On June 10, 2026, Ubisoft confirmed it is closing its Winnipeg and Belgrade studios and significantly restructuring its Barcelona office. Up to 380 employees could be affected by this latest round — and with earlier cuts counted, approximately 680 Ubisoft employees have lost their jobs in 2026 alone. This is the company's sixth round of layoffs this year.
But the method of disclosure drew just as much outrage as the layoffs themselves. Ubisoft distributed the news to select media outlets under a press embargo — a tactic typically reserved for game reviews and hardware reveals, not mass job losses.
Timeline of Events
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| Jan 2026 | Stockholm & Halifax closed; 55 at Massive Entertainment; 29 Abu Dhabi; 60 RedLynx |
| Feb 2026 | 40 layoffs at Ubisoft Toronto |
| Mar 2026 | 105 jobs cut at Red Storm Entertainment; game development ended there |
| Jun 10, 2026 | Winnipeg (65) and Belgrade (100) closed; Barcelona loses 51 |
| Jun 10, 2026 | Insider Gaming breaks Winnipeg news before embargo lift — Ubisoft contacts Henderson claiming a violation he never agreed to |
| Jun 11, 2026 | The Gamer, Aftermath condemn use of embargo on layoff news |
Studios Affected
Ubisoft Winnipeg
- ▶Founded: 2018
- ▶Closed: June 10, 2026
- ▶Employees affected: 65
- ▶Key contributions: Rainbow Six Siege, Far Cry 6, Assassin's Creed Valhalla, XDefiant
- ▶Notable role: Engine development and maintenance on Anvil and Snowdrop — the technology powering Ubisoft's flagship franchises
- ▶Irony: In 2018, Ubisoft publicly committed to tripling Winnipeg's headcount from 100 to 300 by 2030. It closed with 65.
Ubisoft Belgrade
- ▶Founded: 2016
- ▶Closed: June 10, 2026
- ▶Employees affected: ~100 (full studio closure)
- ▶Key contributions: Ghost Recon Wildlands & Breakpoint, The Crew 2, Riders Republic, Skull & Bones, AC Black Flag Resynced
Ubisoft Barcelona
- ▶Action: 51 employees laid off (~28% of staff)
- ▶Future scope: Narrowed to Rainbow Six projects only
- ▶Unknown fate: Beyond Good & Evil 2 and other unannounced projects previously associated with the studio
Ubisoft Headcount in 2026
| Year | Employees |
|---|---|
| 2023 peak | ~20,000 |
| June 2026 (before today) | 16,590 |
| 2026 total job losses | ~680 |
Ubisoft's stated goal is to cut €500 million in fixed costs by 2028. Phase one (€100 million) was completed ahead of schedule.
The Embargo Controversy
The sharper industry conversation is about how Ubisoft communicated the news. Embargoes are standard for game reviews and hardware reveals. They are not standard for layoff announcements — which typically emerge through worker or journalist sources on social media. Ubisoft chose to pre-brief select outlets with a coordinated release time.
Insider Gaming's Tom Henderson broke the Winnipeg story independently before the embargo lifted. Ubisoft then contacted him to say he had violated an embargo he had never agreed to.
""Am I glad we published articles on layoffs today? Hell no. But I am glad that we did what we were supposed to do. Personally, I think as an industry, we're running into quite dangerous ground when we start abiding by embargoes about layoffs." — Tom Henderson, Insider Gaming
Aftermath's Nathan Grayson confirmed the practice was real, adding that Belgrade staff were still being personally notified at the same time Ubisoft was managing the press release. The sequencing — journalists informed before all employees — prompted serious questions about whose interests Ubisoft's communications strategy serves.
Ubisoft told The Gamer it had "no comment."
What Happened to Beyond Good & Evil 2?
Barcelona was associated with Beyond Good & Evil 2 and several unannounced titles based on job listings from the early 2020s. The game has been in some form of development since 2017 with no release date. Ubisoft has provided no update on whether those projects are cancelled, shelved, or reassigned. No journalist's request for clarification has been answered.
Both Sides
Ubisoft's Official Statement
From the internal communication obtained by Insider Gaming:
""Over the past months, Ubisoft has been evolving its organization to simplify how it operates, reduce its cost base, and strengthen the company for the long term... These changes do not reflect the talent, commitment, or contributions of the people affected."
Industry and Community Reaction
- ▶Red Storm Entertainment — the studio that created the original Rainbow Six — turns 30 this year. After three rounds of layoffs since 2022, it no longer develops games. It maintains the Snowdrop engine for franchises it created.
- ▶Multiple LinkedIn posts from laid-off Winnipeg employees described the role as a "career highlight."
- ▶Ubisoft's annual loss for fiscal year 2025–26 was reported at $1.7 billion, with CEO Yves Guillemot acknowledging that FY2026 and FY2027 would be "low points in financial performance."
GamePeak Summary
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Studios closed | Winnipeg (65), Belgrade (100) |
| Studios restructured | Barcelona (–51), San Francisco (dozens) |
| 2026 total job losses | ~680 |
| Key controversy | Layoff news sent to press under embargo |
| Unknown | Fate of Beyond Good & Evil 2 |
| Financial context | $1.7B annual loss; Tencent-backed Vantage Studios restructure ongoing |
Ubisoft is reorganizing around Assassin's Creed, Far Cry, and Rainbow Six via its Tencent-backed Vantage Studios subsidiary. Support studios like Winnipeg and Belgrade provided the underlying technology and scaffolding — closing them cuts fixed costs without touching the franchises Tencent's investment is tied to. Whether the work they did gets absorbed or simply stops is a question Ubisoft hasn't answered.