Paris (France) (AFP) – Trading in French video game giant Ubisoft was briefly suspended Thursday following a dramatic fall in its share price, a day after the firm announced it expected to make huge losses this year. Shares plummeted 33 percent — a record drop for the firm — to 4.46 euros in early Paris trading prior to suspension. On resumption, it was down 34.37 percent.
The “Assassin’s Creed” maker has been mired in financial difficulties for years and announced on Wednesday it was cancelling development of six video games and postponing the release of seven others. Ubisoft revealed it expected an operating loss of one billion euros ($1.2 billion) this year and would push through a major organisational restructuring plan involving cost cuts of some 200 million euros.
The share price fall surpassed a previous worst for the group of 31.92 percent in October 2013. Among the cancelled projects is “Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time”, a remake of one of Ubisoft’s biggest hits in the 2000s. The game is now being shelved despite several years of development and high fan expectations.
Five other games have also been abandoned, comprising “four unannounced titles” and one mobile game, the group said. Seven other games will receive “additional development time.”
© 2024 AFP
