Assassin's Creed Shadows: we wuz samurai n shiet

[1998]

Any game of note delayed to February is going to be delayed again. That's KCD2's release month.
November is wide open with regards to big name releases as far as I can think of right now.

Stalker...maybe

[A Chinese opium den]

There is more:

Noting the pronouns in the devs bio but not the fact he has a *** flag sony shirt on in it is strange. Tired of people dancing around things acting like its ok to support gays, as long as you don't get too crazy .

[Yankee Zulu]

In other news

https://insider-gaming.com/ubisoft-investigation/

It has been announced that Ubisoft’s Executive Committee and Board of Directors will launch an investigation and review of the company.

The news came via a company financial statement and update, which included the delay of Assassin’s Creed Shadows and the announcement that Star Wars Outlaws underperformed.

[Jordy]

Any game of note delayed to February is going to be delayed again. That's KCD2's release month.
November is wide open with regards to big name releases as far as I can think of right now.

Pushed back to black history month.

[Kronus]

Any game of note delayed to February is going to be delayed again. That's KCD2's release month.
November is wide open with regards to big name releases as far as I can think of right now.

Pushed back to black history month.

That won't sell not even if bundled with a KFC combo.

[Kronus]

They really stunk up this free slam dunk with a female protagonist

Sucker punch was so close. What a **** shame but then again this is ******* Sony we’re talking about here.

Nah, I take it back. She looks like the perfect fit.

Extremely poor form, slouching out, narrow feet positioning, no balance, weak stance, fat assed. Definitely a 1600s shoguness right?

[logincrash]

Tired of people dancing around things acting like its ok to support gays, as long as you don't get too crazy .

Sorry, the ******* pushed that one through in 2015 and the conservatives let them while doing nothing but whine, just like they did with interracial marriage before that and just like they did with women's suffrage. You will not find a single mainstream or even just a moderately popular online conservative that doesn't full-throatedly support ******* getting married right now.

[Xenich]

They really stunk up this free slam dunk with a female protagonist

My hope that this will bomb like ubislop is melting with every like on this trailer.

I would wager that the likes are about as realistic as a female warrior.

[RangerBoo]

Someone was kind enough to post all of Erika's greatest hits on a Twitter thread for you all to see. I just knew her from the Hogwarts Legacy ********. I didn't realize what a massive ******* racist and misandrist this gender special freak is and Sony knew all this when they hired her. Great job Sony. Erika makes Rachel Zeigler look like Mother Theresa.

[DagothGeas5]

Sucker punch was so close. What a **** shame but then again this is ******* Sony we’re talking about here.

Nah, I take it back. She looks like the perfect fit.

Extremely poor form, slouching out, narrow feet positioning, no balance, weak stance, fat assed. Definitely a 1600s shoguness right?

Based studio in another universe releasing fake ads to conceal the true game being developed while simultaneously trolling the "fluid and mad as mercury" people.

[Rand]

In other news

https://insider-gaming.com/ubisoft-investigation/

It has been announced that Ubisoft’s Executive Committee and Board of Directors will launch an investigation and review of the company.

The news came via a company financial statement and update, which included the delay of Assassin’s Creed Shadows and the announcement that Star Wars Outlaws underperformed.

That's corporate cover for "Please don't decimate our compliant board and fire the top executives, investors. We'll try to pretend we plan to do better suckers. Honest."

[Rand]

Any game of note delayed to February is going to be delayed again. That's KCD2's release month.
November is wide open with regards to big name releases as far as I can think of right now.

Pushed back to black history month.

February is Heart and Stroke Month. Something both real and important to real humans.
The bLaCk HiStOrY (lies) MoNtH is just a disgusting pack of lies and excuses cooked up recently.
So it's very amusing they are attempting to use it for cover for their lies about Japanese history and some random **** porter of the Shogun.

[Xenich]

Sucker punch was so close. What a **** shame but then again this is ******* Sony we’re talking about here.

Nah, I take it back. She looks like the perfect fit.

Extremely poor form, slouching out, narrow feet positioning, no balance, weak stance, fat assed. Definitely a 1600s shoguness right?

I see she has had many battles and lost... to a cheese burger and fries.

[Bing_xiLim]

Aaaaand my hunch was right. lmfao

A "dream project" that took them more than a decade to do, when fans were begging for an Assassins Creed game set in Japan since Unity. **** off Ubishit.

[RangerBoo]

Nah, I take it back. She looks like the perfect fit.

Extremely poor form, slouching out, narrow feet positioning, no balance, weak stance, fat assed. Definitely a 1600s shoguness right?

I see she has had many battles and lost... to a cheese burger and fries.

She is as fat as she is woke and gay. By the way, not only does Erika make ancestors cry but she makes them wail and suffer in the afterlife as this ***** has a massive lust for BBC. All her post, if not about wanting to dox and life ruin TERF's and Trump supporters, are her lusting after black **** and pussy. Here I thought only **** have a forbidden lust for the BBC but Erika has proven me wrong.

[rusty_shackleford]

I got access to Ubisoft's (abrupt?) investor call today, downloaded the streamed audio, and transcribed it using LLM. Because gaming journos are too busy attacking chuds and defending breast mutilation scars to actually do something useful.
Here's the full text:

Yves Guillemot:
Welcome everybody and thank you for joining the call on such short notice. Our second quarter fell short of expectations. Listening to players' feedback, we are determined to address this swiftly and firmly, with an even greater focus on a player-centric, gameplay-first approach and an unwavering commitment to the long-term value of our brands. Also, we want to address an important problem of perception that has been affecting the company's performance.

On the back of our player-centric approach, the following important decisions relative to Assassin's Creed Shadows have been taken:

• First, leveraging the learnings from the Star Wars Outlaws launch, we have taken the decision to delay Assassin's Creed Shadows to February 14, 2025. In today's challenging market and with gamers expecting extraordinary experiences, delivering solid quality is no longer enough. We must strive for excellence in all aspects of our work. This will enable the biggest entry in the franchise to fully deliver on its ambition, notably by fulfilling the promise of our dual protagonist adventure with Naoe and Yasuke bringing two very different gameplay styles.
• Second, we are departing from the traditional season pass model. All players will be able to enjoy the game at the same time on February 14th and those who pre-order the game will be granted the first expansion for free.
• Finally, the game will mark the return of our new releases on Steam day one.

