The state of the game industry is best illustrated by how many companies, how many studios are forced to lay off their employees (or even their entire teams), and one of Ubisoft’s studios couldn’t escape it.

Ubisoft Toronto is the one that found itself on the chopping block. The studio’s previous games include Splinter Cell: Blacklist (2013), Far Cry 5 (2018, co-developed with Ubisoft Montréal), Starink: Battle for Atlas (2018), Watch Dogs: Legion (2020), and Far Cry 6 (2021). They are currently working on the Splinter Cell remake (announced for 2021) and, as the French publisher announced in June, are helping Ubisoft Montréal with the remake of Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time. This game is scheduled for release in 2026.

Now 33 people have been laid off, and in a statement to PCGamer, a Ubisoft spokesperson said the cuts were necessary to keep the studio on track with its ambitious development schedule. The “targeted realignment” has resulted in the layoff of nearly three dozen employees, but those affected will receive severance and job placement assistance.At the end of 2023, Ubisoft laid off nearly 100 employees at its Montréal studio for similar reasons…

The founder of Ubisoft Toronto in September 2010 was none other than Jade Raymond. She was one of the key people behind the launch of Assassin’s Creed (she was its producer) and later, for example, was the producer responsible for Watch_Dogs. She worked for the French publisher for a few years before moving to Electronic Arts, where she was responsible for the creation of Motive, which helped develop Star Wars: Battlefront II under her supervision. From there, she went to Google to run Stadia Games & Entertainment, but Google Stadia has been defunct for nearly a year and a half, and Google’s internal development efforts have gone nowhere. Raymond is now working on a live service game at PlayStation’s Haven Studios…

Downsizing is never good. When can we expect Sam Fisher back?

Source: GameRant, PCGamer