Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot has stated that he thinks Microsoft’s Activision Blizzard acquisition is “good news” in the way it validates Ubisoft’s decision to expand into mobile gaming.
Guillemot made the comments during Ubisoft’s latest earnings call with investors after he was asked for his decision on keeping Ubisoft an independent company. “I think it’s good news that the transaction can go through because it’s really showing the power of IPs and where the industry is going,” said Guillemot ” So, there will be lots of opportunities in the future for all the companies.”
Guillemot then moved on to talking about mobile gaming as a whole and Ubisoft’s recent decision to invest more heavily in the market.
“It’s also showing the value of IPs that can be now on console and PC, but also mobile, and become more worldwide brands – and when we say worldwide, it’s really everywhere in the world — and that’s a fantastic opportunity. Microsoft is saying that the mobile part of the Activision deal is important, so all the investment we are making to be stronger on mobile is also in line with that, so all those elements will help the value of the company to grow.”
Ubisoft has slowly been pushing further into the mobile market, and its latest release, Assasin’s Creed Jade, enters closed beta on August 3. Rainbow Six Mobile is also planned for release later in the fiscal year.
During the earnings call, Ubisoft’s Q1 results were detailed, showing a nine percent decrease in net sales year-on-year. However, the company apparently has ten games scheduled for release across the next fiscal year. This included the following nine games and one “large game” that hasn’t been revealed.
- Assassin’s Creed Mirage
- Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora
- Rainbow Six Mobile
- The Division Resurgence
- Just Dance 2024 Edition
- Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown
- Skull and Bones
- The Crew Motorfest
- XDefiant
Much of the talk around Microsoft’s purchase has revolved around Call of Duty, but head of Xbox, Phil Spencer, has previously said a key element in the merger is King, the studio behind Candy Crush.
The Microsoft-Activision deal still faces a roadblock with the decision from the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority, which recently extended its deadline to October.
