Ubisoft Montreal

The studio that launched Splinter Cell, Assassin's Creed, and Far Cry.

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Ubisoft Divertissements Inc., doing business as Ubisoft Montreal, is a Canadian video game developer and a studio of Ubisoft based in Montreal. The studio was founded in April 1997 as part of Ubisoft's growth into worldwide markets, with subsidies from the governments of Montreal, Quebec, and Canada to help create new multimedia jobs. The studio's initial products were low-profile children's games based on existing intellectual property. Ubisoft Montreal's break-out titles were 2002's Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell and 2003's Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time.

Subsequently, the studio continued to develop sequels and related games in both series, and developing its own intellectual properties such as Assassin's Creed, Far Cry, Watch Dogs, and For Honor. By October 2022, the studio employed over 4,000 staff, making it the largest in the world. The studio helped to establish Montreal as a creative city, and brought other video game developers and publishers to establish studios there.

Quick Facts

Industry: Video games
Founded: 25 April 1997
Headquarters: Montreal
Country: Canada
Parent: Ubisoft

Lore & Background

Prior to Splinter Cell, Ubisoft had closed down an internal development studio at the New York offices in 1999, which had been working on a game called The Drift, a third-person shooter with elements of stealth. Ubisoft had found the game lacking cohesion, and despite efforts to rebrand it as a potential James Bond game, Ubisoft opted to halt development and transfer key staff and all the work in progress to Ubisoft Montreal. The next year in 2000, Ubisoft acquired Red Storm Entertainment, which had successfully produced games based on Tom Clancy novels.

The acquisition included the licence to develop more Tom Clancy-based games, as well as access to the Unreal game engine. The Ubisoft Montreal team started experimenting with modern spy gadgetry within the existing Drift elements, and found some potential promise to make a game in the Tom Clancy's series from it. With Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty soon to be released, Ubisoft Montreal was tasked with creating the Metal Gear Solid killer, which resulted in the first Splinter Cell game.

Reader's Guide

The studio was founded on 25 April 1997 in offices in the Peck Building, a former textile factory, located in the Mile End neighbourhood along Saint-Laurent Boulevard. It began with 50 employees, with half having come from Ubisoft's Montreuil headquarters, and the other hired under government subsidies. Initially, the studio developed children's games based on licensed IP such as Donald Duck: Goin' Quackers and games based on the Playmobil series of toys. The studio's break-out titles were 2002's Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell and 2003's Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time. Subsequent major IPs developed at the studio include Assassin's Creed (2007), Far Cry 2 (2008), Watch Dogs, and For Honor.