Ubisoft has formed a new subsidiary that will be responsible for the company’s three franchises. The new “creative studio” announced in May will be called Vantage Studios, the company said Wednesday. Tencent-backed Vantage Studios will be responsible for the Assassin’s Creed, Far Cry and Rainbow Six franchises and will be led by co-CEOs Christophe Derennes and Charlie Guillemot.
Vantage studio established
The French company announced the studio’s launch on its website and said it will lead the development of the three IPs. “…Vantage Studios will build on Ubisoft’s experience and expertise to oversee the development and expansion of these brands, sharing services and technical resources while giving developers more hands-on control over the games they are developing,” Ubisoft said in a statement.
Vantage Studios’ employees include teams working on the Rainbow Six, Assassin’s Creed and Far Cry series at Ubisoft’s Montreal, Quebec, Sherbrooke, Saguenay, Barcelona and Sofia studios. Ubisoft also said it plans to set up more creative studios to consolidate its franchises, leading to a shared and streamlined development process.
Tencent Investment
The subsidiary was first announced on March 27, a few days after the launch of Assassin’s Creed: Shadows, and has received a €1.16 billion (approximately Rs. 10,694 crore) investment from Tencent. The Chinese conglomerate holds about 25% of the new company. However, Vantage is exclusively controlled and integrated by Ubisoft.
In July, Ubisoft announced the appointment of Christophe Derennes and Charlie Guillemot as co-CEOs of the subsidiary. Derennes co-founded Ubisoft Montreal in 1997 and serves as Managing Director of Ubisoft North America. Guillemot is the son of Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot and previously worked at Ubisoft’s mobile and web game developer Owlient.
Ubisoft is trying to streamline development of its most profitable franchise after a difficult 2024, with the company’s shares falling 40% after a string of failed launches. Since then, Ubisoft has closed some studios, laid off employees, and canceled multiple projects.