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Ubi To Open New Quebec Studio

Posted by Zonk on from the why-have-one-when-you-can-have-two-at-twice-the-price? dept.

GamesIndustry.biz has word that Ubisoft is planning the construction of a second studio in the Canadian province of Quebec. The money for the construction is likely partially the result of the previously announced alliance between the Quebecois government and the French software developer. From the article: "Ubisoft will invest $75 million Canadian (more than $60 million US) in the project over the next five years. The new studio will employ some 200 designers, animators and programmers."

26 comments

  1. The next Splinter Cell game in the series: by TripMaster+Monkey · · Score: 5, Funny


    Splinter Cell: Quebec Under Siege!

    After taking care of the last world-threatening terrorist plot, Sam Fisher is taking a relaxing vacation in the BEST place on earth, Quebec. But Sam's vacation will have to wait....evil Canadian forces threaten to destroy Quebec's very way of life in a cowrdly attempt to stem the tide of secessionism that has been rising in Quebec ever since...well...it's always been like that, hasn't it?

    "Those damned Canadians", Sam growls..."why can't they just accept that Quebec doesn't WANT to be part of Canada? WHY???"

    Usually, Sam plies his trade in the service of the United States Government, but this time, IT'S PERSONAL!

    Be the first on your block to download the demo, and help Sam defend a precious poutine factory from the evil Canadians.

    --
    ____

    ~ |rip/\/\aster /\/\onkey

    1. Re:The next Splinter Cell game in the series: by jellybear · · Score: 1

      I can't download it. I think Paul Martin has us behind a firewall.

    2. Re:The next Splinter Cell game in the series: by pipingguy · · Score: 1


      Splinter Cell: Quebec Under Siege!

      I don't play FPS games, but my son rents them every now and then. In one of the underground subway scenarios where you have to shoot bad guys a pretty obvious map of the Montreal Metro system was on the wall. Can't remember the name of the game or who the company was.

    3. Re:The next Splinter Cell game in the series: by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      yuo are king of Score: -1 Not Funneh!

  2. Cover Art by Winterblink · · Score: 1, Redundant

    And on the cover, we'll see our hero sneaking up to snap the neck of a clueless soldier chowing down on some poutine.

    --
    "I'm a leaf on the wind. Watch how I soar."
    -Hoban Washburn
  3. In other news... by Rahga · · Score: 0, Flamebait

    In other news, EA Games has set its sights on acquistion of a new game studio in Canada.

    1. Re:In other news... by Cecil · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Are you sure you don't mean, "EA Games is pursuing exclusive rights to develop games in the province of Ontario"?

      Seriously though, things like this are why I don't much like Quebec. They subsidise everything. They expect everything subsidized. It's a whole culture of subsidy, and they need to get over it real quick. Things like that are what lead to the sponsorship scandal. But anyway, they attract all this business into their province, and run up huge defecits doing so, and then they go whining to the federal government, "Oh no, look at how hard off we are, we need more monies from transfer payments!" and bleeding more money out of the provinces who make the transfer payments (Ontario and Alberta), and siphoning off the transfer payments from where they really need to be going: Atlantic Canada.

      I mean come on, Quebec. You've got one of the largest power generation networks in all of North America. Step up to the plate, get your finances in order, and stop leeching off the rest of us.

      --
      Random and weird software I've written.
  4. Those French by OAB_X · · Score: 1, Offtopic

    Always sticking together, watch Quebec separate and join France again. /completely off topic

    1. Re:Those French by Guppy06 · · Score: 1

      Actually, France's policy on an independent Quebec can be described as "confused," IIRC. They may feel sympathetic to their fellow white Francophones, but France has its slavish devotion to a monolithic form of government, vesting all power into a single government. In order to support Quebec secessionism they'd have to back-pedal their political theory quite a bit (i. e. the idea that parts of Canada can secede but not parts of France).

      From what I've read, it's typically the extreme right in France that's been most supportive of an independent Quebec. Liberal De Gaulle seems to have been the lone exception.

      It seems to me that a free Quebec would be more likely to join the United States than France (if they would be willing to sacrifice their independence at all).

    2. Re:Those French by Stolethis · · Score: 0, Flamebait

      The day Quebec joins the US is the day we nuke our own soil.

      --
      What do Saddam Hussain and Little Miss Muffet have in common? They have Kurds in their Whey.
    3. Re:Those French by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Wow. A three or four month old dupe. Nice going Slashdot.

    4. Re:Those French by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Quebec would die if independent. A few million people demanding everything be written au francais is not a large market. Everything would have to be prepared in-state at huge cost. The 'new' country would die under crippling debt.

