The Success of Assassin's Creed Shadows Proves That Online Backlash Has Limited Impact

The past few years have been challenging for Ubisoft, with allegations of a toxic work culture, poor stock market performance, and a lack of hit titles. However, the company can breathe a sigh of relief as Assassin's Creed Shadows has garnered respectable sales figures, defying the expectations of its detractors. The game's success is crucial for Ubisoft, as the Assassin's Creed franchise is one of the company's most valuable assets, with a broad appeal that few other IPs can match. The series has sold over 200 million games, with the last major entry, Assassin's Creed Valhalla, generating over a billion dollars in revenue. The decision to set Assassin's Creed Shadows in Japan, a location that fans had been requesting for years, seems to have paid off, with the game receiving positive feedback from consumers. The game's success is particularly notable given the intense online backlash it faced, with many critics accusing the game of being disrespectful to Japanese culture. However, the controversy appears to have had little impact on the game's sales, with the title performing reasonably well in Japan and elsewhere. The experience of Assassin's Creed Shadows offers a valuable lesson for game developers: that manufactured outrage is often unpredictable and can be safely ignored. By focusing on creating a high-quality game and standing by their creative vision, developers can overcome even the most intense online backlash. This approach has been proven effective by other successful games, such as Baldur's Gate 3, which faced similar criticism but went on to achieve immense success. Ultimately, the success of Assassin's Creed Shadows demonstrates that online controversy is often just a minor speed bump on the road to commercial success.