Bethesda Game Studios’ parent company, ZeniMax Media, revealed today that it has opened a new studio in Montreal, Quebec, set to focus on console, PC and mobile game development.
“We’ve worked with some very talented developers in Montreal for a long time, and decided it was time to open a studio there,” said Todd Howard, game director and executive producer at Bethesda Game Studios in a statement sent to MobileSyrup. “It’s exciting to think about the new games we’ll be building together.”
Proud to announce our Montréal studio and welcome so many talented members to our team. https://t.co/nTHfc3kSHz pic.twitter.com/5POCAqii9y
— BethesdaGameStudios (@BethesdaStudios) December 9, 2015
Bethesda Game Studios Montreal currently consists of a staff of 40 developers with skills spanning “both console and mobile development.” The studio’s director is set to be Yves Lachance, who previously worked on MachineGames’ Wolfenstein: The New Order and as an executive producer on mobile title, Fallout Shelter, one of 2015’s best free-to-play mobile titles.
“Our collaboration with Bethesda Game Studios has been an exhilarating and memorable journey already,” said Lachance in a statement. “We are thrilled to be launching the studio in Montreal and contributing our city’s great game-making talent to the kind of games that Bethesda Game Studios is known for.”
Quebec has become a hotbed of game development in Canada largely due to the province’s favourable tax breaks, which were reinstated this year after the government threatened to cut them in early 2014.
Bethesda’s Fallout Shelter was released earlier this year for mobile on both iOS and Android and quickly skyrocketed to the top of the charts in 48 different countries. The studio is also behind the well-known Elder Scrolls and Fallout series.
Similar to Square Enix Montreal, it’s likely Bethesda’s new studio will be heavily focused on mobile development since Lachance is at the helm. Montreal-based Behaviour Interactive’s Fallout Shelter was a tremendous success, especially considering it was the publisher’s first foray into mobile. Bethesda is looking to capitalize on that success and create additional bite-sized experiences based on its core franchises.
Related reading: Fallout Shelter review: Perfect for mobile, but lacks depth
[source]Bethesda[/source]
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