Ubisoft has unveiled a comprehensive restructuring plan aimed at making the company more gamer-focused and agile in the evolving AAA games market. The initiative includes significant organizational, operational, and portfolio changes, such as project cancellations, studio closures, a return-to-office policy requiring all teams to work on-site five days a week, and a broad cost reduction effort.

The announcement follows a recent $1.25 billion investment from Tencent and ongoing workforce reductions. Ubisoft’s leadership outlined a strategy to reclaim creative leadership, improve agility, and drive a strong recovery. The new operating model will prioritize Open World Adventures and Games-as-a-Service (GaaS) experiences, supported by targeted investments and advanced technology, including player-facing generative AI.

Founder and CEO Yves Guillemot emphasized the need for a “radically new” approach to value creation, stating that Ubisoft must become more gamer-centric to compete in a selective and competitive AAA market. Guillemot noted, “The AAA industry is more competitive than ever, with rising development costs and challenges in building brands. However, successful AAA games now have greater financial potential. Our reset is designed to create conditions for sustainable growth by focusing on exceptional quality games in our core areas.”

Central to this transformation are new Creative Houses—integrated business units that combine production and publishing, each with a clear genre and brand focus. These units will have full responsibility and financial ownership, led by dedicated leadership teams. The move aims to decentralize creative decision-making and speed up processes, supported by cross-functional core services.

To support the Creative Houses, Ubisoft is revising its three-year roadmap and accelerating cost reduction initiatives. This includes discontinuing several projects in development and providing additional time to others to ensure quality. The company will also close select studios and continue restructuring efforts across the organization.

Guillemot described these changes as a “decisive turning point” that will position Ubisoft for sustainable growth. The new structure is designed to sharpen strategic focus and reinforce execution discipline. One of the five Creative Houses, Vantage Studios—backed by Tencent—will focus on expanding major franchises like Assassin’s Creed, Far Cry, and Rainbow Six. Four additional Creative Houses will oversee other key franchises, each organized by genre and player experience.

• CH1 (Vantage Studios): Scaling major franchises (Assassin’s Creed, Far Cry, Rainbow Six)
• CH2: Competitive and cooperative shooters (The Division, Ghost Recon, Splinter Cell)
• CH3: Live experiences (For Honor, The Crew, Riders Republic, Brawlhalla, Skull & Bones)
• CH4: Immersive fantasy and narrative-driven worlds (Anno, Might & Magic, Rayman, Prince of Persia, Beyond Good & Evil)
• CH5: Casual and family-friendly games (Just Dance, Idle Miner Tycoon)

Each Creative House will manage its portfolio end-to-end, from development to publishing, and will be financially accountable. This structure is intended to improve strategic focus, execution, and investment decisions, while providing greater visibility into development pipelines and risks.

Supporting the Creative Houses, Ubisoft is establishing a new organizational layer composed of a Creative Network—a group of studios providing production capacity and creative expertise—and Core Services, which will deliver scalable technology, localization, QA, and business operations.

To implement this new model, Ubisoft is requiring all employees to return to the office five days a week, with an annual allowance for remote work days.

As part of its cost-cutting measures, Ubisoft has discontinued six titles that did not meet its quality standards, including the Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time remake and four unannounced projects. The company will allocate more development time to seven other projects to ensure quality. Additional layoffs are expected as Ubisoft aims to reduce its fixed cost base by €200 million over the next two years. The company is also considering potential asset divestitures.

Recent actions include the closure of the Halifax and Stockholm studios, as well as restructuring at Abu Dhabi, RedLynx, and Massive. By the end of the restructuring program, Ubisoft expects to have reduced fixed costs by approximately €500 million since FY2022-23.

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