The Crew franchise reaches 50 million players

Since it began in 2014, The Crew franchise has hit 50 million players, Ubisoft has confirmed.

“Today we are celebrating something truly special,” said Managing Director, Stephane Beley, in a video addressing fans. “This week marks the second anniversary of The Crew Motorfest. And we’ve got some incredible news to share with you.

“We have officially hit 50 million players across The Crew franchise. To celebrate the occasion, we’ve got a special gift waiting for you in the game.”

That gift is a Bugatti Veyron Edition One, which players can claim in The Crew Motorfest this week.

It’s worth noting, however, that the milestone doesn’t correlate to direct sales. Ubisoft has hosted numerous free trials for The Crew 2 and The Crew Motorfest, which will have boosted the player counts. Both games are also available on the Ubisoft+ subscription service at no extra cost.  

At the end of the video, Beley also announced that the next The Crew Showcase will be streamed on 16^th October, teasing that it will be “the biggest ever for The Crew franchise.”

While no other details were announced, the next showcase will most likely preview Year 3 of The Crew Motorfest, with new cars and themed playlist events.  

With Forza Horizon 5 proving to be a hit on PlayStation 5, The Crew Motorfest is facing tough competition. Year 2 introduced a new map area set on the island of Maui as a free expansion last October, so we’re curious to see what Ivory Tower is planning next if it continues to support the open-world racer.

The Crew first launched in 2014 as an ambitious open-world racer combining MMO elements with a gigantic open world recreating the US. The Crew 2 followed in 2018, followed by The Crew Motorfest in 2023, set in Hawaii.

The original game is currently embroiled in controversy. After Ubisoft shut down the servers last year, The Crew is unplayable since it requires an online connection. This led to a group of modders emulating the servers to make the original game playable again, with The Crew Unlimited project set to launch on 15^th September.