Although Assassin’s Creed Resynced sold over two million copies, its publisher, Ubisoft, was set to make 51 staff members at the Barcelona studio redundant. Part of the AC Resynced team was informed of these redundancies, which would affect 28 per cent of the workforce. This involves 51 team members, including the entire team working on Assassin’s Creed Resynced.
51 Lay off, Including The Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced Team
Ubisoft has continued its restructuring actions affecting several development studios and support teams. Rather than announcing widespread studio closures, Ubisoft primarily reduced staff at existing studios while maintaining development on key projects such as Assassin’s Creed, Rainbow Six, and Far Cry.
Among the affected teams were developers and artists working on the remake of Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced. The layoffs impacted staff at the Singapore studio and the Barcelona studio. As IGN has learnt, the company is set to close further studios as part of its ongoing cost-cutting measures. The development offices in Winnipeg and Belgrade are the latest to have been earmarked for closure.
Several employees have noted the contrasts between the receivement of the new game and the team’s work situation. Isabel Codina García, quality control manager, explained that she had been working on the Black flag remake for the past two years. She also informed that the team was informed of the redundancy plan two weeks before its launch.
After this the workers of Ubisoft Barcelona started a three day strike to protest against the company’s decisions. The workers demand that the 51 redundancies are revoked. Greater guarantees of job security to prevent further mass layoffs. The reinstatement of the previous work policy, which allowed staff to work remotely. Also, the promotions and pay raises which, they claim, had been promised to them, before the layoffs.
Closed studios and layoffs: Ubisoft’s situation
However, Ubisoft’s restructuring is not a new development; it has been ongoing for several years:
2023
In November 2023, Ubisoft eliminated around 124 positions, primarily affecting visual effects and IT teams. These cuts did not end up in studio closures, however, they reflected the company’s intention to reduce costs.
2024
The restructuring process accelerated during 2024. The Company laid off around 45 positions from its publishing division in March, and 33 in June at Ubisoft Toronto. Followed by another 45 employees across Ubisoft’s San Francisco and Cary offices in August.
A major turning point came in December, after the commercial failure on Ubisoft’s free-to-play shooter XDefiant. Ubisoft announced the discontinuation of the game and the closure of the San Francisco Studio.
At the same time, Ubisoft closed its production studio in Osaka and reduced operations at its Sydney Studio.
2025-2026
Between 2025 and 2026 Ubisoft continued to reduce its workforce through smaller rounds of layoffs.Additional cuts are affecting teams in the Winnipeg and Belgrade studios. Both studios will close, and changes in the Barcelona Studios led to the lay off of 51 people. Including the entire team working on Assassin’s Creed Resynced.
Why Should We as Gamers Be Aware of This Situation?
These changes affect everyone, from creators and developers to consumers. Major studios and publishers are becoming more cautious, investing in fewer projects and focusing on already built and established franchises. At the same time, as we’ve already seen, the console market is entering a new generation. Publishers are increasingly releasing games across multiple platforms and moving away from physical formats. This situation can mean fewer new and experimental titles, longer waits between releases, even delays of said titles.
The layoffs at Ubisoft Barcelona and the previous closure of game studios, are more than company news.
A Hopeful Look Into the Future Amid the Uncertainty
Years ago, a developer and future game director Guillaume Broche left Ubisoft after feeling bored and wanting to create something different. With a team of first time developers stables Sandfall interactive. This is the studio that later published Clair Obscur: Expedition 33.
Broche is one of the most famous examples, but not the only one. Other former Ubisoft employees went on to create new studios and release new games.
Patrice Désilets, former creative director behind the original Assassin’s Creed, left the company to found THQ Montreal. Studio that was later acquired by Ubisoft, after it went bankrupt. However, Désilets story does not end there. In 2013, Ubisoft terminated his employment and in 2016 he regained the rights to the IP of his next game and established his new studio Panache Digital Games. Finally in 2026, 1666: Amsterdam finally surfaced publicly with a playable prologue after years in development.
A situation that gives us pause for thought
The video game industry is changing. There is a view that these measures by Ubisoft will lead to the emergence of new independent studios and a greater number and variety of indie games. Whilst attention is focused on a new generation of consoles that bring together different platforms and video game storefronts, the physical format continues to disappear and the subscription model is becoming established as the gaming ecosystem.
Studios are announcing remakes and remasters of their most established IPs with the largest audiences, where the risk of loss is lower compared to the creation and development of new ideas.
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