Ubisoft's 1H 2021 Financials Reveal Strong Growth From Games Old And New

Ubisoft released the details of the first half of its 2021 fiscal year yesterday, roughly covering the six months from April to September, and it's pretty much all good news. Overall net bookings were "well above target," thanks in large part to Assassin's Creed Valhalla, which became the second-largest revenue generator in the company's history after just 12 months. Far Cry 6 is also doing well, with playtime up 25% as compared to Far Cry 5.

Other games, both old and new, deserved shout-outs in Ubisoft's presentation. The Crew 2 received "special mention" for having engagement numbers and revenues up 70% and 53% respectively versus two years ago. Ubisoft attributed that to "its unique positioning as a community-based driving game," though we'd wager that a little thing called a "global pandemic" might have played a part. On the other end of the spectrum, Ubisoft expects the newly released Riders Republic "to have a very long life."

Not everything is coming up roses for Ubisoft, however. The Division: Heartland, previously announced as a 2021-22 release, has now slipped to 2022-23. You'd also be forgiven if you completely forgot about Roller Champions; that hasn't been delayed, as it's still on target for launch "in the current fiscal year," but it's "no longer factored in the guidance." That sounds to me like Ubisoft is saying, "Yeah, we'll do it, but don't expect much."

Then there's the "Is it good news or bad?" section titled "Exploring innovative technology: Blockchain." In that section, Ubisoft explains how it "took part in the latest funding round of Animoca Brands, a leading blockchain gaming company" as part of its mission to find "new ways to empower players as true stakeholders of its worlds."

Finally, Ubisoft's multitudinous personnel issues were grouped under the heading of "Transformation of HR organization and building a strong D&I." That single paragraph touched all the expected bases, talking about the "evolution of the HR organization," the creation of Employee Resource Groups (ERGs), and an internal content review committee that "examines the game and marketing content to provide additional perspectives on its content."

You can look into Ubisoft's financial presentations on its investors relations page.