Turning to Star Wars Outlaw, despite a softer than expected launch, the game achieved solid ratings with a Metacritic score of 76, as well as a player-user rating of 3.9 out of 5 across the first party and a 4.4 on Epic Store. This reflects the immersive and authentic Star Wars universe, as well as the effectiveness of the reputation system, great exploration possibilities and its anti-things, scoundrel fantasy.

However, a portion of players have expressed dissatisfaction, notably on stealth mechanics and overall polish that impacted the first hours of the game. In response to this feedback, we have begun implementing updates aimed at polishing and improving the gameplay quality and player experience, with the first update deployed mid-September and three more to come over the next couple of months. This should enable us to improve its perceived quality and make it a must-play game ahead of the holiday season, to position it as a strong long-term performer. The game will launch on Steam on November 21st.

Although the tangible benefits of the company transformation are taking longer than anticipated to materialize, we keep on our strategy focusing on two key verticals: open world adventures and gas native experiences with the objective to drive growth recurrence and robust free cash flow generation in our business.

In light of recent challenges, we acknowledge the need for greater efficiency while delighting our players. As a result, being the first important short-term action undertaken, the executive committee under the supervision of the board of directors is launching a review aimed at further improving our execution, notably on our player-centric approach and accelerating our strategic path towards the higher performing model to the benefit of our shareholders and stakeholders.

Finally, let me address some of the polarized comments around Ubisoft lately. I want to reaffirm that we are an entertainment-first company creating games for the broadest possible audience and our goal is not to push any specific agenda. We remain committed to creating games for fans and players that everyone can enjoy.

I will now hand over the call to Frederick.

Frederick:
Thank you Yves and hello everybody. For fiscal year 25, we now expect to generate around 1.95 billion euros of net bookings and around breakeven non-IFRS operating income and free cash flow. This revised outlook mainly reflects the softer than expected launch for Star Wars Outlaws and the updated Q4 release window for Assassin's Creed Shadows.

This translates into Q2 net bookings that are now expected to stand at between 350 and 370 million euros, mainly reflecting the softer than expected Star Wars Outlaws launch. Additionally, as the group transformation continues, we made progress on our cost reduction initiative with headcount steadily decreasing over the first half.

To conclude, our balance sheet remains solid. Cash and cash equivalents are expected above 850 million euros at the end of September 2024, after having repaid the 250 million euro convertible bond maturing this month, notably reflecting the cash consumption in the first half related to the new release schedule. We will provide more detail when we report our H1 earnings on October 30.

We are now ready to take your questions.

Operator:
Thank you. To ask a question, you will need to press star 1 and 1 on your telephone and wait for your name to be announced. To withdraw your question, please press star 1 and 1 again. Please stand by while we compile the Q&A roster.

Our first question comes from the line of Nicholas Langlet with BNP Paribas. Your line is open.

Nicholas Langlet:
Yes. Hello. Good afternoon, everyone. I've got three questions, please.

1. The Q2 guidance, so you cut it by like 140 million euros. Is it only Star Wars Outlaws or is there something else underperforming in the portfolio? Because if it's only Star Wars Outlaws, it means you have missed by 2.5 to 3 million units during the quarter. Do you think it's a fair assumption?
2. Secondly, can you help us understand what is the bridge between the net booking reduction and the adjusted EBIT reduction for the full year? It seems you are reducing net booking by 500 million euro and adjusted EBIT by 400 million euro, which is pretty big. So if you can detail a bit more, that would be great.
3. And finally, would you be ready to share the aspiration you have for full year 26, considering the delay of AC Shadows and what you have in the pipeline?

Thank you.

Frederick:
Yeah, good evening, Nicolas.

1. In terms of the second quarter, it mostly reflects the softer than expected sales for Star Wars Outlaws. We also had behind expectations for XDFines, but we'll give you a bit more detail at the end of October.
2. In terms of the bridge between net booking and EBIT, this reflects mostly two elements. First, the fact that we decided to move Assassin's Creed Shadows to Q4, and the fact that we reflected lower expectations for Star Wars Outlaws and to a much lesser extent with a limited impact, also lower than expectation for X Defiance.
3. In terms of fiscal year 26, we will give you more perspective at a later stage.

Nicholas Langlet:
Okay, perfect. And on the full year 24 guidance, do you plan accelerated depreciation for Star Wars Outlaws or not?

Frederick:
So what we usually do, and we follow this common practice, is that we usually accelerate depreciation for games that are behind expectations. And that we, of course, are following the normal closing process, so our auditors should validate the closing process as usual.

Nicholas Langlet:
Okay. Okay, thank you.

Frederick:
Thank you.

Operator:
Please stand by for our next question. Our next question comes from Ali Navic with HSBC. Your line is open.

Ali Navic:
Hi, Gideon. Thank you for taking the question.

1. What are you sort of hoping to achieve in the few months of the delay of AC Shadows?
2. And then secondly, in terms of the executive committee review, what are the things that they will focus on? Is it just on execution of your studios or could they also consider selling some IPs or offloading assets?
3. And then the third question, longer term, could you give any sort of guidance or views on debt or cash headrooms or would you have to take on any additional debt as a result of today's warning?

Thank you.

Frederick:
Yeah, thank you, Ali.

1. So, yes, on Assassin's Creed Shadows, the game is feature complete. As you might know, we were about to run preview, so very close to shipping. What we see is that there is, with additional months, the possibility to really further polish the game so that the experience is really flawless, is perfect to deliver the fantastic promise of the most ambitious entry in the franchise. So that's really what we want to do, is really to bring quality to the highest level possible.
2. In terms of the executive committee review, as we said, we really want to make sure execution is flawless. We were focusing on the gameplay first, player-centric approaches. So the objective is to really make sure that everything that will bring quality to a high level will be pushing the agenda. We have, of course, important areas of work that we've been pushing over the last year and a half. So it takes time to deliver, but it's well underway. Fostering creative talents as well as bringing gameplay first, as I mentioned, at the center of each and every decision. Cutting-edge technology that we push with NoDrop and Envil, pushing the transformation of our franchise towards a more recurring model with gas-native experiences. This is also an important transformation for the future and simplification of the organization as we've been organizing our production along five zones to really streamline the work and focus our resources on our biggest opportunities. As part of the transformation plan, we had already mentioned that we were considering reducing costs and proceeding with the diversity of non-core assets. This is of course still valid.
3. On your last question around debt, as we said, we have a comfortable level of cash and cash equivalent at end of September of more than 850 million euros. We plan to generate robust free cash flows in the second half of this fiscal year, knowing that we are planning to be neutral from a free cash flow standpoint this year. And if we look at our debt schedule, it's a very healthy and sound average maturity of close to four years, so we have good visibility on that front.

