Ubisoft acquires Action Pants
French publisher picks up Vancouver-based outfit; expects to release studio's Wii-exclusive sports game later this year.
Although a global recession signals bad times for all but a select few businesses, the severe economic downturn has not affected all companies in the same way. Case in point: French game maker Ubisoft is actually weathering the choppy waters quite well, having posted revenue of €508 million ($658 million) for its October-December quarter, a 13 percent rise from a year ago. As a result, though many game companies are looking to reduce head count to shore up their expenses, Ubisoft is actually eyeing expansion.
;){kind=link}
The publisher announced today that it has acquired Vancouver-based Action Pants, a studio founded by EA Canada vets Simon Andrews, Nik Palmer, and Omar Al-Khafaji in 2006. The studio, which was named as one of British Columbia's top 50 employers in 2008 and 2009, currently employs more than 110 developers. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
"We have been looking closely at Vancouver for some time, as we wished to set up a presence in what is one of the industry's biggest talent pools," commented Christine Burgess-Quemard, executive director of worldwide production studios at Ubisoft, in a statement. "The creative talent at Action Pants made the decision an easy one, and we are delighted to both establish ourselves in the region as well as welcome a fantastic group of experienced developers who can start exchanging with our other teams worldwide."
Action Pants is currently at work on its first game, a sports-related Wii game that Ubisoft plans to release later this year. According to the developer's Web site, Action Pants is also hiring for unannounced projects on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.
Got a news tip or want to contact us directly? Email news@gamespot.com
Join the conversation