Ubisoft slashes 70 jobs in Singapore; experts point to financial woes, not AI

SINGAPORE – French game developer Ubisoft has laid off 70 employees in its Singapore studio.

The layoffs on Oct 14 were part of “organisational changes to align the studio with upcoming production needs”, said a Ubisoft spokesperson in response to queries from The Straits Times.

Ubisoft had announced an organisational reset in January that saw it focus on formats with recurring revenue from existing popular games such as Rainbow Six Siege. This followed a €1.16 billion (S$1.67 billion) investment by Chinese tech giant Tencent in 2025 in a new Ubisoft subsidiary to house flagship franchises Assassin’s Creed, Far Cry and Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Siege.

“The studio remains an important part of Ubisoft’s global production organisation,” said the Ubisoft spokesperson, referring to the Singapore outfit.

In 2023, the publisher of popular titles including Just Dance, Far Cry and Watch Dogs marked its 15th anniversary in Singapore with the opening of a new, three-storey 5,000 square metre studio in one-north’s business park. It had 450 employees then.

The studio was established in Singapore in 2008 as the Republic embarked on an aggressive strategy to build a world-class digital media and game animation hub.

Most recently, the studio led the development of Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced, a remake of the popular 2013 game. Launched in July, the game was well-received by gamers, with over three million copies sold within its first week of release. But other recent titles have not had similar success. Launched in 2024, Skull and Bones, for instance, was widely criticised by players.

Experts attributed the layoffs to the firm’s poor financial performance, as well as its reorganisation, rather than redundancies due to the use of artificial intelligence.

Ubisoft did not reveal the affected roles, nor comment on the impact of AI.

Checks by ST showed that those affected include designers, artists, production crew and programmers. These individuals had sought job opportunities on LinkedIn, but declined to comment when contacted.

“We deeply value the contributions of our team members and recognise the impact these changes have on our colleagues,” said the Ubisoft spokesperson, adding that affected employees will be supported with financial and career assistance.

She said that Ubisoft Singapore is working with the Skills & Workforce Development Agency, as well as NTUC’s Employment and Employability Institute, to support affected employees, including facilitating job placements.

Ubisoft received substantial incentives from the Economic Development Board when it established its presence in Singapore in 2008. Its one-north facility serves as a gaming production hub equipped with studios for game testing and sound engineering.

In 2016, Ubisoft received an undisclosed sum from the Singapore government to develop the premium action role-playing game Skull and Bones. The decade-long development was released only in 2024 and was poorly received by players, leading to heightened public and political scrutiny.

In 2025 in Parliament, Workers’ Party MP Gerald Giam asked for the total amount of subsidies given to Ubisoft since 2008, the key performance indicators attached to the funding and what mechanisms existed to claw back the money.

In his reply, the then-Minister of State for Trade and Industry Alvin Tan said the funding could not be disclosed due to confidentiality and commercial sensitivities but noted that there were mechanisms to claw back subsidies if mutually-agreed milestones were not met.

Experts said that the layoffs do not come as a surprise, given the poor financial performance and poor player reception to recent titles. They added that the layoffs are not specific to Singapore, but rather follows a broader trend of major gaming studios making similar moves.

Ubisoft posted an operating loss of €1.3 billion in its 2026 financial year, and has shut down several studios across the globe over the last three years.

On Oct 14, Ubisoft also said it plans to close its RedLynx studio in Finland potentially affecting up to 52 positions, subject to the local change negotiation process.

“(Ubisoft) is tightening their belt across the company, and the Singapore office is just feeling it now,” said Allan Simonsen, former coordinator for the local chapter of the International Games Developers Association, and co-founder of Boomzap Entertainment.

He added that a reduction in team size rather than a complete shutdown shows that Ubisoft still has faith in its development team in Singapore.

Major game studios such as Xbox, Epic Games and Bungie have also laid off staff globally in recent months following unsuccessful game launches and lower investment after the Covid-19 pandemic, said Darang Candra of game research firm Niko Partners.

Many gaming outfits with local offices do not house their gaming development capabilities in Singapore, unlike Ubisoft, said Candra, who serves as director for South-east Asia and East Asia research.

Experts said that AI, although not a direct cause for the recent layoffs, has certainly slowed down hiring in game development.

“It is primarily being seen as a way to reduce development costs, speed up game development, and create new experiences,” said Candra.

Capable AI tools will increasingly equip smaller teams to make bigger games than they currently can, said Simonsen.

The Creative Media and Publishing Union said it is contacting its members laid off by Ubisoft to offer career guidance and job-matching assistance. “Where retrenchments cannot be avoided, employers should support affected workers through the transition by providing fair retrenchment benefits and appropriate assistance,” said the union in a statement on Oct 15.

Affected employees may approach the union for assistance at cmpu@ntuc.or.sg, or call the hotline at 6213 8510.

“Workers should also be treated fairly and with dignity throughout the process, taking into account the impact that retrenchments can have on them and their families.”

source: The Straits Times https://www.straitstimes.com/tech/ubisoft-slashes-70-jobs-in-singapore-experts-point-to-financials-woes-not-ai?ref=top-stories