As part of Ubisoft’s recent business moves, the company has now asked employees of another one of its studios – Massive Entertainment – to opt for a “voluntary career transition program”. As part of this program, Ubisoft is essentially asking some Massive Entertainment employees to more or less be subject to voluntary lay-offs. This was announced by the studio itself with a statement on social media.
This voluntary career transition program, for the employees that agree to it, involves the employee being let go from Massive Entertainment with a comprehensive severance package that would involve financial and career assistance.
“As part of our ongoing evolution and long-term planning, we have recently realigned our teams and resources to strengthen our roadmap, ensuring our continued focus on The Division franchise and the technologies, including Snowdrop and Ubisoft Connect, that power our games,” wrote the studio in its statement.
“To support this transition responsibly, we introduced a voluntary career transition program, giving eligible team members the opportunity to take their next career step on their own terms, supported by a comprehensive package that includes financial and career assistance.”
Along with this, Massive Entertainment also establishes its intent to fully commit to The Division as a franchise, which would involve more content for The Division 2, as well as development of the upcoming The Division 2: Survivors, support work for The Division Resurgence, and even work on the third game in the franchise. “These projects continue with strength, focus and ambition,” said the studio, “and we look forward to sharing more in the future.”
A recent report indicated that Ubisoft had similarly offered a “restructuring proposal” for another one of its studios – Ubisoft RedLynx. As part of this proposal, up to 60 positions in the studio are set to be affected. This proposal, however, doesn’t yet have full approval yet, and there is no timetable for when it will go forward.
“This proposal reflects difficult choices we may need to make, and it comes after careful consideration,” said Ubisoft RedLynx managing director Celine Pasula. “We recognise the weight of this announcement and want to acknowledge the impact this proposal may have on individuals and teams.”
“We are confident that, with the proposed changes, RedLynx would continue to play a meaningful role in Ubisoft’s future – driving technical excellence on mobile devices, and strengthening Ubisoft’s cross and multi-platform capabilities on small screens to expand our audience reach.”
It is worth noting that, as part of this restructuring proposal, RedLynx would move on from being a multiplatform game developer to only focusing on small-screen experiences – namely mobile.
These moves come just a few weeks after Ubisoft had officially unveiled the name of its new subsidiary company – Vantage Studios. The company, headed up by co-CEOs Charlie Guillemot and Christophe Derennes, will be in charge of the development and support for three of Ubisoft’s largest franchises – Assassin’s Creed, Far Cry, and Rainbow Six.
Among other things, the forming of Vantage Studios also eventually led to the departure of former Assassin’s Creed franchise head Marc-Alexis Côté earlier this month.
