the game.
"We're hard at work creating multiple title updates, which will bring optimization, gameplay polishing, and tweaks as well as quality of life changes, including adjustments to combat and stealth gameplay," Ubisoft wrote.
The publisher also confirmed that Star Wars Outlaws: Wild Card — the game's first story pack — will launch on November 21st. The upcoming story pack will see Kay and Nix "infiltrate a high-stakes sabaac tournament where they will face off against the legendary Lando Calrissian." The story pack will also include new contracts, which will be added free for all players.
November 21st is also the day that gamers can look forward to Star Wars Outlaws releasing on Steam for PC. Previously, you had to purchase it through the official Ubisoft Store.
The numerous issues at launch coupled with soft sales for what was billed as a blockbuster action-adventure game also resulted in Ubisoft delaying another of its high-profile games, Assassin's Creed Shadows. Originally due out this November, the game has been pushed back to February 14, 2025, to give the studio additional time to further polish the title.