Ali Navic:
Thank you. And sorry, just one final follow-up, if I could. The trade receivable that was put in at the end of your FY23 results, is there any change to that receivable coming through?

Frederick:
So, yes, you're right. We reached, as we had mentioned, a record high level in terms of trade receivable at end of fiscal year 24. So, mechanically, it should contribute to reducing working capital needs this year. So, of course, that's contributing positively to free cash flow.

Ali Navic:
Thank you.

Frederick:
You're welcome.

Operator:
Thank you. Please stand by for our next question. Our next question comes from the line of Nick Dempsey with Barclays. Your line is open.

Nick Dempsey:
Yeah, good evening, guys. So first of all, just returning to debt that was mentioned in one of the previous questions there.

1. So we had 985 million euros excluding leases and March 24 of net debt. If we're looking at break-even free cash flow, I guess total net cash flow that drives that net debt will be negative. So the net debt number goes up a bit. Can you talk about, are there any covenants around any of your debt instruments? And is there anything about debt needing to be paid down at any particular rate, which will be problematic with your lenders? Because yeah, every time now that we don't have positive free cash flow, it makes me worry a bit more about the scale of that debt.
2. Second question, Ghost of Yotei, so the sequel to Ghost of Tsushima, looks an awful lot like, to me perhaps, I'm not into it deeply enough, but it looks an awful lot like Assassin's Creed Shadows and we're talking about that game Ghost of Yotei coming out in 2025. So is there a risk that you start bumping into that one that people will not buy Shadows because they're waiting for Ghost of Yotei in a few months' time to get their fix of a Japanese game in that vein.
3. And the last question, are you still expecting the same amount from partnership deals this year as you were when you set guidance? Has that had any impact on all of this?

Frederick:
So thank you, Nick.

1. On the first question, so we don't guide on the non-IFRS net debt. What I can tell you to help you is that so we are planning to be breakeven from a free cash flow standpoint. We also regularly have the positive proceeds of our employee share ownership plan, and that I think is around 40 million euros. So that's what you can take into account in your projection. We plan to stay within the boundaries of our covenants.
2. On the competition related to Assassin's Creed Shadows, the focus is really to make sure that we deliver a fantastic experience with this dual protagonist approach with two different and complementary gameplays with Yasuke and Naoe in a setting taking place in this feudal Japan that should be really enticing. So all the focus and everything that really informs our decision is to make sure that we polish the game and provide this fantastic promise. And I would like to say that there's a lot of space for very high quality games, and those two games can sell very well.
3. In terms of the partnership side, we still expect the same level as we mentioned during the guidance setup, meaning significant contribution, but to a lower extent than last year.

Nick Dempsey:
Yes, sorry there was one question I forgot. If I could just squeeze it in. In terms of your slate for FY26, do you have plans to at least match what you've been doing in FY25 if we include the fact that Shadows will spread now into FY26, can we have confidence that you can at least match your FY25 levels with your new slate?

Frederick:
So as I said to Nicolas, we'll provide you with more information at a later stage. What we're planning to do is to have a lineup that is a good reflection of our two vertical focus: open world adventures on one side and gas native experiences on the other side. We also expect Rainbow Six Siege to continue growing, but you'll have more color at a later stage.

Nick Dempsey:
Thank you.

Frederick:
You're welcome.

Operator:
Thank you. As a reminder ladies and gentlemen, that's star and one, one to ask a question. Please stand by for our next question. Our next question comes from the line of Alexander with Bernstein. Your line is open.

Alexander:
Good afternoon. Thank you for taking my question. Can you maybe tell us what are the covenants on your debts and how much headroom you actually have with respect to those covenants? Thank you.

Frederick:
Yes, so we have two ratios to abide by. First of all, net debt relative to equity should not exceed 0.8 and then the second ratio is net debt relative to EBITDA 12 months EBITDA should not exceed 1.5 and as I mentioned we are planning to stay within these boundaries.

Alexander:
And do you think we have enough safety even if the current trend continues into fiscal 26 or do you plan for an improvement in fiscal 26? Thank you.

Frederick:
Yeah, so as I've just said, we're planning to stay within these boundaries.

Alexander:
Thank you very much.

Frederick:
You're welcome.

Operator:
Please stand by for our next question. Our next question comes from the line of David Lussberg with BMO. Your line is open.

Operator:
I'd like to see if you're on mute, David.

David Lussberg:
Yes, thank you. Hi, I wanted to ask about the Assassin's Creed Shadow movement. Two questions on it.

1. One, does the shift from the Christmas and holiday season, do you expect that to impact unit sales?
2. And any color you can provide on the incremental development cost to get the game ready?

Thank you.

Frederick:
Yes, we have less expectations during this financial year on Shadows. Now the excess of cost will be around 20 million, but of course on the lifetime expectation and the potential is obviously intact if not bigger as we really want to deliver an outstanding quality.

David Lussberg:
Thank you.

Operator:
Thank you. Ladies and gentlemen, I'm showing no further questions in the queue. I would now like to turn the call back over to Yves Guillemot for closing remarks.

Yves Guillemot:
Thank you very much for your questions and have a good day or good evening.

Operator:
Thank you.

I can provide the audio if anyone wants it.

[rusty_shackleford]

Notables:

The Q2 guidance, so you cut it by like 140 million euros. Is it only Star Wars Outlaws or is there something else underperforming in the portfolio? Because if it's only Star Wars Outlaws, it means you have missed by 2.5 to 3 million units during the quarter. Do you think it's a fair assumption?