    5. Re:Those French by belg4mit · · Score: 1

      en francais, and France already does it, with only "a few million" people as well. But what's that,
      they could share content?

      --
      Were that I say, pancakes?
    6. Re:Those French by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      and France already does it, with only "a few million" people as well

      A few million? France has 61 million people. Quebec had a population of 7.5 million (only 6 million of them speak french). You really think 300+ million English speaking people (yes, I know the real numbers, I am going low to cover Spanish/Chinese etc) would double their packaging costs for 6 million consumers? Maybe for pork gravy, but thats about it.

      You must be a Quebecer, always living in a dream world. Currently 25 million Canadians have to bend over for 6 million smacktards in Quebec. Trust me, we would be glad to be rid of you, and your dying language, forever. Pay your bills, turn over your passports, and fuck off.

      Surely you jest about sharing a continent? You PQ cocksuckers have never shared anything but your debt since 1867. And I would love to see Quebec try to join the US (news flash, they don't want you any more than we do).

      Note to Quebec, feel free to leave, anytime you want.

  5. New offerings by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    When can we expect Ubi's new version of "Frogger"?

  6. what i read was: by Diabolus777 · · Score: 1

    in the local newspapers, they mentionned that the new studio will focus on games for cellphones and other handhelds systems, not specifiying if the new portable consoles were going to be included.

    Is it the first major pro game publisher to announce cellphones as a target?

    --
    We should have been
    So much more by now
    Too dead inside
    To even know the guilt
  7. Future Dominance of Cellphone Games by AtariAmarok · · Score: 2, Funny
    "Is it the first major pro game publisher to announce cellphones as a target?"

    Knowing that there will be all these drivers out there, not only talking on the cell phone, but playing the latest version of "Driv3r", really makes me rest assured that the roads will be safe.

    --
    Don't blame Durga. I voted for Centauri.
  8. No, old news by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Ubi has been in that market for years under the GameLoft moniker.

  9. I'm selfishly disappointed. by Guspaz · · Score: 1

    I'm disappointed that they're not opening another studio in Montreal. After all, I live in Montreal. It's part pride, and part job availability.

    I think it's a mistake anyhow. It isn't that hard to get anglophones (english as mother tongue) to move to Montreal. The company I'm on co-op with in downtown Montreal has more employees from Ontario than Quebec who moved to Montreal just for the job.

    However, I doubt as many anglophones would be willing to move to Quebec City. Montreal is huge, and has everything from big-city dense downtown core, to suburbia, to farm land, all on the island of Montreal.

    But to repeat (and to be honest), I'd rather they expanded in Montreal because that would make it easier to get a job at Ubisoft.

    1. Re:I'm selfishly disappointed. by oldwolf13 · · Score: 1

      Plus from what I've heard Montreal is one of the nicest cities around.

      (I'm from Vancouver, B.C) Even people I know that dislike the french mfor whatever reason, who have gone to montreal and come back raving about it.

      --
      If I can't smoke and swear I'm fucked.
    2. Re:I'm selfishly disappointed. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Nope, personally I see Montreal as an urban aberration; many people are happy that Ubisoft is opening a studio in Quebec; because they wont have to move in ""that"" city.
      Also; the new Quebec jobs are listed only in the french section of the Ubisoft website... we can see in which category they are targeting their workforce.

      I dont mean to start a flame war here; but Montreal has already tons of jobs in the game industry; give Quebec some slack and means to improve it's _really lame_ employment market. We need better than inneficient government-runned agencies :-)
      And it's not like there wasnt already a Ubisoft studio in Mtl...

    3. Re:I'm selfishly disappointed. by Guspaz · · Score: 0, Troll

      Yes, but it's a bit of pride in that Mtl has the main (And possibly the only big) Ubisoft studio. Last I heard it was 1000 employees with plans to expand to 2000. The article in the Gazette was unclear how many jobs were being created in Quebec. Some places they said 200, some they said 2000. And I don't particularly trust other articles, because for all I know they got it from the same flawed/correct source.

      However, if these new jobs were added to Montreal, it would be easier for Montrealers to get jobs there, hence why I'm selfishly disappointed ;)

  10. Yay! by jsrlepage · · Score: 1

    University in sherbrooke, interns in quebec city. that'll be closer than montreal.

    --
    This is my opinion. Everyone has a right to my opinion.
  11. This is it. by Omni+Magnus · · Score: 2, Insightful

    I don't think we are going to see any major game developers opening more studios in the US. It costs way too much.

    1. Re:This is it. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Reading that UBI is going to Quebec city, I first thought you were going to say "I don't think we are going to see any game developped"...