Ubisoft Paris celebrates 30 years of creation!

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Ubisoft’s historic studio, which has three game releases scheduled between now and the end of December, is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year. An excellent opportunity to look back at the history of a creative studio that has accompanied the group’s growth since its inception. 

The genesis of a studio

In 1992, six years after Ubisoft’s start, the Guillemot brothers left their native land, Brittany, to set up their first video game studio in Paris’ suburb: Ubisoft Paris. The small team of developers quickly moved to Montreuil and began working on Rayman, a promising and innovative game. It was developed using a brand new 3D simulation tool and was presented at the launch of Sony’s first console in 1995. Then quickly became a worldwide success, with 4 million copies sold on all consoles.

It is the beginning of a great adventure for Ubisoft Paris, which has since grown and continues to surprise gamers.

Nearly 70 games developed in 30 years.

In 30 years, the studio’s teams have worked on nearly 70 games, ranging from car races with POD (1997) to military strategy games like Ghost Recon Future Soldier (2012) to family games like Rayman against the Rabbids even more Morons (2007), or the musical phenomenon Just Dance (2009). Today’s ambitious and diversified portfolio makes Ubisoft Paris the Ubisoft studio that has worked on the most brands in the group.

Here’s a look back at 30 years of games:

An expert studio and sponsor of the group

The studio’s long history and diversified expertise have made Ubisoft Paris a key element in the group’s growth. Its experts have supported several studio openings such as Ubisoft Annecy, Montreal, or Milan and have contributed to building a culture of sharing and excellence within the network. Even today, the studio is regularly approached to work in co-production on major games of the group, such as Watch Dogs with Ubisoft Montreal or Beyond Good & Evil² with Ubisoft Montpellier.

Among the 800 developers in Paris to date, we find all the industry jobs, ranging from Game Design to programming, production, or User Experience. Diversity of expertise but also seniority with the presence of video game seniors who do not hesitate to share their knowledge with their colleagues internally or at international conferences such as Game Developers Conference or Devcom.

Technical innovation and powerful brands

Technical innovation is at the heart of the studio’s culture, providing players with authentic, quality experiences. A pioneer in procedural technology, it has become a reference within the group in creating vast open and systemic worlds, such as that of the military shooter Ghost Recon Wildlands (2017). The studio also knows how to take advantage of the new console’s features, as it did on Red Steel, a shooter that used the Wii controller and nunchuck simultaneously.

Ubisoft Paris teams are also experts in creating lasting brands and partnerships. The game Mario + The Rabbids Kingdom Battle is the culmination of a long-term relationship with Nintendo and a tangible proof of confidence from the Japanese publisher. In parallel, the Just Dance franchise celebrated its 10th anniversary in 2019 and, to date, has surpassed 80 million copies sold.

A pivotal year for Ubisoft Paris

2022 marks the 30th anniversary of this pioneering studio in the industry, but also the release of three games developed in Paris:

  • Mario + The Rabbids Sparks of Hope, the second installment in the Mario + The Rabbids franchise, developed hand in hand with Ubisoft Milan and scheduled for October 20;
  • Just Dance 2023 Edition, the brand new dance game formula, modernized and reinvented to offer even more fun all year round, scheduled for November 22;
  • Skull & Bones, a pirate game led by Ubisoft Singapore, will be released on November 8.

So many opportunities to get together to celebrate releases and the anniversary during events organized for the development teams. Happy birthday to them and thank you to those who have contributed to the studio’s growth over the last thirty years. We can’t wait to see the next 30!

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