(The answer was yes, it was Outlaws missing its target by millions of units.)

One, does the shift from the Christmas and holiday season, do you expect that to impact unit sales?

Yes, we have less expectations during this financial year on Shadows.

He admits that moving the game will cost sales, meaning it's dire.

And any color you can provide on the incremental development cost to get the game ready?

Now the excess of cost will be around 20 million,

Pushing the game back cost an extra $20m if you want an idea of how ridiculous game budgets are now.

[Xenich]

Notables:

The Q2 guidance, so you cut it by like 140 million euros. Is it only Star Wars Outlaws or is there something else underperforming in the portfolio? Because if it's only Star Wars Outlaws, it means you have missed by 2.5 to 3 million units during the quarter. Do you think it's a fair assumption?

(The answer was yes, it was Outlaws missing its target by millions of units.)

One, does the shift from the Christmas and holiday season, do you expect that to impact unit sales?

Yes, we have less expectations during this financial year on Shadows.

He admits that moving the game will cost sales, meaning it's dire.

And any color you can provide on the incremental development cost to get the game ready?

Now the excess of cost will be around 20 million,

Pushing the game back cost an extra $20m if you want an idea of how ridiculous game budgets are now.

Do these investors have any idea what is going on with the companies like we do? I can't imagine knowing what I know, having a large amount invested in the company and being anywhere near civil to these guys. I mean, all politeness would be off the table and nothing short of grown men sobbing like little girls would be acceptable before I was done. FFS, people lack backbone these days.

[wndrbr]

https://insider-gaming.com/yves-guillem ... -to-staff/

Lastly, I’d like to address the recent polarized coverage around our creative choices. We are an entertainment company. As such, our objective is not to endorse any specific agenda.

[rusty_shackleford]

https://insider-gaming.com/yves-guillem ... -to-staff/

Lastly, I’d like to address the recent polarized coverage around our creative choices. We are an entertainment company. As such, our objective is not to endorse any specific agenda.

Note that is from the readily available memo, not the call itself.

[UltraFan123]

https://insider-gaming.com/yves-guillem ... -to-staff/

Lastly, I’d like to address the recent polarized coverage around our creative choices. We are an entertainment company. As such, our objective is not to endorse any specific agenda.

Sniff Sniff

Something smells like ********.

[The_Mask]

[Unhelpful Contrarian]

I got access to Ubisoft's (abrupt?) investor call today, downloaded the streamed audio, and transcribed it using LLM. Because gaming journos are too busy attacking chuds and defending breast mutilation scars to actually do something useful.
Here's the full text:

Yves Guillemot:
Welcome everybody and thank you for joining the call on such short notice. Our second quarter fell short of expectations. Listening to players' feedback, we are determined to address this swiftly and firmly, with an even greater focus on a player-centric, gameplay-first approach and an unwavering commitment to the long-term value of our brands. Also, we want to address an important problem of perception that has been affecting the company's performance.

On the back of our player-centric approach, the following important decisions relative to Assassin's Creed Shadows have been taken:

• First, leveraging the learnings from the Star Wars Outlaws launch, we have taken the decision to delay Assassin's Creed Shadows to February 14, 2025. In today's challenging market and with gamers expecting extraordinary experiences, delivering solid quality is no longer enough. We must strive for excellence in all aspects of our work. This will enable the biggest entry in the franchise to fully deliver on its ambition, notably by fulfilling the promise of our dual protagonist adventure with Naoe and Yasuke bringing two very different gameplay styles.
• Second, we are departing from the traditional season pass model. All players will be able to enjoy the game at the same time on February 14th and those who pre-order the game will be granted the first expansion for free.
• Finally, the game will mark the return of our new releases on Steam day one.

Turning to Star Wars Outlaw, despite a softer than expected launch, the game achieved solid ratings with a Metacritic score of 76, as well as a player-user rating of 3.9 out of 5 across the first party and a 4.4 on Epic Store. This reflects the immersive and authentic Star Wars universe, as well as the effectiveness of the reputation system, great exploration possibilities and its anti-things, scoundrel fantasy.

However, a portion of players have expressed dissatisfaction, notably on stealth mechanics and overall polish that impacted the first hours of the game. In response to this feedback, we have begun implementing updates aimed at polishing and improving the gameplay quality and player experience, with the first update deployed mid-September and three more to come over the next couple of months. This should enable us to improve its perceived quality and make it a must-play game ahead of the holiday season, to position it as a strong long-term performer. The game will launch on Steam on November 21st.

Although the tangible benefits of the company transformation are taking longer than anticipated to materialize, we keep on our strategy focusing on two key verticals: open world adventures and gas native experiences with the objective to drive growth recurrence and robust free cash flow generation in our business.

In light of recent challenges, we acknowledge the need for greater efficiency while delighting our players. As a result, being the first important short-term action undertaken, the executive committee under the supervision of the board of directors is launching a review aimed at further improving our execution, notably on our player-centric approach and accelerating our strategic path towards the higher performing model to the benefit of our shareholders and stakeholders.

Finally, let me address some of the polarized comments around Ubisoft lately. I want to reaffirm that we are an entertainment-first company creating games for the broadest possible audience and our goal is not to push any specific agenda. We remain committed to creating games for fans and players that everyone can enjoy.

I will now hand over the call to Frederick.

Frederick:
Thank you Yves and hello everybody. For fiscal year 25, we now expect to generate around 1.95 billion euros of net bookings and around breakeven non-IFRS operating income and free cash flow. This revised outlook mainly reflects the softer than expected launch for Star Wars Outlaws and the updated Q4 release window for Assassin's Creed Shadows.

This translates into Q2 net bookings that are now expected to stand at between 350 and 370 million euros, mainly reflecting the softer than expected Star Wars Outlaws launch. Additionally, as the group transformation continues, we made progress on our cost reduction initiative with headcount steadily decreasing over the first half.

To conclude, our balance sheet remains solid. Cash and cash equivalents are expected above 850 million euros at the end of September 2024, after having repaid the 250 million euro convertible bond maturing this month, notably reflecting the cash consumption in the first half related to the new release schedule. We will provide more detail when we report our H1 earnings on October 30.

We are now ready to take your questions.

