Ubisoft disbanded the team working on Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown. The employees were transferred to other projects.
This was reported by French journalist Gauthier Andres, citing insiders from the team.
The decision was made a few weeks after the game's release, which took place in January of this year.
However, the developers themselves only learned in the spring that their team would be disbanded after completing work on the DLC.
Several key team members tried to convince management to green-light a sequel. Their request was denied.
Afterward, the team insisted on releasing two expansions for the game. They were allowed to release one, but the second was "shelved."
The reason for disbanding the team is straightforward. Despite a warm reception from the press and players, the sales of Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown did not meet the company's expectations.
Ubisoft's management deemed it more sensible to move employees to projects with greater commercial potential.
Nevertheless, team members, according to Gauthier, described working on the game as "one of the best productions of their lives."
The employees hoped that the team would serve as a sort of rehab for specialists burnt out from working on Beyond Good & Evil 2.
Like Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown, the latter was also developed within Ubisoft Montpellier. This specific studio was investigated last year by law enforcement for labor law compliance.
The fact is that in 2022, dozens of studio employees fell ill from burnout while working on Beyond Good & Evil 2. For some of them, developing The Lost Crown, which had restructured processes, became a reprieve.