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Key Takeaways:
Assassin’s Creed Shadows is losing its crown to another game in the franchise, Assassin’s Creed Odyssey
Assassin’s Creed Odyssey is claiming its throne back even after seven years of glorious run, as the Steam charts reveal.
It further highlights the importance of good content and well-designed gameplay to survive in the long run
Ubisoft’s latest entry in the Assassin’s Creed franchise has stirred the gaming world with its presentation of feudal Japan. After back-to-back failures in 2024, the success of this game was necessary for Ubisoft to survive the hard times. With its dual protagonist system and dynamic world design, AC Shadows has become one of the finest games of the franchise, surpassing multiple records.
Set in feudal Japan, the blend of action and stealth gameplay has captured the hearts of gamers for a long time. However, recently, a potent rival from the same franchise appeared. Recent reports suggest that, despite a strong start, AC Shadows has been surpassed by Assassin’s Creed Odyssey in daily player count on Steam.
Assassin’s Creed Shadows is undoubtedly one of the most hyped games of 2025. Upon its release, this game soon became one of the most successful titles of the franchise. This game delivered the second-highest day 1 sales after AC Valhalla, the biggest game of the Assassin's Creed series.
Ubisoft reported that AC Shadows attracted over two million players within two days and eventually reached the peak of three million players within a week.
On Steam, this game performed beyond imagination. During the first weekend after the game’s release, the player count on Steam touched 64,825 concurrent players. This surpassed the previous successful titles of the series, like Origins and Odyssey.
A recent development shows AC Odyssey is claiming its position back on Steam. Even newly introduced gameplay elements failed to save AC Shadows.
Assassin’s Creed Odyssey is one of those games in the franchise that offers loads of content to explore. The initial AC Shadows storm has taken away the players to the latest AC installment, but Assassin's Creed Odyssey is experiencing a resurgence in player engagement.
As per the reports, AC Odyssey’s daily active player count has surpassed the franchise's latest title. It's a surprising movement, considering the age of the Odyssey. It’s been seven years since this was released, and to date, SteamDB charts say AC Odyssey is leading the race with 6,137 concurrent players on Steam. During this same timeframe, AC Shadows was at 5,131.
This shift suggests, regardless of what AC Shadows offers, players are still obsessed with Odyssey’s expansive world, engaging combat, and rich storytelling.
Indeed, the resurgence in AC Odyssey’s popularity is surprising. However, multiple factors have contributed to this success. First, Odyssey offers more content than AC Shadows. With a vast open world and several DLCs, this game has numerous things to explore and enjoy that AC Shadows lacks.
Second, the story of the Odyssey revolves around ancient Greece, where players are allowed to go for extensive exploration and a variety of quests. Comparing the RPG elements of these two games, Odyssey offers a more personalized gameplay experience with decision-making and character progression. This attracts players even after years.
Additionally, this 2018 game has been going through constant updates and optimizations to enhance the performance and content. On the other side, AC Shadows has brought a box full of new features. Still, some players faced issues with its narrative pacing and combat balance. When the hype was alive, these things didn’t get noticed, but they are affecting its long-time engagement.
The player gap between Assassin’s Creed Shadows and Assassin's Creed Odyssey highlights the complexities of player engagement in different titles within the same franchise. While Shadows achieves notable success upon its release, Odyssey demonstrates how to keep a long-lasting appeal among the community. It shows the impact of well-executed game design and storytelling in the long run. Once the initial hype goes down, only content makes games successful in the long run.
