History of Ubisoft in Timeline
Ubisoft Entertainment SA is a French video game publisher with a global presence, headquartered in Saint-Mandé. The company is known for owning several major video game franchises including Assassin's Creed, Far Cry, Just Dance, and Tom Clancy's series. Ubisoft develops and publishes games across various platforms and has established itself as a key player in the video game industry.
1984: Guillemot Informatique Founded
In 1984, the Guillemot brothers founded Guillemot Informatique, their first business, which initially sold products through mail order.
1985: Guillemot Corporation Established
In 1985, the Guillemot brothers established Guillemot Corporation for the distribution of computer hardware.
March 1986: Ubi Soft Founded
On March 28, 1986, the Guillemot brothers founded Ubi Soft Entertainment S.A., choosing the name to represent "ubiquitous" software.
May 1986: Sylvie Hugonnier Leaves Ubi Soft
In May 1986, Sylvie Hugonnier, director of marketing and public relations, left Ubi Soft to join Elite Software.
June 1986: Ubi Soft Moves to Créteil
In June 1986, Ubi Soft moved its operations from Paris to Créteil.
1986: Guillemot Informatique Earnings
In 1986, Guillemot Informatique was earning approximately 40 million French francs (around US$5.8 million).
1988: Michel Ancel and Serge Hascoët Join Ubi Soft
Around 1988, Michel Ancel and Serge Hascoët joined Ubi Soft, working from the chateau. Ancel was noted for his animation skills, while Hascoët initially applied to be a video game tester.
1988: Yves Guillemot Appointed CEO
In 1988, Yves Guillemot was appointed as Ubi Soft's chief executive officer.
1994: Studio Established in Montreuil
In 1994, Michel Guillemot decided to make Ancel's project a key one for the company, establishing a studio in Montreuil to house over 100 developers, targeting 5th generation consoles.
1995: Hascoët Works on Rayman
Around 1995, Hascoët worked alongside Ancel on Rayman to help refine the game.
1995: Rayman Released
In 1995, Ubi Soft released Rayman, a game developed after Ancel's return with a prototype featuring animated features.
1996: Initial Public Offering and Studio Expansion
In 1996, Ubi Soft listed its initial public offering and raised over US$80 million to expand the company, establishing studios in Annecy and Shanghai.
1997: Studio Established in Montreal
In 1997, Ubi Soft established a worldwide studio in Montreal.
1998: Studio Established in Milan
In 1998, Ubi Soft established a worldwide studio in Milan.
1999: Game Studios Aimed at Online Free-to-Play Titles Founded
Around 1999, Ubi Soft founded game studios aimed at online free-to-play titles, including GameLoft, to take advantage of the Internet's "widespread growth."
1999: Crytek Demonstrates X-Isle: Dinosaur Island at E3
In 1999, Crytek demonstrated its CryEngine demo called X-Isle: Dinosaur Island at the Electronic Entertainment Expo.
2000: Acquisition of Red Storm Entertainment
In 2000, Ubi Soft purchased Red Storm Entertainment for €170 million, gaining access to the Tom Clancy's series of games.
March 2001: Acquisition of The Learning Company's Entertainment Division
In March 2001, Ubi Soft acquired The Learning Company's entertainment division, including rights to the Myst and Prince of Persia series.
2001: Establishment of Editorial Department
Around 2001, Ubi Soft established its editorial department headed by Hascoët, who would oversee most of Ubisoft's games until 2019.
September 2003: Name Change to Ubisoft
On September 9, 2003, Ubi Soft announced that it would change its name to Ubisoft and introduced a new logo.
2003: Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time and Beyond Good & Evil Released
In 2003, Ubisoft Montreal released Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time. At the same time, Ubi Soft released Beyond Good & Evil, which became a commercial flop but gained a cult following.
December 2004: Electronic Arts Purchases Stake in Ubisoft
In December 2004, Electronic Arts purchased a 19.9% stake in Ubisoft, which Ubisoft considered "hostile."
2004: Far Cry Release and Rights Acquisition
In 2004, Ubisoft released the first Far Cry title, which was built by Crytek. Also in 2004, Electronic Arts established a deal with Crytek, leading Ubisoft to acquire all rights to the Far Cry series and a perpetual license on the CryEngine.
February 2005: Acquisition of Sports Franchises from Microsoft
In February 2005, Ubisoft acquired the NHL Rivals, NFL Fever, NBA Inside Drive and MLB Inside Pitch franchises from Microsoft Game Studios.
July 2006: Acquisition of the Driver Franchise
In July 2006, Ubisoft bought the Driver franchise from Atari for €19 million, including technology rights and assets.
