Ubisoft Just Had Its Biggest Holiday Ever Thanks to Assassin's Creed, Just Dance, And Microtransactions

Ubisoft had a happy holiday, as the publisher reported a new record for revenue in the holiday period going back to the company's founding 34 years ago. For the October-December period, Ubisoft pulled in €1 billion in revenue, which was up sharply from the €455.5 million that Ubisoft recorded during the same period last year.

Digital sales for the quarter reached €588.4 million, compared to €351 million during the same period last year. Revenue from microtransactions/live services, which Ubisoft calls player recurring investment (PRI) amounted to €218.2 million for the period, posting a significant year-over-year gain. Total back-catalog revenue was €306.1 million, up from €252.2 million during the same quarter last year.

Ubisoft boasted that it was the second-largest publisher in the world in terms of total units sold on the new consoles, the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X. Ubisoft pointed out that Assassin's Creed Valhalla, Watch Dogs: Legion, and Immortals: Fenyx Rising all ranked in the top 7 of the best-sellers on the new consoles.

Looking outside of the PS5 and Xbox Series X, Ubisoft also noted that it was the leading publisher in terms of unit sales for all platforms in 2020.

Outside of the hard numbers, Ubisoft said it had a "record number" of unique players across all of its games during the quarter, while Assassin's Creed Valhalla hit a new record for franchise revenue. Valhalla also set new records for biggest launch ever for the Assassin's Creed franchise and new high marks for digital sales and microtransactions. Just Dance 2021 was also a bright spot, with revenue rising "sharply" compared to the previous year's game. Back-catalog game sales were described as being "strong," with Brawlhalla, Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle, Far Cry 5, The Crew 2, and Anno 1800 singled out for their performance.

The Just Dance series was a particular bright spot for back-catalog sales, posting a 200% surge. Additionally, Assassin's Creed Odyssey and Assassin's Creed Origins saw a "steep rise" in player engagement during the holiday.

Rainbow Six Siege continued to be a success story for Ubisoft, reaching 70 million registered players in its lifetime.

In terms of sales by platform, Sony's PlayStation was the biggest, taking up 37% of total sales for Ubisoft games during the quarter. Xbox (23%), PC (21%), Nintendo Switch (13%), and Mobile (5%) rounded out the other top groups by platform.

Ubisoft will hold an earnings call to discuss these results and answer questions from analysts shortly, so keep checking back with GameSpot for more.