Assassin’s Creed Shadows Launches Strong with Over 3 Million Players and 40 Million Hours Played
Despite the need to pay a premium to experience Ubisoft’s latest bombastic offering, the latest achievement data on Steam and PlayStation 5 shows a significant drop in player retention close to the first hours of this blockbuster game.
Specifically, on Steam, more than half of players have yet to complete the introductory chapter of the game, with only 40.8% achieving the milestone “A New League Rises”.
For those unfamiliar, this milestone is awarded to players who successfully navigate the introductory chapter of Assassin’s Creed Shadows. The completion rate is even lower on PlayStation 5, with only 36.9% of players surpassing the first chapter. Notably, the first chapter typically takes about 2-3 hours to complete, as it serves as a tutorial and sets up the narrative groundwork. Therefore, it’s not surprising that many gamers have chosen to “quit” Assassin’s Creed Shadows shortly after beginning their experience.
If Chapter One still manages to retain a portion of players, the second chapter of the game encounters a significant drop in engagement. Specifically, only 2.6% of players on Steam completed the second chapter and earned the achievement “An Oath Fulfilled”, while on PlayStation 5, this number slightly increased to 5.9%. Chapter Two features Yasuke as a playable character, while simultaneously introducing multiple new content elements. Generally, players can expect to spend 10-15 hours completing this section. However, data indicates that many gamers have logged around 15 hours of playtime, possibly due to a lack of connection with the familiar mechanics of Assassin’s Creed or simply not being drawn to the character Yasuke.
Moreover, while 88% of players have completed the initial part of the game, many seem to want to experience the first 5-10 hours before dropping off later. The situation worsens in Chapter Three, where only 1.2% of players on Steam have completed it, and on PS5, this figure is at just 4.24%. Not only is there a significant discrepancy in player retention rates, but Assassin’s Creed Shadows has also received numerous negative feedback from players around the globe. Many have criticized the game for not clearly defining gameplay mechanics, leading to an experience that lacks depth and fails to engage players fully.
