Ubisoft closed its Winnipeg studio, laying off 65 employees. The French publisher also shut Belgrade and cut Barcelona staff, narrowing focus to Rainbow Six.
Ubisoft closed its Winnipeg office this week, laying off 65 employees. The French video game publisher also shut a studio in Belgrade and cut staff in Barcelona, moves that could affect up to 380 employees across the company, Insider Gaming reported first. Ubisoft is narrowing its focus to the Rainbow Six franchise.
A Ubisoft source told BetaKit the moves are “targeted actions to reduce costs and focus resources on its strategic priorities.” The latest cuts follow the closure of Ubisoft Halifax six months ago, which put 71 people out of work. That came shortly after the Halifax office voted to unionize. At the time, Ubisoft told investors it was entering the third phase of a cost reduction program meant to cut an additional €200 million (C$323.6 million) over two years.
The Winnipeg studio opened in 2018 as Manitoba’s first AAA game developer. It worked on Rainbow Six and Assassin’s Creed. In 2022, Ubisoft announced plans to add 200 jobs there, part of a $139 million investment to reach 300 employees by 2030. Last year, the company said it received more than €605 million (roughly C$977 million) in Canadian tax credits between 2020 and 2024. The tax credits are often tied to local employment and investment, so closing the Winnipeg studio could reduce future credits, a risk for Ubisoft’s Canadian operations.
Ubisoft still has a Toronto office and four Quebec studios in Montreal, Chicoutimi, Quebec City, and Sherbrooke.
The gaming industry generated over $500 billion USD in revenue last year. Layoffs persist as production costs climb. Sony and Electronic Arts have also cut hundreds of jobs in the past year. This week, Xbox CEO Asha Sharma told employees the Microsoft gaming division plans significant layoffs next month, according to a report. Xbox operates Canadian studios such as Compulsion Games and The Coalition.
The Halifax union vote came in early 2024, and the studio shut within months. The Winnipeg closure ends a studio that was once envisioned as a 300-person hub. Manitoba loses its only AAA game developer, a setback for the province’s technology sector.
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