Ubisoft: the next step?

As the 3rd independent publisher worldwide, the 1st independent publisher on the DS, the 3rd on the Playstation 3 and Xbox360, and the 4th on the Wii, Ubisoft is no small studio! What started as a small independent studio back in 1986 in France is now a multimillion selling company!

With game franchises like Rayman, Prince of Persia, FarCry, Assassin's Creed, Splinter Cell, Beyond Good and Evil, and Call of Juarez, and responsible for PC ports like Resident Evil 4, they define generations of gamers. They also represent an evolution when we take a look at their games. They have always invested in new technologies as soon as they came out, not waiting one bit to move to the next generation.

Not limited to video games, they moved to the film business with upcoming video games adaptation like Prince of Persia and Citizen Siege. Ubisoft acquired back in 2008 Hybride, a production studio specialized in special effects for cinema.

They also represent different cultures, with studios in France, but also Montreal (Canada), Australia, Romania, Singapore, India, Shanghai and more! At times where other game companies (for example: EA) are forced to cut down production budgets and jobs, with the worldwide economical recession, it's a miracle how they still stand.

With their upcoming critically acclaimed title Assassin's Creed 2, already on everyone's radar for the fall season, and very well received at E3 and accross the globe, what else could they possibly do? Surprise us of course. Ubisoft recently announced the opening of yet ANOTHER game studio, this time in Toronto, on July 6th 2009.

This studio "is expected to result in the creation of 800 net new jobs within the province over the next decade. The government of Ontario is investing CA$263 million over ten years in the company and Ubisoft’s net investment will be over half a billion CAD in the new studio, which will begin operations in late 2009." according to their press release. “Today’s announcement marks a strategic move for Ubisoft as we continue to expand our internal development force,” said Yves Guillemot, president and chief executive officer at Ubisoft.

The press release goes on saying that the new studio will work on Triple-A-games and will be involved with the cinematographic business.

Let us wish them luck with their expansion, and expect great things in the months to come!

Don't forget that we are moving to our new home!