Update [Wed 23rd Oct, 2024 13:00 BST]:
Ubisoft has confirmed that most of the team that worked on Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown have indeed been moved onto other projects internally, and that the game is at the end of its post-launch roadmap.
In a statement provided to our sister site Push Square, Abdelhak Elguess — who was senior producer of the game — confirmed that work has ended on the game, but that the team that is remaining will be "focusing on making the game available to more players". A Mac release is due this winter.
A separate Ubisoft representative, who was not named, also confirmed that there have been "no layoffs" regarding this news.
Here is Elguess' statement in full:
"I'm extremely proud of our team's work and passion at Ubisoft Montpellier to create a game that resonated with players and critics alike, and I am confident in its long-term success. Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown is now at the end of its Post-Launch roadmap with three free content updates and one DLC that released in September. We are now focusing on making the game available to more players: it was recently launched on Steam, and will be available on Mac by this winter. Most of the team members who worked on Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown have shifted to other projects that will benefit from their expertise.
"We know players have a love for this brand and Ubisoft is excited to bring more Prince of Persia experiences in the future."
Original article [Tue 22nd Oct, 2024 18:30 BST]:
Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown is one of the best games of 2024, and with the recently released DLC, we thought it would just keep getting even better. Sadly, a new report suggests that the team behind the excellent Metroidvania has been disbanded by Ubisoft, and a sequel was refused.
According to French gaming journalist Gautoz on the Origami YouTube channel (and summarised by ResetEra User Arubedo), Ubisoft had determined the game's future a few weeks after the game's January 2024 launch. The company made it clear to the team at Ubisoft Montpellier that after all the cosmetics and DLC were out, "it would be the end."
Not only that, but Gautoz also claims that members of the development team pitched a sequel, but Ubisoft didn't greenlight it. Then, the team tried to get two expansions, but that was also refused on the basis that "Ubisoft needed more hands to help on other projects that had a better sales potential" and that a sequel would actually harm long-term sales for The Lost Crown.
While this is currently just a rumour, Ubisoft hasn't exactly been out of the news in terms of disappointing results. Two weeks ago, Bloomberg reported that the company may be looking to go private as the brand has lost over half of its market value in 2024. Games such as Star Wars Outlaws have underperformed, and Assassin's Creed Shadows was recently delayed, with its Early Access also cancelled.
However, we're still upset to hear that the team — who also worked on Rayman Origins and Rayman Legends — has potentially been disbanded. We would've loved to have seen a sequel to the game, but hopes of that, and maybe even a new Rayman game, feel like a pipe dream...
We'll update you if we hear anything official on this story.