Key Points
- Ubisoft has launched a new subsidiary called Vantage Studios. A major investment from Tencent backs the studio.
- Vantage will now oversee Ubisoft’s biggest franchises: Assassin’s Creed, Far Cry, and Rainbow Six.
- The move is part of a major reorganization aimed at making Ubisoft more agile.
- The goal is to give developers more autonomy and respond faster to player feedback.
Game developer Ubisoft has officially launched Vantage Studios, the first of its new “creative houses” designed to give its developers more autonomy. The new studio, which is backed by a major investment from Chinese tech giant Tencent, will take over the reins of Ubisoft’s biggest and most important franchises: Assassin’s Creed, Far Cry, and Rainbow Six.
This is a major part of a larger reorganization for Ubisoft, a company that has been struggling with big-name flops, studio closures, and layoffs. The goal of the new structure is to make the company more agile and responsive to player feedback. “Decision making will be quicker, and it will also be easier to pivot when we need to change course,” said one of the new studio’s co-CEOs.
Vantage Studios is the result of a deal announced in March, in which Tencent invested over $1 billion for a minority stake. The new studio will have a team of 2,300 employees spread across Ubisoft’s offices in Canada and Europe.
Tencent will reportedly act in an advisory role, but the studio’s leadership will make the final decisions.
While Vantage is the only creative house announced so far, Ubisoft plans to create more in the future. It’s unclear what these other studios will work on, as Vantage is now in charge of the company’s crown jewels. For now, the launch of Vantage Studios is a clear indication that Ubisoft is making significant, bold changes to try to regain its position at the forefront of the gaming world.
