French publisher and developer Ubisoft has acquired Vancouver-based Action Pants -- and with it, a Wii-exclusive sports title set to bolster the publisher's presence in the genre.
With the acquisition, Ubisoft gains its first in-house developer on North America's west coast.
The publisher also has studios in Canada's Montreal and Quebec provinces, as well as in North America with Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six series developer Red Storm Entertainment.
"We have been looking closely at Vancouver for some time, as we wished to set up a presence in what is one of the industry's biggest talent pools," says Christine Burgess-Quemard, executive director of worldwide production studios at Ubisoft.
Founded in 2006 and employing over 110 developers, Action Pants was ranked as one of British Columbia's Top 50 employers in 2008 and 2009.
"The creative talent at Action Pants made the decision an easy one," adds Burgess-Quemard, "and we are delighted to both establish ourselves in the region as well as welcome a fantastic group of experienced developers who can start exchanging with our other teams worldwide."
The company also recently acquired Brazilian independent developer Southlogic Studios (Imagine: Wedding Designer) in January, incorporating the 20-strong team into its Sao Paulo location. In November, Ubisoft purchased World In Conflict developer Massive Entertainment to assist with its future MMO plans.
Action Pants co-founder and executive partner Simon Andrews says: "We are very excited about this opportunity, and how it will benefit our studio. Action Pants and Ubisoft share very similar values and we are confident that this synergy will provide all of our staff with new and exciting opportunities, as well as resources that will benefit all of our future products."
Isn't there a Ubisoft San Francisco? Or are they just publishing and admin, not development?
Has Montreal been upgraded from city to province?