Ubisoft’s recent announcement of major changes—including cancelled projects, studio closures, and delayed releases—has been widely reported. However, one significant detail seems to have been missed by many people.
I’m referring to how the recent changes and cost-cutting efforts – intended to save the publisher an extra 200 million euros by March 2028 – will affect people, potentially leading to thousands of developers losing their jobs.
Ubisoft says this is the last step in a series of cost reductions, expected to be finished by March 2028. The company is currently in the middle of a second phase of cuts, which began four years ago and aimed to save 300 million euros.
Over the past few years, Ubisoft has reduced its workforce from 20,729 employees (September 2022) to 17,097 (September 2025), resulting in the loss of 3,632 jobs. Several studios, including those in London, Osaka, San Francisco, Leamington, Halifax, and Stockholm, have been shut down. Further layoffs are expected to be announced on February 12, 2026.
It’s clear that cutting another 200 million euros will likely result in more studio closures and job losses at Ubisoft. This will be Ubisoft’s third round of cost-cutting, and it’s expected to be about two-thirds the size of the previous one, which eliminated 3,632 jobs. Based on these proportions, we estimate this next round could lead to around 2,400 job losses by the end of March 2028.
I was really surprised to hear that Ubisoft is making everyone go back to the office five days a week! They’re offering some money to help with working from home costs, but honestly, it feels like a way to push people out the door. They’re saying it’s about boosting teamwork and getting more done, but a lot of developers I’ve talked to think it’s just another cost-cutting measure, and it’s making a lot of us unhappy.
Ubisoft seems to be avoiding big layoff announcements to protect its public image. Instead, over the past few years, the company has quietly reduced its workforce by letting contracts expire, assigning developers no work with the expectation they’ll resign, and requiring employees to return to the office.
A Bigger Change is Needed
For several years, Ubisoft has been struggling, even though they have promising games in development. This is largely due to poor management, frequent restructuring, and a lack of clear leadership, creating a very difficult and negative work environment for its developers – one of the worst in the gaming industry.
It’s hard for developers to feel motivated, productive, or innovative when they’re worried about potential layoffs and see the same leadership errors repeating without any consequences. Knowing that more restructuring and budget cuts are likely just around the corner doesn’t help either.
It’s clear that Ubisoft’s major changes need to start with leadership, rather than lower-level employees.
We all know what needs to happen, but stubbornness is worse than witchcraft.
If you’re a current or past employee and want to share your thoughts on what’s happening, or tell us your experience, please reach out securely and anonymously to [email protected]
Written by
Tom Henderson
Tom Henderson is the co-founder and editor-in-chief of TopMob, a popular independent video game website. Outside of work, he enjoys playing first-person shooter games like Call of Duty.
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2026-01-22 23:18