Update 14/01/2026: Following the publishing of this article, a statement sent to GamesIndustry.Biz confirmed that Ubisoft has laid off 29 developers from its Ubisoft Abu Dhabi studio.
"In November, Ubisoft made the difficult decision to restructure its Abu Dhabi mobile studio, discontinuing some projects in order to focus on Growtopia," the statement begins. "As a result, this change impacted 29 team members. We remain deeply grateful for their contributions and are providing support to them throughout the transition."
Original Story:
Ubisoft is starting 2026 in a similar fashion to how it started 2025. The Assassin's Creed company shut down its Leamington-based studio in January 2025, laying off 185 people. To start 2026, between the shuttering of Ubisoft Halifax and yesterday's layoffs at Massive Entertainment and Ubisoft Stockholm, Ubisoft has already laid off an estimated 126 developers. Now, that number is definitely a little higher, as a new report from Game Developer reveals layoffs have continued at Ubisoft Abu Dhabi.
According to the report, cuts at the Abu Dhabi studio began back in December 2025 and have continued into the new year, with some staff, like former art director Daniel Kovacs, sharing on his personal LinkedIn page last month that he had been laid off. "I took some time to reflect after being impacted by the recent layoffs at Ubisoft Abu Dhabi, and at the risk of sounding a bit sentimental, I just want to say how grateful I am for these three and a half years," wrote Kovacs.
"Signing off as Ubisoft Abu Dhabi's social media manager as I've been affected by the recent layoffs," added Raiza Veridiano, who also shared the news that they had been laid off last month. "I’m incredibly grateful for the 4 years and 9 months I’ve spent here."
Other former staff, like game support specialist Zohaib Shafiq, shared the news only yesterday, indicating that the cuts have continued into 2026. "Due to recent restructuring, my journey at Ubisoft Abu Dhabi is coming to an end after an amazing 4.5 years. It’s been a chapter full of learning, collaboration, and growth; I am incredibly grateful for the experiences, challenges, and people that made this chapter so meaningful."
Ubisoft Abu Dhabi has a team of 60 people, according to its website, which also calls the studio "Ubisoft’s Regional Hub for games development" in the area. The Abu Dhabi team is responsible for titles like Growtopia and CSI: Hidden Crimes.
According to Ubisoft, these cuts are part of "company-wide actions to streamline operations, improve efficiency, and reduce costs." Last year, the company established a new branch with Tencent called Vantage Studios, which is now the home to the company's most significant IPs, including Assassin's Creed, Far Cry, and Rainbow Six.
About the author: David has been writing about videogames, technology, and culture since 2020, with a focus on reporting daily news across multiple publications, including GameDaily.Biz, GameSkinny, and PlayStation Universe before joining Wccftech in 2025. David started contributing as Canada/US reporter for Wccftech's gaming section in 2025. Besides being up-to-date on the industry's movements, he loves interviewing developers, reviewing games, and writing intricate essays about the symbolism and layered meanings to be found in rich narratives as he's done for publications like GamesIndustry.Biz, LostInCult, and others. Outside of games he loves movies, music, theatre, his hometown, and his family, though not necessarily in that order.
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