Operator:
Thank you. To ask a question, you will need to press star 1 and 1 on your telephone and wait for your name to be announced. To withdraw your question, please press star 1 and 1 again. Please stand by while we compile the Q&A roster.

Our first question comes from the line of Nicholas Langlet with BNP Paribas. Your line is open.

Nicholas Langlet:
Yes. Hello. Good afternoon, everyone. I've got three questions, please.

1. The Q2 guidance, so you cut it by like 140 million euros. Is it only Star Wars Outlaws or is there something else underperforming in the portfolio? Because if it's only Star Wars Outlaws, it means you have missed by 2.5 to 3 million units during the quarter. Do you think it's a fair assumption?
2. Secondly, can you help us understand what is the bridge between the net booking reduction and the adjusted EBIT reduction for the full year? It seems you are reducing net booking by 500 million euro and adjusted EBIT by 400 million euro, which is pretty big. So if you can detail a bit more, that would be great.
3. And finally, would you be ready to share the aspiration you have for full year 26, considering the delay of AC Shadows and what you have in the pipeline?

Thank you.

Frederick:
Yeah, good evening, Nicolas.

1. In terms of the second quarter, it mostly reflects the softer than expected sales for Star Wars Outlaws. We also had behind expectations for XDFines, but we'll give you a bit more detail at the end of October.
2. In terms of the bridge between net booking and EBIT, this reflects mostly two elements. First, the fact that we decided to move Assassin's Creed Shadows to Q4, and the fact that we reflected lower expectations for Star Wars Outlaws and to a much lesser extent with a limited impact, also lower than expectation for X Defiance.
3. In terms of fiscal year 26, we will give you more perspective at a later stage.

Nicholas Langlet:
Okay, perfect. And on the full year 24 guidance, do you plan accelerated depreciation for Star Wars Outlaws or not?

Frederick:
So what we usually do, and we follow this common practice, is that we usually accelerate depreciation for games that are behind expectations. And that we, of course, are following the normal closing process, so our auditors should validate the closing process as usual.

Nicholas Langlet:
Okay. Okay, thank you.

Frederick:
Thank you.

Operator:
Please stand by for our next question. Our next question comes from Ali Navic with HSBC. Your line is open.

Ali Navic:
Hi, Gideon. Thank you for taking the question.

1. What are you sort of hoping to achieve in the few months of the delay of AC Shadows?
2. And then secondly, in terms of the executive committee review, what are the things that they will focus on? Is it just on execution of your studios or could they also consider selling some IPs or offloading assets?
3. And then the third question, longer term, could you give any sort of guidance or views on debt or cash headrooms or would you have to take on any additional debt as a result of today's warning?

Thank you.

Frederick:
Yeah, thank you, Ali.

1. So, yes, on Assassin's Creed Shadows, the game is feature complete. As you might know, we were about to run preview, so very close to shipping. What we see is that there is, with additional months, the possibility to really further polish the game so that the experience is really flawless, is perfect to deliver the fantastic promise of the most ambitious entry in the franchise. So that's really what we want to do, is really to bring quality to the highest level possible.
2. In terms of the executive committee review, as we said, we really want to make sure execution is flawless. We were focusing on the gameplay first, player-centric approaches. So the objective is to really make sure that everything that will bring quality to a high level will be pushing the agenda. We have, of course, important areas of work that we've been pushing over the last year and a half. So it takes time to deliver, but it's well underway. Fostering creative talents as well as bringing gameplay first, as I mentioned, at the center of each and every decision. Cutting-edge technology that we push with NoDrop and Envil, pushing the transformation of our franchise towards a more recurring model with gas-native experiences. This is also an important transformation for the future and simplification of the organization as we've been organizing our production along five zones to really streamline the work and focus our resources on our biggest opportunities. As part of the transformation plan, we had already mentioned that we were considering reducing costs and proceeding with the diversity of non-core assets. This is of course still valid.
3. On your last question around debt, as we said, we have a comfortable level of cash and cash equivalent at end of September of more than 850 million euros. We plan to generate robust free cash flows in the second half of this fiscal year, knowing that we are planning to be neutral from a free cash flow standpoint this year. And if we look at our debt schedule, it's a very healthy and sound average maturity of close to four years, so we have good visibility on that front.

Ali Navic:
Thank you. And sorry, just one final follow-up, if I could. The trade receivable that was put in at the end of your FY23 results, is there any change to that receivable coming through?

Frederick:
So, yes, you're right. We reached, as we had mentioned, a record high level in terms of trade receivable at end of fiscal year 24. So, mechanically, it should contribute to reducing working capital needs this year. So, of course, that's contributing positively to free cash flow.

Ali Navic:
Thank you.

Frederick:
You're welcome.

Operator:
Thank you. Please stand by for our next question. Our next question comes from the line of Nick Dempsey with Barclays. Your line is open.

Nick Dempsey:
Yeah, good evening, guys. So first of all, just returning to debt that was mentioned in one of the previous questions there.

1. So we had 985 million euros excluding leases and March 24 of net debt. If we're looking at break-even free cash flow, I guess total net cash flow that drives that net debt will be negative. So the net debt number goes up a bit. Can you talk about, are there any covenants around any of your debt instruments? And is there anything about debt needing to be paid down at any particular rate, which will be problematic with your lenders? Because yeah, every time now that we don't have positive free cash flow, it makes me worry a bit more about the scale of that debt.
2. Second question, Ghost of Yotei, so the sequel to Ghost of Tsushima, looks an awful lot like, to me perhaps, I'm not into it deeply enough, but it looks an awful lot like Assassin's Creed Shadows and we're talking about that game Ghost of Yotei coming out in 2025. So is there a risk that you start bumping into that one that people will not buy Shadows because they're waiting for Ghost of Yotei in a few months' time to get their fix of a Japanese game in that vein.
3. And the last question, are you still expecting the same amount from partnership deals this year as you were when you set guidance? Has that had any impact on all of this?

Frederick:
So thank you, Nick.

