GoKawiilFacepalm: Months after laying off at least 55 employees across two of its studios in Sweden, French video game publisher Ubisoft is reportedly cutting 380 more jobs, closing two studios in Canada and Serbia while downsizing another. The company had already announced the closure of its Canadian mobile game development studio, Ubisoft Halifax, in early January.
According to Insider Gaming, Ubisoft has informed employees via an internal communications post that a new restructuring plan will affect approximately 380 staff across its studios in the United States, Canada, Spain, and Serbia.
The report indicates that Ubisoft is shutting down its game development studios in Winnipeg and Belgrade, which will impact 65 and 100 employees, respectively. The company is also cutting 51 jobs at Ubisoft Barcelona and letting go an undisclosed number of employees at its global publishing headquarters in San Francisco.
In addition, more than 150 employees working on Rainbow Six Siege, Rainbow Six Siege Mobile, and an unannounced project at Ubisoft Montreal are reportedly being reassigned to other projects. Ubisoft says the move will simplify its operations, reduce overhead, and strengthen the organization in the long term.
Founded in 2016, Ubisoft Belgrade contributed to several popular titles, including The Crew 2, Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six, Riders Republic, and Skull & Bones. The Winnipeg studio opened in 2018, focusing on the development of technology for Ubisoft's game engines, Anvil and Snowdrop. It once employed more than 100 people.
Known for franchises such as Assassin's Creed, Prince of Persia, and the Tom Clancy's series, Ubisoft has experienced significant turmoil in recent years, including layoffs, studio closures, and game cancellations. These include the cancellation of Tom Clancy's The Division Heartland, which was announced in 2024.
Other canceled projects in recent years include Immortals Fenyx Rising 2 and several unannounced titles, as part of multiple cost-cutting efforts that resulted in more than 1,700 job losses across its European and North American offices between 2022 and 2024.
At its peak, Ubisoft employed more than 20,000 people globally. However, repeated layoffs have led to over 5,000 redundancies in recent years, with headcount reportedly falling to around 15,000 following the latest cuts.