Tom Clancy Studio Shuts Down Game Development, Laying Off 105 Staff Members

Red Storm Entertainment, established by Tom Clancy in the ’90s and known for its work on the Rainbow Six and Ghost Recon franchises, is undergoing significant changes as Ubisoft shifts its focus. The studio will no longer be developing games and will instead concentrate on IT and engine support, resulting in the layoff of over 100 developers.

On March 19, it was reported that Ubisoft announced internally that all game development roles at the North Carolina-based studio were being eliminated. This decision affects 105 developers, with Red Storm transitioning to provide IT and Snowdrop engine support for Ubisoft’s global studios.

Sources have confirmed the details of these layoffs, which are part of Ubisoft’s broader cost-cutting strategy. Affected employees will receive severance packages and career transition assistance. Despite these changes, Ubisoft still intends to continue developing Tom Clancy games at its other studios.

This restructuring follows a significant $1.25 billion investment from Tencent in 2025, which led to a reorganization of Ubisoft and its franchises across various studios while remaining under the main company’s umbrella. In the aftermath of this deal, several projects were canceled, and numerous developers were let go.

Founded in 1996 by Tom Clancy, Red Storm initially created games based on his popular novels, including Ghost Recon and Rainbow Six. Ubisoft acquired the studio in 2000, further expanding the Tom Clancy universe with additional titles. The last project associated with Tom Clancy from Red Storm was 2012’s Ghost Recon: Future Soldier.

In recent years, the studio had shifted its focus primarily to VR titles, such as Werewolves Within and Assassin’s Creed Nexus VR. It was also working on two Tom Clancy projects: a VR Splinter Cell spin-off and The Division Heartland. Unfortunately, both projects were canceled before their release. Heartland was envisioned as an extraction shooter set in the Midwest and was scrapped in 2024, three years after its announcement. The Splinter Cell VR game, initially revealed in 2020 for Meta devices, was quietly canceled in 2022.