Ubisoft, the French video game developer and publisher famous for producing blockbuster games like Assassin’s Creed and Just Dance, is pivoting in a big way. They have deleted six video games and shut down two engineering studios. The announcement comes amidst a wider strategy to cut costs and prevent further risks as gaming competition escalates and increases in the industry. Among the games canceled is the highly anticipated remake of Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time, which has garnered attention for years.
Ubisoft though, is perhaps best known for their blockbuster, multi-million selling franchises like Assassin’s Creed, Far Cry and Just Dance. Taken together, these recent moves are indicative of the company’s realization that it needs to shift course in a fast changing industry terrain. Ubisoft just announced delays for as many as seven of its anticipated upcoming titles. This decision indicates a much larger change in the company’s development playbook.
The deal comes as part of a restructuring that includes the shuttering of its office in Leamington and a reorganization of another office in Newcastle-upon-Tyne. This is the second consecutive year that Ubisoft is facing a major restructuring. In 2025 alone, the company laid off over 185 people throughout Europe. As a result of that announcement, Ubisoft stock at one point was crashing—down 30 percent in pre-trading on Thursday morning.
Gaming industry analyst Piers Harding-Rolls underscored the immediate necessity for such reforms. He argued that increasing development costs and greater competition in the triple-A game space make them inevitable. As Yves Guillemot, the CEO of Ubisoft, put it, the triple-A industry has gotten more focused and cutthroat than ever. In his view, increasing development costs and more difficulty developing successful brands is driving this trend.
Guillemot provided further detail on the company’s rationale behind making these painful decisions. We couldn’t let this year end without a big reset ourselves. This project is intended to set the stage for a long awaited sustainable economic development comeback,” he continued. Now, he could fully appreciate how difficult these decisions are. They are essential first steps, especially if the goal is to advance a more mission-driven, outward-facing, streamlined organization over time.
Ubisoft has four unannounced games under development right now. Three of these projects are founded on new intellectual properties, and one is a mobile game. This strategy encourages the company to continue to seek creative opportunities to thrive even when market headwinds are strong.
These measures point to an important new direction for Ubisoft. Our willingness to do the difficult things and to radically overhaul the Group in pursuit of long-term prosperity was highlighted by Guillemot, who called on all to move as fast as possible to meet market expectations.
Ubisoft’s restructuring efforts underscore a critical moment for the company as it strives to align itself with industry trends while maintaining its legacy of blockbuster games. Guillemot further pointed out that star hits could bring in record-breaking ROI. He highlighted the need for long-term, strategic planning to accommodate expected growth in the years to come.