Ubisoft Closes Halifax Studio: 71 Employees Affected Amid Union Controversy

Liputan6.com, Jakarta - Ubisoft, a leading global game developer, announced the closure of its Halifax studio on Wednesday, January 7, 2026.

This decision directly impacts 71 employee positions at the Canadian studio.

The closure comes amid a broader restructuring by the company and just weeks after the studio became the first in North America to successfully unionize.

The studio's closure has raised questions and disappointment, particularly from the union.

Ubisoft stated that the move was part of a two-year streamlining and cost-cutting effort.

However, the union questioned the timing of the closure, so close to the union's formation.

The Halifax studio, known for developing mobile games like Assassin's Creed Rebellion, will now cease operations.

Ubisoft has shut down its Halifax Studio, just one month after 61 of its 71 workers voted to unionized. https://t.co/lYHZ8GQrF0 pic.twitter.com/afzkvfnF4b

— IGN (@IGN) January 7, 2026

Ubisoft officially announced the closure of its Halifax studio on January 7, 2026, resulting in the elimination of 71 jobs.

Ubisoft spokesperson Antoine Leduc-Labelle explained that the closure is part of the company's strategy to "streamline operations, increase efficiency, and reduce costs" that has been underway for the past 24 months.

The decision is not related to unionization efforts, but rather the result of restructuring and cost optimization efforts that began well before the studio's unionization process in June 2025.

One of the specific reasons cited is the steady decline in revenue from Assassin's Creed Rebellion since its release in 2018.

Direct operations for the game will cease following the studio's closure.

The Ubisoft studio closure comes just weeks after a majority of employees, 61 out of 71, at Ubisoft Halifax voted to form a union.

The union was officially certified on December 18, 2025, after 74 percent of staff voted in favor of the move.

The unionization process itself began in June 2025, in response to the “industry-wide uncertainty, studio closures, layoffs, and increasing instability” experienced by workers.

CWA Canada, the union’s parent organization, expressed “shock and disappointment” by Ubisoft’s decision.

The organization vowed to “pursue every legal avenue” to defend affected union members.

"Today's news is devastating," said CWA Canada president, Carmel Smyth. "We will pursue every legal recourse to ensure that the rights of these workers are respected and not infringed in any way."

CWA Canada questioned the timing of the closure and demanded that Ubisoft prove that the decision had nothing to do with employees joining a union, noting that in Canada it is illegal for a business to close because its workers choose to unionize.

Jon Huffman, a member of Ubisoft Halifax's organizing committee, stated that union members want the company to prove the closure is unrelated to their recent unionization efforts.

The now-closed studio was originally founded in 2010 as Longtail Studios Halifax.

In 2015, it was acquired by Ubisoft and subsequently renamed Ubisoft Halifax.

Throughout its history, Ubisoft Halifax has developed a specialty in free-to-play mobile games.

Some of the studio's notable titles include Assassin's Creed Rebellion, released in 2018, and Rainbow Six Mobile, scheduled for a global launch next month.

With the studio's closure, direct operations for Assassin's Creed Rebellion will cease, reflecting the revenue challenges the game faces.

The closure of the Halifax studio is part of a broader series of ongoing cuts and restructuring at Ubisoft.

In the past two years, the company has closed or reduced the size of several studios worldwide, including those in London, San Francisco, Osaka, and Leamington, England.

Overall, Ubisoft has cut more than 1,500 jobs in the past year as part of this restructuring effort.

Additionally, Ubisoft recently spun off its core franchises into a separate business unit, Vantage Studios, backed by a €1.16 billion investment from Tencent.