Ubisoft, once a giant in the gaming industry, is now teetering on the edge of a full-blown collapse, thanks to DEI and ideology-driven insanity.
The recent shutdown of XDefiant, alongside the closures of production studios in San Francisco and Osaka (and layoffs at Sydney), feels like the first tangible domino to fall in what could be a chain reaction that defines Ubisoft's ultimate demise.
A leaked memo from Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot has been obtained, hinting DIRECTLY at even more layoffs to come - and “evolving our organization to adapt” as well. The company’s trajectory appears very grim... Not that anyone paying attention to Ubisoft over the past year especially would be surprised about it.
The question now isn’t whether Ubisoft can stabilize—it’s whether it can even last until the delayed February 2025 release of Assassin’s Creed Shadows. That's how dire it's starting to feel...
First Report
First reported by Stephen Totilo (@stephentotilo), Ubisoft has announced the closure of its San Francisco and Osaka production studios, along with a ramp-down of its Sydney production team, resulting in layoffs for 277 employees. While this seems like a pretty good chunk of employees - relative to Ubisoft's near 20,000-people deep workforce, 'tis but a scratch. For now...
Half of the XDefiant team is being reassigned to other projects within the company... But there's no guarantee that they will stay on for the long term either. Positioned as a competitor to Call of Duty, the game faced declining player numbers and failed to meet even minimal expectations (despite earlier denials of shutdown rumors). Ubisoft lied about that too? SHOCKER!
While the San Francisco production studio is closing, the business office in the city will remain operational for the time being, and the ramp-down in Sydney specifically only affects the production team currently.
The Fall of XDefiant
In an official company blog post, Ubisoft announced the sunset of XDefiant, a free-to-play FPS that failed to secure a sustainable player base to last.
While the game garnered some early enthusiasm, many gamers hadn't heard of it or given it a chance - and its concurrent player counts struggled to break 20,000—a very low number in today’s hyper-competitive FPS market. It's great compared to Concord - but let's be real here - E.T. on Atari looks great compared to Concord....
The lackluster performance forced Ubisoft to pull the plug, ceasing downloads and player registrations while honorably, committing to keep the servers active only until June 2025 as a token gesture. I'll be honest - this move surprised me. I didn't expect Ubisoft to do the right thing for the playerbase. Then again, let's revisit this point again in June 2025 and see if they kept their word...
Even more telling was the broader fallout. The shutdown came at the expense of nearly 300 employees, with production studios in San Francisco and Osaka shuttered entirely.
Guillemot’s internal memo (partially above), leaked by Insider Gaming, attempts to justify the layoffs by emphasizing a need to concentrate resources on “more profitable projects.”
The email’s mention of “evolving our organization” and “targeted restructurings” strongly suggests that this moment right here with XDefiant is only... the beginning.
It echoes the sentiments of the public-post from Marie-Sophie de Waubert, Chief Studios and Portfolio Officer who stated "doing targeted restructuring when necessary." (below)
A Pattern of Failure
The collapse of XDefiant is far from an isolated incident. For whatever reason, Ubisoft didn't see fit to release it on Steam to increase the player count. It's gotta make you wonder... They were trying so hard to push their Ubisoft launcher "Ubisoft Connect", that they shot themselves in the foot with having a potential breakout hit on their hands. Pair that with how Ubisoft has struggled with a string of commercial failures, including Star Wars Outlaws and the disastrous Skull and Bones. The latter rumored to have burned through upwards of a whopping $850 million over its troubled near-10-year development cycle, according to friend of the channel Endymion. The game’s complete inability to deliver on its promises not only embarrassed Ubisoft... but even worse, drained resources that could have been allocated to more viable projects.
Similarly, Star Wars Outlaws fell flat upon release, with Steam player counts failing to break even 2,500 concurrent players at launch. Guillemot admitted that sales were “softer than expected,” basically telling you that even their original high-profile IPs were no longer safe bets for Ubisoft. Amazing what DEI does to destroy a company and rot it away from the inside...
Structural Instability
The cracks in Ubisoft’s foundation go well beyond individual game failures. Guillemot’s all-staff email hinted at deeper systemic issues, referencing new initiatives to streamline processes and focus on creativity. But his promises ring hollow in light of the company’s mounting layoffs and studio closures. Ubisoft’s leadership appears more reactive than proactive, cutting costs to survive rather than addressing the root causes of its woes. You know... pushing the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion ideologies on the masses via their internal workforce. It never ends well. Get woke, go broke is a phrase often heard for good reason.
The Domino Effect
The collapse of XDefiant feels like the first tangible domino in a much larger line. Ubisoft’s inability to adapt, combined with their dwindling financials and complete erosion of player trust, tells everyone that the worst... is yet to come. Each failed project, each layoff, and each studio closure accelerates the company’s decline, creating a self-reinforcing cycle that can only end one way. They shouldn't be surprised when that glorious day comes, though. It's what they've been working so tirelessly to accomplish over the past few years anyway...
If Ubisoft’s trajectory continues unchecked, the February 2025 release of Assassin’s Creed Shadows could very well be its last major project... If it even makes it that far. The company is running out of time, money, and goodwill. And as the dominoes will continue to fall faster and faster, the question becomes not if, but when Ubisoft’s long-standing empire will crumble entirely.
~Smash
Ubislop has become the ultimate slow motion trainwreck.