1. On the first question, so we don't guide on the non-IFRS net debt. What I can tell you to help you is that so we are planning to be breakeven from a free cash flow standpoint. We also regularly have the positive proceeds of our employee share ownership plan, and that I think is around 40 million euros. So that's what you can take into account in your projection. We plan to stay within the boundaries of our covenants.
2. On the competition related to Assassin's Creed Shadows, the focus is really to make sure that we deliver a fantastic experience with this dual protagonist approach with two different and complementary gameplays with Yasuke and Naoe in a setting taking place in this feudal Japan that should be really enticing. So all the focus and everything that really informs our decision is to make sure that we polish the game and provide this fantastic promise. And I would like to say that there's a lot of space for very high quality games, and those two games can sell very well.
3. In terms of the partnership side, we still expect the same level as we mentioned during the guidance setup, meaning significant contribution, but to a lower extent than last year.

Nick Dempsey:
Yes, sorry there was one question I forgot. If I could just squeeze it in. In terms of your slate for FY26, do you have plans to at least match what you've been doing in FY25 if we include the fact that Shadows will spread now into FY26, can we have confidence that you can at least match your FY25 levels with your new slate?

Frederick:
So as I said to Nicolas, we'll provide you with more information at a later stage. What we're planning to do is to have a lineup that is a good reflection of our two vertical focus: open world adventures on one side and gas native experiences on the other side. We also expect Rainbow Six Siege to continue growing, but you'll have more color at a later stage.

Nick Dempsey:
Thank you.

Frederick:
You're welcome.

Operator:
Thank you. As a reminder ladies and gentlemen, that's star and one, one to ask a question. Please stand by for our next question. Our next question comes from the line of Alexander with Bernstein. Your line is open.

Alexander:
Good afternoon. Thank you for taking my question. Can you maybe tell us what are the covenants on your debts and how much headroom you actually have with respect to those covenants? Thank you.

Frederick:
Yes, so we have two ratios to abide by. First of all, net debt relative to equity should not exceed 0.8 and then the second ratio is net debt relative to EBITDA 12 months EBITDA should not exceed 1.5 and as I mentioned we are planning to stay within these boundaries.

Alexander:
And do you think we have enough safety even if the current trend continues into fiscal 26 or do you plan for an improvement in fiscal 26? Thank you.

Frederick:
Yeah, so as I've just said, we're planning to stay within these boundaries.

Alexander:
Thank you very much.

Frederick:
You're welcome.

Operator:
Please stand by for our next question. Our next question comes from the line of David Lussberg with BMO. Your line is open.

Operator:
I'd like to see if you're on mute, David.

David Lussberg:
Yes, thank you. Hi, I wanted to ask about the Assassin's Creed Shadow movement. Two questions on it.

1. One, does the shift from the Christmas and holiday season, do you expect that to impact unit sales?
2. And any color you can provide on the incremental development cost to get the game ready?

Thank you.

Frederick:
Yes, we have less expectations during this financial year on Shadows. Now the excess of cost will be around 20 million, but of course on the lifetime expectation and the potential is obviously intact if not bigger as we really want to deliver an outstanding quality.

David Lussberg:
Thank you.

Operator:
Thank you. Ladies and gentlemen, I'm showing no further questions in the queue. I would now like to turn the call back over to Yves Guillemot for closing remarks.

Yves Guillemot:
Thank you very much for your questions and have a good day or good evening.

Operator:
Thank you.

I can provide the audio if anyone wants it.

Doing my journalistic research then journalist, then again not hard when they make articles comparing **** sizes of RPG’s protagonists.

[Unhelpful Contrarian]

https://insider-gaming.com/yves-guillem ... -to-staff/

Lastly, I’d like to address the recent polarized coverage around our creative choices. We are an entertainment company. As such, our objective is not to endorse any specific agenda.

Sniff Sniff


Something smells like ********.

Who the **** on they trying to fool here.

[WhiteShark]

https://insider-gaming.com/yves-guillem ... -to-staff/

Sniff Sniff


Something smells like ********.

Who the **** on they trying to fool here.

The investors.

[Bing_xiLim]

Do these investors have any idea what is going on with the companies like we do? I can't imagine knowing what I know, having a large amount invested in the company and being anywhere near civil to these guys. I mean, all politeness would be off the table and nothing short of grown men sobbing like little girls would be acceptable before I was done. FFS, people lack backbone these days.

I suspect they don’t know and they don’t care. From my brief experience in the finance industry, these guys care more about their ratios and comparables (EV, P/E, P/S, EBIT, and all that shite) and only care about other factors if it will impact the company earnings.

Otherwise, they don’t give a **** what the company is doing.

[Faceless_Sentinel]

I got access to Ubisoft's (abrupt?) investor call today, downloaded the streamed audio, and transcribed it using LLM. Because gaming journos are too busy attacking chuds and defending breast mutilation scars to actually do something useful.
Here's the full text:

Yves Guillemot:
Welcome everybody and thank you for joining the call on such short notice. Our second quarter fell short of expectations. Listening to players' feedback, we are determined to address this swiftly and firmly, with an even greater focus on a player-centric, gameplay-first approach and an unwavering commitment to the long-term value of our brands. Also, we want to address an important problem of perception that has been affecting the company's performance.

On the back of our player-centric approach, the following important decisions relative to Assassin's Creed Shadows have been taken:

• First, leveraging the learnings from the Star Wars Outlaws launch, we have taken the decision to delay Assassin's Creed Shadows to February 14, 2025. In today's challenging market and with gamers expecting extraordinary experiences, delivering solid quality is no longer enough. We must strive for excellence in all aspects of our work. This will enable the biggest entry in the franchise to fully deliver on its ambition, notably by fulfilling the promise of our dual protagonist adventure with Naoe and Yasuke bringing two very different gameplay styles.
• Second, we are departing from the traditional season pass model. All players will be able to enjoy the game at the same time on February 14th and those who pre-order the game will be granted the first expansion for free.
• Finally, the game will mark the return of our new releases on Steam day one.

Turning to Star Wars Outlaw, despite a softer than expected launch, the game achieved solid ratings with a Metacritic score of 76, as well as a player-user rating of 3.9 out of 5 across the first party and a 4.4 on Epic Store. This reflects the immersive and authentic Star Wars universe, as well as the effectiveness of the reputation system, great exploration possibilities and its anti-things, scoundrel fantasy.

