50 Staff Reassigned from Assassin’s Creed: Hexe as Another Delay to 2027 Looms

Ubisoft has reassigned around 50 developers from Assassin’s Creed: Hexe to a cross-project team. Those staff now have three months to secure a new internal Ubisoft project, or they could face layoffs. The game was previously slated for June 2027, but it may now slip to the 2027 holiday window.

From a project management perspective, this personnel move is not an encouraging signal. A group of 50 is substantial, roughly the core size of a mid-sized studio team. After taking charge of the Assassin’s Creed franchise, Jean Guesdon made multiple changes: he removed the cat companion feature and shifted the portrayal of witchcraft toward a more realistic approach based on chemistry, such as the protagonist crafting smoke bombs through chemical principles. The direction aims for hardcore authenticity, but pulling this many people usually points to issues in either schedule or project direction.

Ubisoft’s broader slate adds more context. The company is also developing Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag Remake, a multiplayer title codenamed Invictus, and another unannounced remake. With resources spread across so many projects, a headcount reduction on Hexe is less surprising. More notably, Ubisoft has already canceled the unannounced Alterra project, indicating active reprioritization across its portfolio.

From a timing standpoint, the 2027 holiday release window will be highly competitive. If Hexe does move there, it will face more rivals. This adjustment looks like Ubisoft is cooling the project down—either reassessing market positioning or dealing with technical bottlenecks. For players waiting for a hardcore historical experience, the practical next step is to watch for more gameplay footage and see how far this “chemical witchcraft” system can really go.