Ubisoft Believes Prince of Persia Can Sell 3 Million, Suggests Ratings Not Important

Speaking at the recent UBS Annual Global Media Conference, Ubisoft CFO Alain Martinez talked about the importance of the publisher's recently released Prince of Persia, which effectively reboots the franchise. While he noted that it's a bit early to make predictions, Martinez said he "believes 2.5 to three million [in unit sales] is clearly achievable."

The market performance of the new Prince of Persia could have significant financial implications for the company. "If it goes to four or five [million], then there is an upside factor for the company. If it goes to 1.5 million, then there is a downside factor," Martinez explained.

Having a strong title that can really drive sales has become even more important in the industry of late, as EA has discovered. "I would probably say competition is tougher, because there is more product," Martinez noted.

Interestingly, although some studies have shown a correlation between review scores and sales, Ubisoft isn't as concerned with achieving high Metacritic ratings. The publisher is simply focused on ensuring quality and hopes the sales are good as a result. "To be honest, when Assassin's Creed launched and got 82 percent, we were desperate, and we thought we were going to die," Martinez revealed. The game sold quite well though, topping five million units. Conversely, for Sands of Time Martinez observed, "If you look at our first Prince of Persia, we thought it was going to do great, [but] it did two million, so we were kind of disappointed." Ultimately, he said, "It's not ratings that mean everything, but we think quality and innovation are the key."

Martinez also revealed that Ubisoft was in the running for Cryptic Studios before Atari landed the MMO developer, but that won't hinder Ubisoft's growth plans. More acquisitions will be happening soon. "We have about three deals within [the] five million euro range that we are negotiating," he said. "Most probably, one or two of them will be closed in the next three or four months."