Video game giant Ubisoft announces plan to triple Winnipeg workforce by 2030

Video game giant Ubisoft says it plans to triple the size of its Winnipeg workforce over the next eight years.

The company announced Friday that it will expand the number of people it employs at its Exchange District studio to 300from 100 by 2030 by hiring additional programmers.

The France-based company is best known for its Assassin's Creed series and has also produced numerous other games such as Brawlhalla, Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon and Just Dance.

The Winnipeg studio opened in 2019, employing Manitobans while also recruiting across Canada and internationally.

"They've helped us deliver on our promise and prove what we already knew: that this province is home to impressive techno creative talent and we made the right decision to be here," said Michael Henderson, managing director of Ubisoft Winnipeg.

Henderson says the company has been renovating its studio over the past three years to make space for additional employees, who also have the option of working from home.

About 70 per cent of the Winnipeg studio's workforce comes from Manitoba, while the other 30 per cent are recruited from other cities, he said.

"Winnipeg's a great place to live. The cost of living is great but it's also the talent. We're here in Winnipeg because the talent's here in Winnipeg and Ubisoft goes where the talent is."

Henderson says the companyis not using government subsidies to do so, other than taking advantage of provincial tax credits.

The Manitoba government initially helped lure the developer to Winnipeg with the province's interactive digital media tax credit in 2019, which provides a fully refundable income tax credit to companies that develop interactive digital media products.

Premier Heather Stefanson says she sees Friday's announcement as a vote of confidence in Manitoba.

"We have become a powerhouse of talent on the Prairies," she said.

"We are excited one of theindustry'smost innovative and successful players has selected Winnipeg for this expansion opportunity."