Ubisoft is making a shift in its release strategy, returning to launching games on Steam from day one, starting with Assassin’s Creed Shadows. This change comes in response to lower-than-expected sales for Star Wars Outlaws, which prompted the company to reevaluate its approach. Ubisoft had previously moved away from Steam, opting to release its PC games on Ubisoft Connect and Epic Games Store, citing concerns over Steam’s revenue model. However, recent developments indicate the company is embracing Steam’s dominant position in the PC gaming market once again.

Ubisoft’s CEO Yves Guillemot acknowledged that Star Wars Outlaws had a “softer” release, leading to this change. The company is now aiming to leverage Steam’s vast player base to boost future game sales. With Steam recently hitting a record of over 38 million concurrent players, the platform’s dominance is undeniable, pushing Ubisoft to reconsider its distribution model. Ubisoft has not formally explained its previous stance of delaying Steam releases, but in 2019, it referred to Steam’s revenue model as “unrealistic.” Despite this, Ubisoft has gradually returned to the platform, with smaller titles and more recent games like Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora, which was made available on Steam just six months after its initial launch.

The first major title to benefit from this change will be Assassin’s Creed Shadows, now set for release on February 14, 2025, after being delayed to allow for further polishing and incorporating feedback from Star Wars Outlaws. Ubisoft confirmed that future releases, including Star Wars Outlaws on November 21, will also follow this day-one Steam launch approach. The return to Steam also mirrors the moves of other major developers, such as Blizzard, which brought Diablo 4 to the platform after years of exclusivity on Battle.net.

Although Ubisoft games will require a Ubisoft account and Connect integration for Steam users, this makes for a more seamless experience for PC players who prefer to keep their gaming libraries unified on a single platform. With these changes, Ubisoft is positioning itself to better compete in a rapidly evolving market, while hoping to rebuild trust with its PC player base.