Assassins’s Creed: Shadows with one of the highest activity records in the series’ history. Ubisoft’s new game has one million players

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Update (March 20)

Just minutes after this headline dropped, I couldn’t help but share the excitement as Ubisoft revealed that over a million gamers, across all platforms, had dived into ‘Assassin’s Creed: Shadows‘ on day day!

Original news

On its release yesterday, Assassin’s Creed: Shadows saw one of the most powerful debuts in the franchise’s history on Steam, with a peak concurrent user count of 41,412 (as reported by SteamDB), placing it third in the series’ historical records (although there’s a possibility it could move up to second place).

Better start than Valhalla and Mirage, just a hair’s breadth from Origins

The recently launched “Assassin’s Creed” title quickly surpassed both “AC: Valhalla” and “AC: Mirage,” but it’s worth mentioning that these games weren’t accessible on Steam at their initial release, making them only available for purchase through the Ubisoft Store and Epic Games Store. The true contest, though, was against “Assassin’s Creed: Origins” and “Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey.” For reference:

1. “The new Assassin’s Creed left behind AC: Valhalla and AC: Mirage quickly.” (implies speed)
2. “In no time, the latest Assassin’s Creed overshadowed both AC: Valhalla and AC: Mirage.” (uses a different verb to convey the same idea)
3. “The new Assassin’s Creed rapidly outperformed both AC: Valhalla and AC: Mirage.” (emphasizes performance)

  1. Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla – 15,679 concurrent players (released on Steam over 2 years after the launch);
  2. Assassin’s Creed: Mirage – only 7,837 concurrent players (released on Steam a year after the launch);
  3. Assassin’s Creed: Origins – 41,541 concurrent players;
  4. Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey – 61,984 concurrent players.

As a dedicated fan: I can hardly contain my excitement as AC: Shadows is on the brink of outshining its predecessor, Origins. With more players expected to join in over the weekend, it’s not impossible that we might even surpass the record set by Odyssey—the current champion on Steam. It’s fascinating to recall that the legendary Assassin’s Creed 2 attracted just 3,617 players at its peak after its release on Steam. It’s worth mentioning that older “Assassins” games arrived on PC sometime after their console debut, which might have influenced player preferences to some extent.

Currently, the title “AC: Shadows” is garnering largely favorable reviews on Steam, with 80% of opinions being positive (out of more than 2200 total). Unlike some past releases, AC: Shadows avoided a barrage of launch bugs, which was greatly appreciated by players. However, the need to utilize Ubisoft Connect and the presence of microtransactions have drawn criticism.

It remains to be seen if Assassin’s Creed: Shadows can surpass the achievements of Odyssey. Given the lofty standards set, only time will reveal the answer. However, it’s evident that the game, despite its controversies, has generated considerable curiosity among gamers.

  1. Assassin’s Creed: Shadows Review: Great combat and stealth, where plot plays it too safe
  2. Assassin’s Creed: Shadows – guide

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2025-03-21 16:02