Video game developer and publisher Ubisoft Entertainment (UBSFY) is taking another L on Wednesday after announcing the end of its free-to-play first-person-shooter XDefiant. A lack of interest in the game has forced the company’s hand, and it will shut down servers for XDefiant on June 3, 2025. However, it will still launch a third season for players sticking with it until the end.
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In addition to this, Ubisoft is closing its San Francisco and Osaka production studios while also reducing its Sydney operations. This will result in 143 job cuts in San Francisco and another potential 134 reductions at its Osaka and Sydney facilities.
XDefiant’s End Is Only Part of Ubisoft’s Problem
Investors keeping track of Ubisoft Entertainment’s games will note that XDefiant came out in May of this year. That means it will only have lived for just over one year before services end. That’s not a good look for the company and builds on recent failures.
For example, reports claim that Ubisoft’s Star Wars Outlaws only reached one million units sold after one month on the market. That came in much softer than the company, or analysts, expected. This resulted in J.P. Morgan analyst Daniel Kerven lowering his sales guidance for the game from 7.5 million to 5.5 million units through March 2025.
Social media chatter also has investors concerned that Ubisoft could go bankrupt if Assassin’s Creed Shadows, its next big launch, doesn’t perform well. A poor reception is possible since the company delayed the game to next year following fan backlash.
Should Traders Buy UBSFY Stock?
Wall Street doesn’t have a clear answer with a lack of ratings or price targets for Ubisoft Entertainment over the last three months. However, investors will note that shares of UBSFY stock are down 53.62% year-to-date and 55.97% over the past 12 months. The stock is also slipping another 0.21% as of this writing.
