Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced was released on July 9th and sold 2 million copies within 24 hours. Peak Steam online sales surpassed 100,000—the best result in the franchise’s history on the platform. Metacritic scores 84.
It would seem like a triumph. But at Ubisoft Barcelona, it’s the opposite.
This studio created the remake’s underwater levels—free-diving mechanics across the entire map, new shipwrecks, and marine life. Animator Manel Cota confirmed that the team that gave the game its signature look is currently being laid off.
51 employees will be laid off by the end of July. This is part of a global restructuring at Ubisoft—a total of 380 people are being laid off, and the studios in Winnipeg and Belgrade are being closed entirely. The Barcelona office will be refocused exclusively on Rainbow Six.
The severance pay, according to one employee, is “below any reasonable standard” and less than what was paid to previously laid-off employees. Therefore, with the support of the CSVI union, the developers have announced a three-day full strike. Around 90 people are participating. They marched outside the office with a “Corporate Greed” banner in the Assassin’s Creed style.
The employees’ demands include canceling the layoffs, guaranteeing no further layoffs for at least five years, reinstating remote work (up to 60% of the time), and fulfilling the promised salary increases. The next strike is scheduled for July 16th.
The irony of the situation is that Ubisoft stated in a recent report that it doesn’t want to lose valuable employees, but it doesn’t know how to cut costs without layoffs. Players are reacting with anger and disappointment. Reddit and X are debating why the studio that created the best part of the remake is being shut down immediately after release.
Should we expect underwater missions in the next Assassin’s Creed? Their future appears to be in question. The team responsible for this mechanic has been disbanded, and the studio is shifting its focus to Rainbow Six. While the mechanic itself has received rave reviews, its future development within the series is now unclear.
