Ubisoft giving Toronto studio a fourfold staff increase.
Ubisoft announced in 2010 that its Toronto studio will be a major hub, with plans to have the studio manage the production of five AAA titles simultaneously. It is already hard at work on the next Splinter Cell and pitching in on Rainbow 6: Patriots. Toronto is obviously an important part of Ubisoft’s strategy, but now we can see exactly how important.
According to an article published on Financial Post, Ubisoft is pumping $505 million CAD ($500 million USD) into its Toronto studio. Ubisoft isn’t the only one investing in the studio, either. The government of Ontario is pumping $263 million CAD ($267 million USD) into the studio over 10 years. These investments will allow the studio to grow from 210 employees to 800 over the next decade.
While that may seem like a lot, the studio is still significantly smaller than Ubisoft’s massive Montreal branch, where more than 2,000 people collect paychecks. Presumably, the growth will help the studio take on the remaining three projects it was built to oversee.
Source: Financial Post via Gamasutra