2007: Ubisoft Anvil Game Engine Development
In 2007, Ubisoft Montreal developed the proprietary game engine Ubisoft Anvil (formerly named Scimitar) for the development of the first Assassin's Creed game.
July 2008: Acquisition of Hybride Technologies
In July 2008, Ubisoft acquired Hybride Technologies, a Piedmont-based studio.
November 2008: Acquisition of Massive Entertainment
In November 2008, Ubisoft acquired Massive Entertainment from Activision.
2008: Dunia Engine Premiere with Far Cry 2
In 2008, Ubisoft Montreal's modified version of the CryEngine, named the Dunia engine, premiered with the release of Far Cry 2.
2010: EA Sells Shares in Ubisoft
In 2010, Electronic Arts sold its shares in Ubisoft.
2011: Ubisoft Motion Pictures Initiated
In 2011, Ubisoft established its Ubisoft Film & Television division, initially named Ubisoft Motion Pictures, to develop media works tied to Ubisoft's games.
2012: Dunia 2 Engine Introduction in Far Cry 3
In 2012, Ubisoft introduced the Dunia 2 engine with the release of Far Cry 3, focusing on improved console performance and advanced rendering features.
January 2013: Acquisition of South Park: The Stick of Truth
In January 2013, Ubisoft acquired South Park: The Stick of Truth from THQ for $3.265 million.
February 2013: Offering Third-Party Games on Uplay Shop
In February 2013, Ubisoft began offering games from third-party publishers, including Electronic Arts and Warner Bros Interactive Entertainment, on its Uplay Shop, and its own games to EA's Origin.
July 2013: Network Breach Exposes Accounts
In July 2013, Ubisoft announced a network breach that potentially exposed up to 58 million accounts, including usernames, email addresses, and encrypted passwords.
2013: Rabbids Invasion Series Premiere
In 2013, the Rabbids Invasion series premiered.
March 2015: Consumer Relationship Centre Set Up
In March 2015, the company set up a Consumer Relationship Centre in Newcastle-upon-Tyne to integrate consumer support teams and community managers, operating 7 days a week.
October 2015: Vivendi Buys Shares in Ubisoft
In October 2015, Vivendi bought shares in Ubisoft stock in two actions, giving them a 10.4% stake, which Yves Guillemot considered "unwelcome."
February 2016: Vivendi Acquires Shares in Gameloft and the Guillemots Ask for Canadian Investors
In February 2016, Vivendi acquired €500 million worth of shares in Gameloft, gaining more than 30% of the shares. Following Vivendi's actions with Gameloft, the Guillemots asked for more Canadian investors to fend off a similar Vivendi takeover; by this point, Vivendi had increased their share in Ubisoft to 15%, exceeding the estimated 9% that the Guillemots owned.
June 2016: Vivendi Completes Takeover of Gameloft
By June 2016, Vivendi had completed the takeover of Gameloft.
September 2016: Vivendi Gains Shares, Request for Board Seats Denied
By the time of Ubisoft's annual board meeting in September 2016, Vivendi had gained 23% of the shares, while the Guillemots were able to increase their voting share to 20%. A request was made at the board meeting to place Vivendi representatives on Ubisoft's board, but the Guillemots argued against this, and succeeded in swaying other voting members to deny any board seats to Vivendi.
December 2016: Vivendi's Stake in Ubisoft
By December 2016, Vivendi held a 25.15% stake in Ubisoft, approaching the 30% mark that could trigger a takeover.
2016: Yves Guillemot Stresses Independence
During the Electronic Entertainment Expo 2016, Yves Guillemot stressed the importance of Ubisoft remaining an independent company to maintain its creative freedom.
2016: Assassin's Creed Live-Action Film Release
In 2016, Ubisoft Motion Pictures released the live-action film Assassin's Creed.
April 2017: Vivendi's Takeover Predicted
In April 2017, Reuters reported that Vivendi's takeover of Ubisoft would likely happen that year.
June 2017: Guillemot Family's Stake in Ubisoft
As of June 2017, the Guillemot family held 13.6% of Ubisoft's share capital, and 20.02% of the company's voting rights.
September 2017: Estimated Valuation of Vivendi
As of September 2017, Vivendi had an estimated valuation of $6.4 billion.
October 2017: Ubisoft Purchases Shares to Prevent Takeover
In October 2017, Ubisoft announced it reached a deal with an "investment services provider" to help them purchase back 4 million shares by the end of the year, preventing others, specifically Vivendi, from buying these.
