Ubisoft has cancelled six video video games – together with its long-awaited Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time remake – as a part of a “main reset” of its operations.
The French developer and writer, recognized for standard video games equivalent to Murderer’s Creed, Far Cry and Simply Dance, has closed two studios and delayed seven titles as a part of its modifications.
Ubisoft boss Yves Guillemot mentioned the transfer would “create the situations for a return to sustainable development”.
The agency’s shares plunged by 33% on Thursday morning following the announcement.
The transfer comes at a time when studios are more and more turning to online game remakes and remasters, with new variations of Tremendous Mario Galaxy, Oblivion and Metallic Gear Strong 3 proving standard in 2025.
So the choice to bin the remake of Sands of Time – which bought thousands and thousands of copies in 2003 – has left many followers scratching their heads.
Ubisoft has not specified which titles it has discontinued alongside the Prince of Persia remake.
Nevertheless it says amongst them are 4 unannounced titles, together with three primarily based on new mental property, and a cell sport.
Ubisoft has closed its studios in Stockholm, Sweden and Halifax, Canada as a part of the transfer, which can embrace restructuring three others.
The builders have been engaged on a brand new mental property (IP) and cell titles for Murderer’s Creed, respectively.
The closure of Ubisoft Halifax was beforehand introduced in January – the identical week the studio fashioned a union.
“Whereas these selections are troublesome, they’re needed for us to construct a extra targeted, environment friendly and sustainable organisation over the long run,” Guillemot mentioned.
“Taken collectively, these measures mark a decisive turning level for Ubisoft and mirror our dedication to confront challenges head-on to reshape the Group for the long run”.
Gaming business analyst Piers Harding-Rolls informed the BBC the transfer indicated the agency was attempting to mitigate danger.
“It is much less dangerous to take care of scale by investing in present huge franchises equivalent to Murderer’s Creed and Rainbow Six than launch completely new IPs and that is mirrored within the cancellation of a variety of video games primarily based on new IPs,” he mentioned.
It’s the second restructure from Ubisoft in subsequent years, after the agency reduce 185 jobs throughout Europe in 2025.
Within the UK, it closed its office in Leamington and restructured one other in Newcastle-upon-Tyne.
Guillemot mentioned the brand new transfer was partly on account of a aggressive marketplace for triple-A video games – blockbuster titles which price thousands and thousands to develop and dominate giant studios’ choices.
“On the one hand, the triple-A business has turn into persistently extra selective and aggressive with rising improvement prices and better challenges in creating manufacturers,” he mentioned in a statement on Wednesday.
Such huge choices are more and more going through delays – with Grand Theft Auto VI pushed back for a second time to November 2026.
However Guillemot mentioned regardless of these hurdles, profitable blockbuster video games might deliver “extra monetary potential than ever”.
“On this context, at present we’re saying a serious reset constructed to create the situations for a return to sustainable development over time,” he mentioned.
Ubisoft will now concentrate on creating open world journey video games – which let gamers freely navigate huge environments – and reside service video games which search common funds from gamers.
The agency mentioned its subsidiary Vantage Studios, created after a €1.25bn ($1.25bn; £1bn) investment from Chinese tech giant Tencent, would intention to show Murderer’s Creed, Far Cry and Rainbow Six “into annual billionaire manufacturers”.
