Ubisoft to sunset XDefiant in 2025, nearly 300 people affected by layoffs
Studios in San Francisco and Osaka will close, production to be ramped down at Sydney office
Ubisoft has announced it will be sunsetting XDefiant in 2025, resulting in the closure of two production studios with layoffs affecting almost 300 employees.
As shared in a blog post, Ubisoft chief studios and portfolio officer Marie-Sophie de Waubert said that XDefiant had not attracted or retained enough players to continue the live-service title.
"The game is too far away from reaching the results required to enable further significant investment," said Waubert.
One of its offices in San Francisco will close, but its business office will remain open. Another office in Osaka will close, while production at its Sydney location will be ramped down. 277 people will be made redundant as a result.
Half the XDefiant team will be transitioning to "other roles within Ubisoft." According to Insider Gaming, a "skeleton crew" will be kept on to run XDefiant until its servers shut down on June 3, 2025.
Season three is still set to launch, but as of today (December 4), new downloads, player registrations, and purchases will no longer be available.
Waubert added that Ubisoft will continue to "radically evolve [its] mindset for production and business practices" and will partake in "targeted restructuring when necessary."
Last month, Ubisoft's Mark Rubin dismissed claims that XDefiant would be shut down after the game's fourth season.
As reported in its latest financials, Ubisoft is currently undergoing a cost reduction plan which has seen the company limit recruitments, enact targeted restructurings, and decrease external spending.