November 2017: Vivendi Announces No Plans to Acquire Ubisoft
In November 2017, Vivendi announced that it had no plans to acquire Ubisoft for the next 6 months. They also stated they would not seek board positions due to the shares they held during that time and would ensure their interest in Ubisoft would not exceed 30%. Vivendi remained committed to expanding in the video game sector, identifying that their investment in Ubisoft could represent a capital gain of over 1 billion euros.
2017: Dunia Engine Features Highlighted
By 2017, the Dunia engine, according to Remi Quenin, encompassed features like vegetation, fire simulation, destruction, vehicles, systemic AI, wildlife, weather, day/night cycles, and non-linear storytelling, elements present in the Far Cry games.
March 2018: Ubisoft and Vivendi Strike Deal Ending Takeover
On March 2018, Ubisoft and Vivendi struck a deal ending any potential takeover, with Vivendi agreeing to sell all of its shares to other parties and agreeing to not buy any Ubisoft shares for 5 years. Some of those shares were sold to Tencent, which after the transaction held about 5% of all shares. The same day, Ubisoft announced a partnership with Tencent to help bring their games into the Chinese market.
September 2018: Ubisoft Co-Founds Blockchain Game Alliance
In September 2018, Ubisoft co-founded the Blockchain Game Alliance, a consortium seeking to explore blockchain applications in the video game industry.
2018: Ubisoft Focuses on Key Franchises
Since 2018, Ubisoft's studios have focused on franchises including Assassin's Creed, Tom Clancy's, Far Cry, and Watch Dogs.
March 2019: Vivendi Divests Shares in Ubisoft
In March 2019, Vivendi completely divested its shares in Ubisoft.
October 2019: Ubisoft Postpones Game Titles
In October 2019, Ubisoft postponed 3 of the 6 titles it had planned in 2019 to 2020 or later, as to help place more effort on improving the quality of the existing and released games.
2019: Hascoët's Oversight Ends
Until 2019, most games published by Ubisoft were reviewed through the editorial department overseen by Hascoët.
January 2020: Ubisoft to Reorganize Editorial Board
In January 2020, Ubisoft stated that it would be reorganizing its editorial board to provide a more comprehensive look at its game portfolio and devise greater variation in its games which Ubisoft's management said had fallen stagnant, too uniform and had contributed to weak sales.
July 2020: Sexual Misconduct Accusations at Ubisoft
In July 2020, stemming from a wave of sexual misconduct accusations, a number of Ubisoft employees were accused of misconduct. Some staff quit or were fired, and Yves Guillemot implemented changes to address these issues.
October 2020: Ubisoft Connect Announced
In October 2020, Ubisoft Connect was announced as a replacement for UPlay and its Ubisoft Club, launching on October 29, 2020, alongside Watch Dogs: Legion. It includes cross-platform play and save progression for some games.
2020: Quebec Operations Staffing
By 2020, Ubisoft would employ more than 3,500 staff at its studios in Montreal and Quebec City.
2020: Ubisoft Focuses Less on AAA Game Releases
In 2020, Ubisoft stated in its end of year fiscal investor call that the company will start to make AAA game releases less of a focus and put more focus on mobile and freemium games following fiscal year 2022.
2020: Mythic Quest Series Premiere
In 2020, the Mythic Quest series premiered.
February 2021: Ubisoft Announces Shift to Mobile and Freemium Games
In February 2021, Ubisoft stated that the company will start to make AAA game releases less of a focus and put more focus on mobile and freemium games following fiscal year 2022.
October 2021: Ubisoft Participates in Animoca Brands Financing Round
In October 2021, Ubisoft participated in a round of financing in Animoca Brands.
November 2021: Ubisoft Announces First Entertainment Center
In November 2021, Ubisoft announced the development of their first Ubisoft Entertainment Center, with the first location set to open in Studios Occitanie Méditerranée by 2025.
December 2021: Ubisoft Announces Quartz Blockchain Program
In December 2021, Ubisoft announced its Ubisoft Quartz blockchain program, allowing players to buy uniquely identified customization items for games using the Tezos currency. This marked the first "AAA" effort into blockchain games, but it was met with heavy criticism.
July 2022: Ubisoft Cancels Game Titles
In July 2022, Ubisoft announced that it had cancelled Splinter Cell VR and Ghost Recon Frontline, along with two other unannounced titles.
2022: Ubisoft shifts focus to mobile and freemium games
Following fiscal year 2022, Ubisoft shifted focus to mobile and freemium games and away from AAA releases.
