Star Wars Outlaws failed to meet its sales targets, and the reasons he gave are, to be fair, a masterclass in blaming everyone but themselves. Basically, Guillemot pointed the finger at the Star Wars brand itself and a supposed lack of “polish” at launch, which they claim to have fixed in the weeks following the game’s release.
It’s pretty wild to hear a company like Ubisoft suggest that the Star Wars brand, one of the biggest and most recognizable franchises in the world, is to blame for their game’s underperformance. You’d think attaching such a massive name would guarantee sales, but according to Guillemot, the brand was in “choppy waters” at the time of release. This feels like a convenient excuse for a game that just didn’t hit the mark.
Guillemot admitted that the game “needed polish” and that it was “debugged in the weeks after release”. While it’s good that they’re working to improve the game, it’s a huge red flag when a major release from a company like Ubisoft isn’t polished at launch. It suggests a rushed development cycle or perhaps a lack of thorough quality assurance, and that’s not on the Star Wars brand; that’s on Ubisoft.
More Star Wars Outlaws: When Does the Game Take Place?
They’re even planning a “new version” of the game for upcoming consoles like the Switch 2, with promises of continued improvements for “future releases”. This just reinforces the idea that the initial launch wasn’t up to par. This all comes after Ubisoft invested heavily in the game, and let’s not forget that another one of their big titles, Assassin’s Creed: Shadows, had a budget exceeding €100 million for development, production, marketing, and distribution.
While Assassin’s Creed: Shadows has seemingly done well, ranking as the third best-selling game in the U.S. year-to-date as of May 2025 and hitting over three million players shortly after launch, Star Wars: Outlaws just couldn’t seem to find its footing. It makes you wonder if the issue truly lies with the external factors or with the internal execution.
Ultimately, it seems like Ubisoft is trying to deflect responsibility rather than taking a hard look at its own development and release strategies. When you put out a game that “needed polish” and then blame the very brand that should be drawing in millions of players, it’s a tough pill to swallow. Maybe instead of focusing on “choppy waters” for the brand, they should make sure their own ship is sailing smoothly before launch.
