Assassin’s Creed 3 has now sold more than 12 million units to date, Far Cry 3 at 6 million units

It seems business is booming for some of Ubisoft’s top franchises. In a press release announcing their fiscal year report for 2012-2013, the publisher has revealed a few interesting things, and chief among them is that Assassin’s Creed 3 and Far Cry 3 have sold like hotcakes. For sales for the fourth quarter fiscal year 2012-2103, Ubisoft states it has come to 175 million versus €161 million in the corresponding prior-year period, representing an increase of 8.7 percent. This figure is at the upper end of the publisher’s target range of €159 million to €179 million they issued when Ubisoft released its sales figures for the third quarter of 2012-13. Totaling €928 million in revenue generated from games for “core gamers,” Ubisoft mentions that it’s a 60 percent increase year-on-year, and thus “confirms” Ubisoft’s strong comeback in this category. This increase was “fueled” by record-breaking sales of Assassin’s Creed 3, which has now sold more than 12.5 million “sell-in” and digital units, and Far Cry 3, which amassed 6 million in sell-in and digital copies. For their casual games sector, Ubisoft reports €328 million in revenue, which represents a year-on-year contraction of 32 percent and accounts for 26 percent of the total sales (compared to 46 percent in fiscal year 2011-2012). You can check out Ubisoft’s “main income statement items” below. Gross profit totaled €913.5 million (72.7 percent of sales) in fiscal year 2012-13, up significantly on the €718.1 million (67.7 percent of sales) recorded for fiscal year 2011-12. Gross margin has risen steadily since fiscal year 2010-11, with the increase during the past 12 months driven by higher average net selling prices for core gamer titles and Just Dance® 4, and by a sharp rise in high margins online sales. Non-IFRS operating income came to €100.3 million versus €56.0 million in fiscal year 2011-12. The fiscal year 2012-13 figure is higher than the top end of the guidance announced a year ago of between €70 million and €90 million, and is at the upper end of the recently-raised target of between €90 million and €100 million. This performance reflects a combination of the following factors: A €195.4 million increase in gross profit. A €79.8 million rise in R&D expenses, which totaled €428.2 million (representing 34.1 percent of sales), versus €348.4 million (32.8 percent of sales) in 2011-12. A €71.3 million increase in total SG&A expenses to €385.0 million (30.6 percent of sales) from €313.7 million (29.6 percent of sales) in 2011-12: Variable marketing expenses represented 18.2 percent of sales (€228.7 million) compared with 16.7 percent (€177.1 million) in 2011-12. The increase was notably due to the fact that these expenses are always higher at the end of a console cycle. If seeing all those numbers bored you, the important thing here is, Assassin’s Creed 3 sold a ton along with Far Cry 3. Now, I might not be a fortune teller, but I’d say, get ready for more games in these respective franchises in the future.