French game studio Ubisoft has eliminated nine publishing team roles in an effort to simplify and streamline the introduction of its new Tencent-led subsidiary.
In a statement given to Game Developer, an Ubisoft spokesperson maintained the layoffs will “ensure a smooth and swift launch” for the company’s newest division. “As part of this, some of our production and publishing teams will be transitioned to other Ubisoft brands and projects. Unfortunately, nine roles, primarily within our publishing team, are directly impacted. We are committed to providing support to everyone affected by this change.”
Tencent x Ubisoft
The company first spoke about the potential for Tencent’s involvement in January 2025 following a suboptimal annual report. Two months later, the company confirmed it had created a new subsidiary with Chinese tech conglomerate Tencent as a minority stakeholder. As a result of the collaboration, Ubisoft nabbed around $1.16 billion.
“This new subsidiary will focus on building game ecosystems designed to become truly evergreen and multi-platform,” Ubisoft stated in its March 2025 news release. “Backed by greater investment and boosted creative capacities, it will drive further increases in quality of narrative solo experiences, expand multiplayer offerings with increased frequency of content release, introduce free-to-play touchpoints, and integrate more social features.”
Ubisoft explained what the new venture would mean for the future of the company: “The new subsidiary would include the teams developing the Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six, Assassin’s Creed and Far Cry franchises based in Montréal, Quebec, Sherbrooke, Saguenay, Barcelona, and Sofia as well as the back-catalog and any new games currently under development or to be developed,” the release reads. “The new subsidiary would be granted by Ubisoft a worldwide, exclusive, irrevocable, perpetual license in respect of the intellectual property and similar proprietary rights owned or licensable by Ubisoft in relation to Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six, Assassin’s Creed and Far Cry in exchange for a royalty.”
The joint endeavor would add what the duo called “Creative Houses,” which they assert will “enhance quality, focus, autonomy and accountability while fostering closer connections with players.”
Ubisoft’s Rocky Year
Ubisoft’s latest layoffs are the latest in a series of eyebrow-raising headlines about the brand.
In July, prominent executives within the company were convicted of workplace harassment. Former brand executives Thomas François, Serge Hascoët, and Guillaume Patrux were determined to have engaged in abusive behaviors for nearly a decade. François, Hascoët, Patrux, and two additional Ubisoft employees were first apprehended by authorities in 2023. That same month, Ubisoft proclaimed microtransactions — for-purchase minutiae like skins, in-game currency, and paywalled weapons — an element that makes gaming more fun.
These layoffs aren’t the brand’s first this year, either; Ubisoft cut nearly 200 positions in January 2025 and another 19 in July.
Ubisoft, founded in the 1980s, is best known for game franchises like Assassin’s Creed, Far Cry, and Rayman, among others.
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A lifelong gamer raised on classic titles like Crash Bandicoot, Spyro, and Croc, Stephanie brings her expertise of gaming and pop culture to deliver unique, refreshing views on the world of video games, complete with references to absurd and obscure media.
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