However, a portion of players have expressed dissatisfaction, notably on stealth mechanics and overall polish that impacted the first hours of the game. In response to this feedback, we have begun implementing updates aimed at polishing and improving the gameplay quality and player experience, with the first update deployed mid-September and three more to come over the next couple of months. This should enable us to improve its perceived quality and make it a must-play game ahead of the holiday season, to position it as a strong long-term performer. The game will launch on Steam on November 21st.

Although the tangible benefits of the company transformation are taking longer than anticipated to materialize, we keep on our strategy focusing on two key verticals: open world adventures and gas native experiences with the objective to drive growth recurrence and robust free cash flow generation in our business.

In light of recent challenges, we acknowledge the need for greater efficiency while delighting our players. As a result, being the first important short-term action undertaken, the executive committee under the supervision of the board of directors is launching a review aimed at further improving our execution, notably on our player-centric approach and accelerating our strategic path towards the higher performing model to the benefit of our shareholders and stakeholders.

Finally, let me address some of the polarized comments around Ubisoft lately. I want to reaffirm that we are an entertainment-first company creating games for the broadest possible audience and our goal is not to push any specific agenda. We remain committed to creating games for fans and players that everyone can enjoy.

I will now hand over the call to Frederick.

Frederick:
Thank you Yves and hello everybody. For fiscal year 25, we now expect to generate around 1.95 billion euros of net bookings and around breakeven non-IFRS operating income and free cash flow. This revised outlook mainly reflects the softer than expected launch for Star Wars Outlaws and the updated Q4 release window for Assassin's Creed Shadows.

This translates into Q2 net bookings that are now expected to stand at between 350 and 370 million euros, mainly reflecting the softer than expected Star Wars Outlaws launch. Additionally, as the group transformation continues, we made progress on our cost reduction initiative with headcount steadily decreasing over the first half.

To conclude, our balance sheet remains solid. Cash and cash equivalents are expected above 850 million euros at the end of September 2024, after having repaid the 250 million euro convertible bond maturing this month, notably reflecting the cash consumption in the first half related to the new release schedule. We will provide more detail when we report our H1 earnings on October 30.

We are now ready to take your questions.

Operator:
Thank you. To ask a question, you will need to press star 1 and 1 on your telephone and wait for your name to be announced. To withdraw your question, please press star 1 and 1 again. Please stand by while we compile the Q&A roster.

Our first question comes from the line of Nicholas Langlet with BNP Paribas. Your line is open.

Nicholas Langlet:
Yes. Hello. Good afternoon, everyone. I've got three questions, please.

1. The Q2 guidance, so you cut it by like 140 million euros. Is it only Star Wars Outlaws or is there something else underperforming in the portfolio? Because if it's only Star Wars Outlaws, it means you have missed by 2.5 to 3 million units during the quarter. Do you think it's a fair assumption?
2. Secondly, can you help us understand what is the bridge between the net booking reduction and the adjusted EBIT reduction for the full year? It seems you are reducing net booking by 500 million euro and adjusted EBIT by 400 million euro, which is pretty big. So if you can detail a bit more, that would be great.
3. And finally, would you be ready to share the aspiration you have for full year 26, considering the delay of AC Shadows and what you have in the pipeline?

Thank you.

Frederick:
Yeah, good evening, Nicolas.

1. In terms of the second quarter, it mostly reflects the softer than expected sales for Star Wars Outlaws. We also had behind expectations for XDFines, but we'll give you a bit more detail at the end of October.
2. In terms of the bridge between net booking and EBIT, this reflects mostly two elements. First, the fact that we decided to move Assassin's Creed Shadows to Q4, and the fact that we reflected lower expectations for Star Wars Outlaws and to a much lesser extent with a limited impact, also lower than expectation for X Defiance.
3. In terms of fiscal year 26, we will give you more perspective at a later stage.

Nicholas Langlet:
Okay, perfect. And on the full year 24 guidance, do you plan accelerated depreciation for Star Wars Outlaws or not?

Frederick:
So what we usually do, and we follow this common practice, is that we usually accelerate depreciation for games that are behind expectations. And that we, of course, are following the normal closing process, so our auditors should validate the closing process as usual.

Nicholas Langlet:
Okay. Okay, thank you.

Frederick:
Thank you.

Operator:
Please stand by for our next question. Our next question comes from Ali Navic with HSBC. Your line is open.

Ali Navic:
Hi, Gideon. Thank you for taking the question.

1. What are you sort of hoping to achieve in the few months of the delay of AC Shadows?
2. And then secondly, in terms of the executive committee review, what are the things that they will focus on? Is it just on execution of your studios or could they also consider selling some IPs or offloading assets?
3. And then the third question, longer term, could you give any sort of guidance or views on debt or cash headrooms or would you have to take on any additional debt as a result of today's warning?

Thank you.

Frederick:
Yeah, thank you, Ali.

1. So, yes, on Assassin's Creed Shadows, the game is feature complete. As you might know, we were about to run preview, so very close to shipping. What we see is that there is, with additional months, the possibility to really further polish the game so that the experience is really flawless, is perfect to deliver the fantastic promise of the most ambitious entry in the franchise. So that's really what we want to do, is really to bring quality to the highest level possible.
2. In terms of the executive committee review, as we said, we really want to make sure execution is flawless. We were focusing on the gameplay first, player-centric approaches. So the objective is to really make sure that everything that will bring quality to a high level will be pushing the agenda. We have, of course, important areas of work that we've been pushing over the last year and a half. So it takes time to deliver, but it's well underway. Fostering creative talents as well as bringing gameplay first, as I mentioned, at the center of each and every decision. Cutting-edge technology that we push with NoDrop and Envil, pushing the transformation of our franchise towards a more recurring model with gas-native experiences. This is also an important transformation for the future and simplification of the organization as we've been organizing our production along five zones to really streamline the work and focus our resources on our biggest opportunities. As part of the transformation plan, we had already mentioned that we were considering reducing costs and proceeding with the diversity of non-core assets. This is of course still valid.
3. On your last question around debt, as we said, we have a comfortable level of cash and cash equivalent at end of September of more than 850 million euros. We plan to generate robust free cash flows in the second half of this fiscal year, knowing that we are planning to be neutral from a free cash flow standpoint this year. And if we look at our debt schedule, it's a very healthy and sound average maturity of close to four years, so we have good visibility on that front.

