Why Ubisoft is laying off another 185 employees and closing studios ?

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While the first previews, already at the heart of various controversies, of the highly (too much?) anticipated Assassin's Creed Shadows have been released, with a launch scheduled for March 20, the French giant Ubisoft has announced a new wave of layoffs. Last December, the firm confirmed the shutdown of its online game XDefiant, leading to the loss of just under 300 jobs. Today, 185 employees are affected.

At Ubisoft, it's (still and always) the Assassin's Crisis

Indeed, Ubisoft has confirmed the closure of its British studio located in Leamington, but also various restructurings within its studios in Europe. In total, a little less than 200 employees are affected by these new layoffs. A few weeks ago, it was the San Francisco and Osaka studios that were affected.

In addition to the closure of Ubisoft Leamington, Ubisoft announced targeted restructurings at its Düsseldorf (Germany), Stockholm (Sweden) and Ubisoft Reflections (England) studios, “as part of its ongoing efforts to prioritize projects and reduce costs to ensure the long-term stability of Ubisoft”.

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At the end of last year, the French giant was already in turmoil, after publishing rather disappointing results for the first half of 2024, acknowledging in passing the underperformance of its game Star Wars Outlaws, with (commercial) results below expectations.

After having been seen as a guarantee of quality a few (distant) years ago, the French giant Ubisoft has continued to see its aura decline in the minds of players, the latter displaying a real distrust towards the group's latest AAA games, and in particular the next Assassin's Creed Shadows. To cite only recent examples, it is difficult not to be reluctant towards upcoming games, after having bought the Skull & Bones, Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora or even the latest Star Wars, all impacted by major issues at launch.

It remains to be seen what the impact of this same Assassin's Creed Shadows will be on the health of the giant Ubisoft, the latter literally fighting for its survival according to many analysts. First elements of response on March 20, with the first feedback concerning a game that is undeniably as feared as it is expected.

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