2022: Rabbids Invasion Series End
In 2022, the Rabbids Invasion series ended.
January 2023: Ubisoft Cancels Games and Faces Union Strike
In January 2023, Ubisoft cancelled another three previously unannounced games due to disappointing financial results. Union workers at Ubisoft Paris called for a strike, demanding higher salaries and improved working conditions.
August 2023: Ubisoft Licenses Cloud Gaming Rights to Microsoft
In August 2023, Ubisoft announced a 15-year agreement with Microsoft to license the cloud gaming rights to Activision Blizzard titles, allowing them to appear on Ubisoft+ and be sublicensed to third parties.
September 2023: Ubisoft Reduces Number of Employees
In September 2023, Ubisoft reduced its number of employees from 20,279 in 2022 to 19,410 as part of a cost reduction plan.
November 2023: Ubisoft Lays Off Employees from VFX and IT Teams
In November 2023, Ubisoft laid off 124 employees from its VFX and IT teams.
March 2024: Ubisoft Lays Off Employees from Publishing Teams
In March 2024, Ubisoft laid off 45 employees from its publishing teams.
August 2024: Ubisoft Lays Off Employees from San Francisco and Cary Offices
In August 2024, Ubisoft laid off 45 employees from its San Francisco and Cary, North Carolina offices.
September 2024: AJ Investments Seeks Acquisition of Ubisoft
Around September 2024, one of Ubisoft's shareholders, AJ Investments, stated they were seeking to have the company purchased by a private equity firm and would push out the Guillemot family and Tencent from ownership of the company.
September 2024: Ubisoft Further Reduces Number of Employees
By the end of September 2024, Ubisoft had reduced its number of employees to 18,666.
October 2024: Guillemots and Tencent Consider Ownership Shift
In October 2024, Bloomberg News reported that the Guillemots and Tencent were considering this and other alternatives to shift ownership of the company in light of the recent poor financial performance.
October 2024: Ubisoft Employees in France Strike Over Return-to-Office Policy
On October 16, 2024, over 700 Ubisoft employees in France began a three-day strike, protesting the company's requirement to return to the office three days a week. The strike, organized by the STJV union, involved Ubisoft's offices in Paris, Montpellier, Lyon, and Annecy. Workers expressed dissatisfaction over a lack of flexibility, salary increases, and profit-sharing.
November 2024: Assassin's Creed Shadows Delayed
In November 2024, Ubisoft delayed Assassin's Creed Shadows from November 2024 to February 2025 due to underperforming sales of games, Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora, Skull and Bones, XDefiant, and Star Wars Outlaws and declining playerbases post-launch.
December 2024: Ubisoft to Shut Down XDefiant and Close Studios
In December 2024, Ubisoft announced that their free-to-play game XDefiant would be shutting down in June 2025, less than a year after its initial release. They also announced that its lead development studio Ubisoft San Francisco, and Ubisoft Osaka, were to close, resulting in up to 277 employees being laid off.
December 2024: Tencent Seeks Majority Stake in Ubisoft
In December 2024, later reports suggested that Tencent was seeking to capture a majority stake in Ubisoft and take the company private, while still giving the Guillemot family control of Ubisoft.
January 2025: Ubisoft Closes Leamington Studio and Downsizes Others
In January 2025, Ubisoft closed the Ubisoft Leamington studio and downsized several other studios, resulting in up to 185 staff being laid off as part of ongoing cost-cutting measures.
January 2025: Guillemots Consider Carving Out Assets for Tencent Investment
In January 2025, it was reported that the Guillemots had also considered carving out certain Ubisoft assets into a new subsidiary, which would allow Tencent to make targeted investments to increase the company's overall value.
February 2025: Delayed Launch of Assassin's Creed Shadows
Assassin's Creed Shadows was delayed and is now scheduled to launch in February 2025.
March 2025: Ubisoft Announces New Subsidiary with Tencent Investment
On March 27, 2025, Ubisoft announced a new subsidiary devoted to its flagship Assassin's Creed, Far Cry, and Rainbow Six franchises. Tencent will make a €1.16 billion investment in the new subsidiary, giving it a 25% stake at a valuation of €4 billion. The transaction is expected to be completed by the end of 2025.
June 2025: Closure of XDefiant
In June 2025, Ubisoft is shutting down XDefiant, less than a year after its initial release.
2025: Opening of First Ubisoft Entertainment Center
By 2025, the first Ubisoft Entertainment Center is set to open in Studios Occitanie Méditerranée.
2025: Mythic Quest Series Planned End
In 2025, the Mythic Quest series is planned to end.
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