Ubisoft expects 8 percent Q3 sales spike to $827M

The holiday season proved prosperous for French publisher Ubisoft. The company recently reported estimated sales for the third quarter of its fiscal 2011, projecting an 8 percent uptick in year-over-year sales to around €650, or about $827 million, for the three months ended December 31.

This figure exceeds the previously targeted range of €580 million ($737 million) to €620 million ($788 million) for the holiday period. Additionally, based on the better-than-expected period performance, Ubisoft said it has revised its full-year sales targets. The company said it is now expecting to haul between €1.05B ($1.33B) and €1.08B ($1.37B) by the end of its fiscal year 2011.

Talking about the third quarter sales, Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot said the results reflected the company's strength amidst competition.

"Against an extremely competitive backdrop, we were able to reach an ever-wider audience thanks to the quality of our games and our capacity to create brands for both hardcore and casual players," he said. "Assassin's Creed: Revelations posted a solid performance, in line with our forecasts, and Just Dance generated outstanding sales."

Announced alongside Ubisoft's projected third quarter sales figures was news that Ghost Recon: Future Soldier has been delayed to May. The squad-based shooter is now due in North America on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 on May 22, with a European release scheduled for May 24. A PC version of Future Solider will follow at a later date.

Ubisoft will publish its final sales figures for the third quarter on February 15.