Ubisoft announced today that it has appointed leaders of three branches of its Creative Houses system, under which its reorganizing all of its game development. Julien Bares rejoins the company as general manager of Creative Houses 3 and 5, while Thomas Andrén is now general manager of the Creative Network.
According to Ubisoft’s new organizational structure, Creative House 3 is the collection of studios developing live-service games, such as For Honor, The Crew and Skull & Bones. Creative House 5 develops casual and mobile games, such as Just Dance and Growtopia. Bares takes on the role of general manager for both Creative Houses on March 23.
Bares, who previously worked at Ubisoft as a producer on two Tom Clancy games, most recently served as head of development and portfolio support at Tencent Games Global. He said in a statement, “I entered the games industry to create experiences that resonate with players. Leading Creative Houses 3 and 5 is an opportunity to partner with incredibly talented teams to build innovative games and deepen the connections we have with our communities.”
Ubisoft’s reorganization includes three other Creative Houses, including Vantage Studios (a.k.a. Creative House 1). Casualties of the new structure include the cancellation of at least six games, such as the Prince of Persia: Sands of Time Remake; and the closure of its Stockholm and Halifax studios. It also laid off hundreds of people at its Paris headquarters (via a “voluntary redundancy program“) and its Toronto location.
Ubisoft’s new restructure includes a support network
Thomas Andrén takes on his new role as head of Ubisoft’s Creative Network on April 1. Formerly, he served as the head of Massive Entertainment, having worked on both Star Wars: Outlaws and Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora. He’ll serve as interim managing director for Massive until Ubisoft appoints a replacement.
The Creative Network he’ll now be in charge of is a collection of studios who provide support and resources to the Creative Houses. Its mandate, according to Ubisoft’s public statements published in January, is to provide “best-in-class production capacity and cross-functional creative expertise serving the Creative Houses.” The Network’s studios operate on a project-by-project basis, either with co-development or specific end-to-end mandates.
Andrén said in his statement, “The Creative Network within Ubisoft’s new operating model represents an incredible concentration of expertise, craftsmanship, and innovation. Each studio brings its own unique strengths and capabilities, and by strengthening collaboration across the network and with our Creative Houses, we can combine agility with world-class expertise to support the development of ambitious games and deliver great new experiences for players.”
Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot added, “I am very pleased to see Julien and Thomas stepping into these strategic roles. They both bring proven experience in game development and a shared passion for our industry. Their vision and their ability to bring together
top talent will be key to creating compelling experiences that delight players, while
contributing to Ubisoft’s transformation and growth.”