Canada’s billion dollar video game industry is about to get even bigger.
French games publishing giant Ubisoft has announced that it will soon open a new studio in Winnipeg. Over the next five years, Ubisoft says it plans to invest $35 million CAD into the studio, which will create 100 new jobs in the city.
According to an April 6th, 2018 media release, Ubisoft Winnipeg will “play a strategic role as a AAA co-development studio dedicated to developing tools and technology that enable teams to create immersive, engaging game worlds for players.”
Ubisoft already has a significant presence is Canada, with its Ubisoft Canadian Studios division made up of teams based in Montreal, Quebec City, Saguenay, Toronto and Halifax. Most notably, while Ubisoft has over 35 studios around the world, its Montreal studio is its most prolific, developing hit franchises like Assassin’s Creed, Watch_Dogs and Far Cry. Its Toronto team, meanwhile, is best known for 2013’s Splinter Cell: Blacklist.
In total, of Ubisoft’s 13,000-plus worldwide employees, 4,500 are based in Canada.
“The mandate for the Ubisoft Winnipeg studio is important and will directly support many of our most successful, world-renowned brands, such as Assassin’s Creed, Far Cry and Watch_Dogs — all games that are based on an open-world and systemic gameplay approach,” said Yannis Mallat, CEO of the Ubisoft Canadian Studios, in a press statement.
“The creation of these massive digital worlds is increasingly complex, and it’s critical that our development teams have access to the best tech and tools to continue to develop the most innovative games in our fast paced, highly competitive market.”
“With its thriving local techno-creative industry, and innovative university and college programs that combine creative arts, IT and computer science, Winnipeg is truly a hidden gem for talent in the video game industry,” added Darryl Long, managing director of Ubisoft Winnipeg, in a press statement.
“Knowing the city and the people behind all the initiatives driving economic growth through creativity and innovation, I am extremely excited about what we will achieve with this new studio.”
Ubisoft is already hiring for a number of positions at its Winnipeg studio, including programmers, artists and producers. More information can be found here.
Canada is the third-largest source of game development in the world, after the United States and Japan, respectively. Overall, the gaming industry contributes over $3.7 billion CAD to Canada’s GDP every year.
Source: Newswire
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