Summary
- Star Wars Outlaws is underperforming compared to 2023's Star Wars Jedi: Survivor.
- Ubisoft's stock price significantly decreased following Star Wars Outlaws' August 2024 launch.
- Negative player feedback regarding combat and stealth mechanics contributed to the game's poor reception.
Adding to the challenges faced by Star Wars Outlaws, Ubisoft's open-world title is reportedly being outsold by 2023's Star Wars Jedi: Survivor. Despite initially positive reviews upon its August 2024 release, player dissatisfaction with the combat and stealth mechanics significantly impacted its performance. While Ubisoft addressed these issues through updates, this proved insufficient to reverse the negative initial reception.
This underwhelming performance resulted in disappointing sales, falling short of Ubisoft's expectations, as acknowledged in September. The game's launch on August 27, 2024, coincided with a sharp drop in Ubisoft's stock price, raising concerns about the publisher's financial health and sparking discussions about a potential privatization. Despite this, Ubisoft and developer Massive Entertainment remain hopeful that planned post-launch DLC can revitalize the game's performance.
However, a recent report by VGC and former GamesIndustry.biz journalist Christopher Dring casts further doubt on this optimism. The report indicates that Star Wars Outlaws is not only underperforming but is also being outsold by Star Wars Jedi: Survivor. While precise sales figures remain undisclosed, Respawn Entertainment's single-player sequel clearly outperformed Ubisoft's open-world adventure. In Europe, Star Wars Outlaws recently ranked only 47th in 2024's best-selling video game list.
Star Wars Jedi: Survivor's Superior Sales
Several factors likely contributed to Star Wars Jedi: Survivor's success over Star Wars Outlaws. As a sequel to the already popular Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, it benefited from established brand recognition and positive critical reception upon its April 2023 release. Furthermore, a PS4 and Xbox One update released last year by EA and Respawn rekindled interest in Cal Kestis's latest adventure.
Conversely, Outlaws struggled to gain traction, despite ongoing updates and story DLC from Massive Entertainment. The first expansion, Star Wars Outlaws: Wild Card, released in November, featured Kay Vess teaming up with Lando Calrissian. A second DLC, Star Wars Outlaws: A Pirate's Fortune, is scheduled for Spring 2025 and will bring back the popular Star Wars: The Clone Wars character, Hondo Ohnaka.
