Three big Ubisoft games have been delayed

Following a report on Ubisoft’s financial targets, it’s been revealed that Rainbow Six Quarantine, Gods & Monsters, and Watch Dogs Legion have all been delayed until 2020-2021.

The report, as published by MarketScreener, outlines Ubisoft’s targets for the fiscal year 2019-20 and also outlines the company’s plans for 2020-21.

Due to the release timeframes for the three games being pushed back, Ubisoft now “expects a very strong lineup in fiscal 2020-21.” The company is targeting net bookings of around €2,600 million and non-IFRS operating income of approximately €600 million for 2020-21.

Interestingly enough, the report shows a “sharp downward revision” in the revenues expected from Ghost Recon Breakpoint and, to a lesser extent, The Division 2.

The decline in revenue from Ghost Recon Breakpoint might not be too unexpected, though, given that it hasn’t been very well critically received. We gave it a 3 in the Official MSPoweruser Review, claiming that the game is a “disgustingly predatory experience wrapped around an expansive world with the soul of a corporate PowerPoint. ”

Yves Guillemot, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Ubisoft, had the following to say regarding Ubisoft’s financial performance:

“Over the past few years, we have delivered many high-quality titles, built a portfolio of diversified franchises and successfully conducted the digital transformation of our business. We have significantly grown our operations for PC, and in Asia and esports, and have further developed our Uplay platform. And we can now draw on a very robust back-catalog, which ended up again above our expectations in the second quarter, including the particularly outstanding momentum of Rainbow Six Siege and Assassin’s Creed Odyssey.”

“However, we have not capitalized on the potential of our latest two AAA releases. For Ghost Recon Breakpoint, while the game’s quality appeared on track – based on E3, Gamescom, previews and our latest internal playtests –, critical reception and sales during the game’s first weeks were very disappointing. As we have done with past titles, we will continue to support the game and listen to the community in order to deliver the necessary improvements.”

Guillemot also says that while Gods & Monsters, Rainbow Six Quarantine, and Watch Dogs Legion all already have “strong identity and high potential”, Ubisoft ultimately want the games to spend more time in development in order to make sure that “their respective innovations are perfectly implemented so as to deliver optimal experiences for players.”

While the delay will undoubtedly hinder Ubisoft’s financial performance for the rest of this fiscal year, the decision should help bolster their performance next year, meaning it all works out in the end.

Rainbow Six Quarantine, Gods & Monsters, and Watch Dogs Legion will now be releasing sometime in 2020 and 2021.