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Ubisoft has cancelled the Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time remake, in addition to axed 5 different video games. Introduced on Wednesday, the cancellations come as a part of a significant firm restructure aimed toward bettering its development and its funds — with some price reducing having already been finished by way of layoffs.
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The Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time remake was initially scheduled for launch on Jan. 21, 2021 when it was first introduced in 2020. That date got here and went, with Ubisoft saying a number of delays earlier than shifting the sport’s improvement from its Mumbai and Pune studios to Montreal in 2022. Sadly, the delays continued even after the change in studio, and by 2024 Ubisoft was claiming Sands of Time would arrive in 2026.
Now there will probably be no launch in any respect, with Ubisoft shutting down manufacturing on the sport six years after it was introduced.
“Whereas the undertaking had actual potential, we weren’t capable of attain the extent of high quality you deserve, and persevering with would have required extra time and funding than we might responsibly commit,” learn a press release posted to the official Prince of Persia X account on Wednesday.
“Prince of Persia as a universe and a legacy continues to matter deeply to us, and this determination doesn’t imply we’re stepping away from the franchise.”
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Followers have reacted with disappointment, taking to social media to vent their frustration. Wednesday’s announcement left many feeling bitter, as they’d been anticipating the Sands of Time remake since its announcement half a decade in the past.
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The Sands of Time‘s cancellation comes as a part of a big structural shakeup at Ubisoft. Revising its three-year roadmap, the corporate is refocusing on open-world and reside service video games, and plans to make “accelerated investments behind player-facing Generative AI.”
A pivotal a part of Ubisoft’s restructure is its new working mannequin, which is concentrated on 5 specialised “Artistic Homes.” These new items throughout the firm will every concentrate on a distinct sport style, and care for a title’s manufacturing and publication themselves. Ubisoft can also be establishing two new inner organisations, the Artistic Community and Core Companies, which can present manufacturing help to all 5 Homes.
“Every [Creative House] is constructed round a transparent style and model focus, with full duty and monetary possession, led by devoted management groups,” mentioned Ubisoft founder and CEO Yves Guillemot. “It’s a radical transfer, counting on a extra decentralised inventive organisation with sooner determination making and best-in-class cross useful core providers supporting and serving every Artistic Home.”
CH1 aka Vantage Studios will probably be devoted to scaling Ubisoft’s largest franchises akin to Murderer’s Creed, Far Cry, and Rainbow Six. CH2 will concentrate on aggressive and cooperative shooters akin to The Division, Ghost Recon, and Splinter Cell. CH3 will probably be answerable for reside video games like For Honor, The Crew, and Cranium & Bones. CH4 will care for video games which might be narrative-driven or happen in fantasy worlds, together with Anno, Rayman, Past Good & Evil, and sure, Prince of Persia. Lastly, CH5 will work on informal and family-friendly manufacturers Simply Dance, Uno, and Hasbro.
Nevertheless, not all of Ubisoft’s video games will get to maneuver into one in all these Homes as Sands of Time and 5 different titles have been cancelled — a “strategic determination to refocus its portfolio” after reviewing its content material pipeline. 4 of the cancelled titles had not but been introduced, three of which had been model new IPs. Based on Ubisoft, the six video games had been axed as a result of they didn’t “meet the brand new enhanced high quality in addition to extra selective portfolio prioritisation standards.”
Guillemot said that although Ubisoft’s restructure can have a big influence on its funds over the following two years, he expects it to come back out the opposite facet stronger. Sadly, not all its staff will probably be round to understand it. The corporate has carried out ongoing layoffs in an effort to cut back prices over the previous couple of years, shrinking its headcount from nearly 21,000 in 2022 to 17,097 by its earnings name final November.
Additional layoffs are anticipated as Ubisoft continues its cost-cutting program in earnest, with its studios in Halifax and Stockholm having already closed. The corporate laid off an additional 29 employees after restructuring its Abu Dhabi studio earlier this month, and confirmed that it expects to minimize 55 jobs from its Large and Stockholm studios.
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