Ubisoft Connect is not required to be installed to play Shadows if you bought it on Steam, so that won't be the case. There might be some that bought it on Ubisoft Connect or Epic Games Store but I doubt those are substantial numbers, especially with those on Ubisoft Connect likely trying Ubisoft+ for $18/month to play the game.
I'm pretty sure the only ones on the launcher would be normally Ubisoft+ members anyway. The launcher is used for a few games (I have it for Trackmania), but I'm pretty sure Steam is still where most would directly buy it on PC.
Turns out game reviewers have no idea what people want. But that's nothing new.
I think this is especially true of a game like inZoi that's targeting an entirely different demographic to the normal. You only have to look at vtubers spending 5 hours picking their outfits to realize it is not about how much gamified bullshit there is in the game, but about playing with dolls.
Amazingly, the roach lord spent over 30 minutes making his character. Even he could get into it, which goes to show how good it is.
I think there's and untapped market for "game toys" that devs are slowly discovering. I've seen a couple of games that are just small sandboxes that let you do whatever. The most recent I saw was one that let you build a cyberpunk city and you can customize it to your heart's content.
It's like Maxis was never wrong. I just realize somehow, even EA couldn't kill Maxis. Broke its legs, sure, but the concepts were so strong they are still standing nearly 30 years after EA acquired them. That's wild.
I am more surprised this hasn't become a genre already, given how long people can spend customizing themselves on games where you don't even end up seeing your character. Case in point: the dark souls games.
It normally goes through cycles as games you won't come across. There's been a bunch of mobile and Facebook style ones. Knew a guy that made a stupid amount of money designing clothes in one in the 2010s. Some of those weird MMOs attempts were wild.
I'd say it's a case of rediscovering. Will Wright used to call all of the classic Maxis titles "software toys" instead of video games because he liked the idea of intrinsic play/satisfaction as distinct from extrinsically imposed goals. It's a cool design philosophy, it just feels like there aren't a lot of toy ideas other than virtual dollhouse and city builder.
Will has dropped off in gaming public visibility, but he's one of the single most important game devs ever. He just didn't get his name accidently stuck on one of the biggest franchises in history.
Eh, I'll just say it. The entire problem is pure cowardice. It can be logical to keep your head down and do the "both side"-ism, but Both Side-ism is always intellectually & morally dishonest. That's what ends up grating on people. This is why the Roach Lord is at the top. Not always the smartest tool in the shed and possibly the single most pragmatic streamer around, but he'll actually confront topics head-on. AC:Shadows is slathered in racism & bigotry from the Devs, but the key problem that causes is it means they weren't actually investing in the game as a game. It makes a bad product. That's why the industry reacted so violently to Sweat Baby Detected, because the association meant terrible quality. Terrible quality games don't get word of mouth, which kills the long-term sales. It's quite easy to explain, but it takes confronting reality.
