Ubisoft Closes Halifax Studio Weeks After Historic Unionization: The End of Assassin's Creed: Rebellion

In December 2025, a significant milestone was reached in the North American games industry. The developers at Ubisoft Halifax successfully unionized, forming the first collective bargaining unit at a Ubisoft studio on the continent. It was a hard-won victory for labor advocates, a beacon for game workers seeking greater stability and a voice in their workplace. Just three weeks later, on January 7, 2026, Ubisoft announced the complete closure of that very studio, eliminating all 71 positions and sunsetting its flagship project, Assassin's Creed: Rebellion.

The abruptness of the decision has sent shockwaves through the development community, framing a contentious and urgent question: Is this a straightforward, if brutal, business decision driven by the declining fortunes of a single mobile game? Or is it a retaliatory action against a newly formed union, a warning shot to organized labor in an industry known for volatility? The answer lies somewhere in the tense intersection of corporate restructuring, the precarious nature of live-service games, and a burgeoning labor movement.

The Halifax Studio: From Acquisition to Unionization

The studio's journey to this pivotal moment began when Ubisoft acquired the Halifax-based Longtail Studios in 2015. Initially known for work on the music-instruction title Rocksmith, the team later pivoted to mobile development. Its primary project became Assassin's Creed: Rebellion, a free-to-play RPG for iOS and Android.

The studio's recent history, however, is defined by its labor activism. In December 2025, 61 of the studio's 71 employees voted to form the Ubisoft Workers of Canada: Halifax union, affiliated with Game Workers Unite Canada and the Communications Workers of America (CWA). This landmark achievement created the first union at a major Ubisoft development studio in North America. At the time of the closure announcement, the union was newly certified and had not yet begun bargaining a first contract, with the team focused on supporting Assassin's Creed: Rebellion.

The Closure Announcement and Ubisoft's Official Stance

The announcement was stark. Ubisoft confirmed the Halifax studio's closure, effective immediately, resulting in the termination of 71 employees. The direct consequence for players was the planned shutdown of the Assassin's Creed: Rebellion servers, ending the game's live service.

Ubisoft's official statement framed the decision within a much larger, two-year corporate strategy. The company stated the closure was "part of a two-year, company-wide effort to streamline operations, improve corporate efficiency, and reduce costs." Crucially, and perhaps anticipating the inevitable backlash, Ubisoft explicitly denied any connection to the recent unionization drive. The official line presented this as a cold, financial calculus: a studio tied to a game with declining revenue was no longer viable within the new, leaner corporate structure.

The Union's Response and Legal Implications

The union's response was one of profound disappointment and resolve. The Ubisoft Workers of Canada: Halifax stated it was "deeply saddened" and "devastated" by the closure. More significantly, it declared its intention to explore "all avenues" and pursue "every legal recourse" to defend its members' rights.

This sets the stage for a potentially protracted legal and labor relations battle. While companies have the right to close facilities for legitimate business reasons, labor laws in Canada (and similar statutes in the U.S. under the National Labor Relations Act) prohibit closing a workplace in retaliation for union activity. The proximity of the closure—just weeks after certification—creates a glaring prima facie case that will likely be scrutinized by labor boards. The union will argue the timing is suspect and constitutes an unfair labor practice designed to chill organizing efforts elsewhere. This case has instantly become a high-profile test for the game worker unionization movement in North America, a symbol of both its growing power and the fierce resistance it can face.

Broader Context: Ubisoft's Restructuring and Industry Trends

The Halifax closure cannot be viewed in isolation. It is a single data point in a much larger trend of contraction and reorganization at Ubisoft. The company has undergone a series of layoffs and studio closures following periods of disappointing financial performance. This specific action dovetails with a seismic shift in Ubisoft's corporate strategy: the move to spin off its crown-jewel franchises—Assassin's Creed, Far Cry, and Rainbow Six—into a separate entity backed by a major investment from Tencent. This restructuring inherently involves "streamlining," often a euphemism for consolidation and cuts to areas deemed non-core.

Furthermore, the fate of Assassin's Creed: Rebellion highlights the volatile ecosystem of live-service and mobile gaming. These games operate on a "serve or sunset" model, where consistent player engagement and revenue are required to justify ongoing development and server costs. Publishers routinely analyze key performance indicators like monthly active users (MAU) and average revenue per user (ARPU). When these metrics fall below sustainable thresholds—as Ubisoft indicated they had for Rebellion—the supporting studio becomes extremely vulnerable. This business reality, common across the industry, provides the plausible deniability for Ubisoft's stated rationale, even as it fuels skepticism about the precise timing of the decision.

The closure of Ubisoft Halifax exists in the uncomfortable space between a verifiable business reality and a deeply suspicious sequence of events. On one hand, the sunsetting of an underperforming mobile game and the consolidation of resources is a common, if harsh, industry practice. On the other, shuttering a studio mere weeks after it achieves a historic unionization victory sends a deafening message, regardless of official denials.

For the gaming industry's labor movement, this is a moment of reckoning. It demonstrates the potential consequences of organization in an industry where studios and projects can be ephemeral. For Ubisoft, the calculus is twofold: while it may have resolved a financial line item related to a declining game, it has likely ignited a significant legal fight and incurred a substantial reputational cost. The ultimate legacy of the Halifax studio may not be Assassin's Creed: Rebellion, but rather the precedent set in the battle over its closure. Will this case become a cautionary tale that chills organizing, or a rallying cry that proves unions are essential to protecting workers in an era of relentless corporate streamlining? The answer will be a defining case study in the ongoing struggle for power between game corporations and their developers.

Tags: Ubisoft, Game Development, Labor Unions, Studio Closure, Assassin's Creed