Ubisoft today announced that they will be opening its second Southeast Asia production studio in the Philippines. Ubisoft Philippines will formally open during the second quarter of the year and is currently hiring 50 people—game developers, artists, creative heads, program managers, and support staff—to begin its operations. The Philippines studio will be situated inside the De La Salle University campus in Santa Rosa, Laguna.
“I am very excited to have the opportunity to come back to my country of origin to kick start a brand new studio for Ubisoft,” said Ubisoft Philippines studio manager Chip Go. “Every day, Filipinos leave the country in search of opportunities elsewhere. I was one of those people eight years ago, and now I’m very happy to come back and bring my own experience in AAA game development. I know that this experience, as well as Ubisoft’s 30 years of industry expertise, is going to spark great things, and is a huge opportunity for the Philippines.”
The new Ubisoft hub will collaborate with other studios around the world in developing AAA video game titles. Veterans from both Ubisoft’s main office and Ubisoft Singapore will be flying in to train the new staff.
“We chose to grow in the Philippines because of its great talent pool and I am confident the new studio will meet our demanding standards,” said Olivier de Rotalier, managing director of Ubisoft Singapore, Ubisoft Chengdu, and Ubisoft Philippines. “Our number one priority will be to develop the high potential of our new team members to reach the level of expertise and quality needed to work on AAA games, just as we have previously done in Singapore.”
As was the case with its partnership with DigiPen Singapore, Ubisoft has collaborated with De La Salle University in putting up the country’s first major game development studio. The location was chosen because of its accessibility from the Ninoy Aquino International Airport and Metro Manila’s central business districts; its lush and natural atmosphere; and the strong support from the school’s executives.
The tie-up between Ubisoft and DLSU will also birth a four-year game development program as well as a one-year orientation course for those who graduated from other fields but are interested in entering the industry.
“It’s important for Ubisoft to provide a friendly working environment forits staff. Locating our studio in Santa Rosa is a real advantage in this sense. We have huge ambitions for this team who will play a part in creating some of Ubisoft’s biggest and most beloved games. Ubisoft Philippines will be recruiting 50 new team members this year, from artists to programmers, designers to project managers, and we are very confident of our ability to build a strong team to take up these challenges,” explained Go.
Those interested in working for one of the world’s leading video game companies can contact Ubisoft Philippines at [email protected]. They can also soon view available positions at www.ubisoft.com/en-US/careers/search.aspx?location=santa%20Rosa.
In photo: Olivier de Rotalier, managing director of Ubisoft Singapore, Ubisoft Chengdu, and Ubisoft Philippines (left); and Chip Go, Ubisoft Philippines studio manager (right).