Re: Ubisoft runs itself into the ground

On Wed, 02 Oct 2024 11:45:07 -0400, in comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action,
Spalls Hurgenson wrote:

On Tue, 01 Oct 2024 15:36:14 -0500, Zaghadka <zaghadka@hotmail.com>
wrote:
>

It's not like we all didn't see this coming.
>
https://www.techspot.com/news/104950-ubisoft-investors-push-sale-shares-hit-decade-low.html

>
It should be noted that stock-price only occasionally corresponds with
actual performance of a company anymore, and in this case we should
definitely look at things with that in mind. Despite the under
performance of "Outlaws" (which honestly shouldn't have been a
surprise; Ubisoft was a poor fit for the franchise and many people
were wary of the game even before it came out) the company is still
well in the black. It just isn't making AS MUCH money as it hoped.
>

[snip]

I disagree. It's the difference between a correction and an historical
low. This is the latter, and Ubi's answer is _another_ Assassin's Creed
game? That's delayed? It's emblematic of the problems there.

What was their last novel IP? Watch Dogs? Didn't they just pull The Crew
for no benefit other than a few pennies? Their leadership just told the
community that "...it's about feeling comfortable with not owning your
game." Was that a good idea?

Their corporate vision is seemingly to piss off their customers.

Companies have gone from "in the black" to "out of business" in a wink
for these kinds of big ticket mistakes. If they don't right the ship, if
they can't even properly launch a novel IP (even a tried-and-true license
like Star Wars FFS), they're a candidate for sudden, catastrophic
illness. The patient may be stable for now, as you say "in the black,"
but it's still ill and flirting with a trip to the ICU.

Outlaws was a proper moon shot. If they're complaining about it
underperforming, it is probably because it's a big deal.

I agree that the Guillemots need to go, for all the reasons above and
then some. They have recklessly and arrogantly sown bad will, they have
retread franchises to the wheel rim, and they have demonstrated that they
can't generate new ones.

This will (has?) lead to a leadership crisis, which you have described,
and will lead to the eventual sell-off of underperforming units when new
leadership tries to right the ship. We've seen this movie before.

The weather report is the weather report. I accept it might be somewhat
wrong, but historical lows are not a good sign. The forecast is ugly. The
only question is _how_ ugly.

--
Zag

No one ever said on their deathbed, 'Gee, I wish I had
spent more time alone with my computer.' ~Dan(i) Bunten