Global gaming giant Ubisoft announced early this morning a decision that has left many gamers disappointed: it is canceling the development of *Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time Remake*, a project that has been in development for six years. According to reports from the renowned entertainment industry publication *Variety* and several gaming media outlets, in addition to halting development of *Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time Remake*, the company has also made sweeping cuts by canceling a total of six game projects currently in development. These include three brand-new, unannounced original IPs, a mobile game, and another mysterious, untitled title.
However, the cancellation of this game is just the tip of the iceberg in Ubisoft’s radical transformation plan. Faced with an increasingly challenging market environment and financial pressures, Ubisoft announced a comprehensive business restructuring, which includes closing two global studios, implementing large-scale layoffs, and completely splitting the company’s core structure into five independent divisions:
The Fall of a Classic: A Six-Year Nightmare from “Delay” to “Cancellation”
A remaster of *Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time* was first announced in September 2020 and was originally scheduled for release in January 2021. However, for unknown reasons, the game’s release was postponed indefinitely and was even put back into development at one point. It was later announced that the game would be released in 2026, but before it could launch, Ubisoft announced that it was canceling the development project:
Officials also announced this news earlier on the official X platform, stating that while the project certainly has potential, the team is unable to achieve the level of quality you deserve, and continuing development would require more time and funding than we can responsibly commit to. We do not want to release a game that fails to fully capture the essence of *The Sands of Time*. They added that *Prince of Persia*, as a universe and a legend, remains of paramount importance, and this decision does not mean we are abandoning the series for good.
This statement doesn’t rule anything out completely, so it seems we might see the Prince of Persia game franchise resurface in the future:
Other Games Are Also Affected: 6 Titles Canceled and 7 Delayed
In addition to *Prince of Persia*, five other unreleased games have been scrapped, including three original IPs, an unannounced mobile game, and a mysterious new title. Ubisoft admitted that these projects all failed to pass the latest internal review, and the company will no longer allow “mediocre titles” to consume valuable development resources. In addition, Ubisoft announced that it would delay the release of seven other games currently in development. Although this list of delays has not been made public, the industry widely believes it includes the highly anticipated *Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag Remastered*:
Five New Divisions and Tencent’s Strategic Involvement
To streamline its previously chaotic product lineup and management structure, Ubisoft announced that it is implementing a new organizational structure effective immediately, consolidating its remaining global development resources into five “creative divisions” with clearly defined responsibilities. Following several years of sluggish stock performance, persistent acquisition rumors, and several AAA titles that failed to meet expectations, Ubisoft has no choice but to improve its balance sheet through aggressive cost-cutting.
By heavily concentrating resources on the *Assassin’s Creed* franchise—its flagship IP—and bringing in Tencent Capital to shore up its core business, the company is attempting to regain the trust of investors and players. However, for longtime fans hoping to see the return of *Prince of Persia* and for the game developers who were laid off, the cost of this transformation is undoubtedly heavy and painful:
Source: KOCPC Chinese