Ali Navic:
Thank you. And sorry, just one final follow-up, if I could. The trade receivable that was put in at the end of your FY23 results, is there any change to that receivable coming through?

Frederick:
So, yes, you're right. We reached, as we had mentioned, a record high level in terms of trade receivable at end of fiscal year 24. So, mechanically, it should contribute to reducing working capital needs this year. So, of course, that's contributing positively to free cash flow.

Ali Navic:
Thank you.

Frederick:
You're welcome.

Operator:
Thank you. Please stand by for our next question. Our next question comes from the line of Nick Dempsey with Barclays. Your line is open.

Nick Dempsey:
Yeah, good evening, guys. So first of all, just returning to debt that was mentioned in one of the previous questions there.

1. So we had 985 million euros excluding leases and March 24 of net debt. If we're looking at break-even free cash flow, I guess total net cash flow that drives that net debt will be negative. So the net debt number goes up a bit. Can you talk about, are there any covenants around any of your debt instruments? And is there anything about debt needing to be paid down at any particular rate, which will be problematic with your lenders? Because yeah, every time now that we don't have positive free cash flow, it makes me worry a bit more about the scale of that debt.
2. Second question, Ghost of Yotei, so the sequel to Ghost of Tsushima, looks an awful lot like, to me perhaps, I'm not into it deeply enough, but it looks an awful lot like Assassin's Creed Shadows and we're talking about that game Ghost of Yotei coming out in 2025. So is there a risk that you start bumping into that one that people will not buy Shadows because they're waiting for Ghost of Yotei in a few months' time to get their fix of a Japanese game in that vein.
3. And the last question, are you still expecting the same amount from partnership deals this year as you were when you set guidance? Has that had any impact on all of this?

Frederick:
So thank you, Nick.

1. On the first question, so we don't guide on the non-IFRS net debt. What I can tell you to help you is that so we are planning to be breakeven from a free cash flow standpoint. We also regularly have the positive proceeds of our employee share ownership plan, and that I think is around 40 million euros. So that's what you can take into account in your projection. We plan to stay within the boundaries of our covenants.
2. On the competition related to Assassin's Creed Shadows, the focus is really to make sure that we deliver a fantastic experience with this dual protagonist approach with two different and complementary gameplays with Yasuke and Naoe in a setting taking place in this feudal Japan that should be really enticing. So all the focus and everything that really informs our decision is to make sure that we polish the game and provide this fantastic promise. And I would like to say that there's a lot of space for very high quality games, and those two games can sell very well.
3. In terms of the partnership side, we still expect the same level as we mentioned during the guidance setup, meaning significant contribution, but to a lower extent than last year.

Nick Dempsey:
Yes, sorry there was one question I forgot. If I could just squeeze it in. In terms of your slate for FY26, do you have plans to at least match what you've been doing in FY25 if we include the fact that Shadows will spread now into FY26, can we have confidence that you can at least match your FY25 levels with your new slate?

Frederick:
So as I said to Nicolas, we'll provide you with more information at a later stage. What we're planning to do is to have a lineup that is a good reflection of our two vertical focus: open world adventures on one side and gas native experiences on the other side. We also expect Rainbow Six Siege to continue growing, but you'll have more color at a later stage.

Nick Dempsey:
Thank you.

Frederick:
You're welcome.

Operator:
Thank you. As a reminder ladies and gentlemen, that's star and one, one to ask a question. Please stand by for our next question. Our next question comes from the line of Alexander with Bernstein. Your line is open.

Alexander:
Good afternoon. Thank you for taking my question. Can you maybe tell us what are the covenants on your debts and how much headroom you actually have with respect to those covenants? Thank you.

Frederick:
Yes, so we have two ratios to abide by. First of all, net debt relative to equity should not exceed 0.8 and then the second ratio is net debt relative to EBITDA 12 months EBITDA should not exceed 1.5 and as I mentioned we are planning to stay within these boundaries.

Alexander:
And do you think we have enough safety even if the current trend continues into fiscal 26 or do you plan for an improvement in fiscal 26? Thank you.

Frederick:
Yeah, so as I've just said, we're planning to stay within these boundaries.

Alexander:
Thank you very much.

Frederick:
You're welcome.

Operator:
Please stand by for our next question. Our next question comes from the line of David Lussberg with BMO. Your line is open.

Operator:
I'd like to see if you're on mute, David.

David Lussberg:
Yes, thank you. Hi, I wanted to ask about the Assassin's Creed Shadow movement. Two questions on it.

1. One, does the shift from the Christmas and holiday season, do you expect that to impact unit sales?
2. And any color you can provide on the incremental development cost to get the game ready?

Thank you.

Frederick:
Yes, we have less expectations during this financial year on Shadows. Now the excess of cost will be around 20 million, but of course on the lifetime expectation and the potential is obviously intact if not bigger as we really want to deliver an outstanding quality.

David Lussberg:
Thank you.

Operator:
Thank you. Ladies and gentlemen, I'm showing no further questions in the queue. I would now like to turn the call back over to Yves Guillemot for closing remarks.

Yves Guillemot:
Thank you very much for your questions and have a good day or good evening.

Operator:
Thank you.

I can provide the audio if anyone wants it.

How did you manage to get this?

[Marcus]

Ubi stock is crashing hard. It's down 92% since it's all-time high in July 2018 (from 108 EUR to 9 EUR). In this September alone its value almost halved from 17 EUR to 9 EUR:

[1998]

So that **** comes out on Steam now day 1? At least we can take another round of guessing concurrent player numbers.

[Kronus]

Notables:

Now the excess of cost will be around 20 million,

Pushing the game back cost an extra $20m if you want an idea of how ridiculous game budgets are now.

Technically it could cost a shitload more if it doesn't take into account additional shilling/advertising/marketing before delayed release, and the difference between sales estimates if it were to release in the "original" timeframe vs the delayed one. So it could smell like he's just talking to the stockholders.

But hey, if it means another step to their brokeness it's great news.

Also adding up to the cost of going for gaslighting negative reviews under feb's "history month" means going near the release of other major titles such as KCD 2.