The gaming industry continues to go from strength to strength. Across Montréal, Canada, and the rest of the world, demand for the many forms of video game has been growing, more or less, for the last few decades.
This trend can be seen right across the board, covering almost every genre of game imaginable, though the reasons behind the growth can vary. For instance, the rise in popularity of casino games in Canada has been helped by innovative new elements that have helped to augment traditional titles. Blackjack insurance is an early example of this as it adds an additional element for players to consider while they make their wagering decisions. Other options include the 21+3 side bet that combines blackjack and poker together into a single game.
In other genres, the driving force behind the growth is often different. For example, in the world of first-person shooters, titles like Fortnite, CS:GO, and PUBG have continued to enjoy success because they are offered for free rather than requiring players to hand over a set amount upfront.
But to help produce this ever-expanding buffet of gaming content, the industry needs workers to design, programme, and test each title before it can be released to the market, and Montréal is where you can find a large number of them.
Many of the biggest companies in the gaming industry have set up shop in the city, creating thousands of jobs for hardworking and talented Montréalers; they include these industry giants.
Ubisoft
Ubisoft is one of the most formidable names in gaming. The international conglomerate is responsible for some of the biggest titles of the last few decades, including Assassin’s Creed, Tom Clancy, Watch Dogs, and Far Cry.
The company was originally founded in France, with its headquarters in the Saint-Mandé suburbs of Paris. Being a French company, Canada made a lot of sense for a North American development studio, and the company settled on Montréal, the biggest French-speaking city on the continent.
This studio was opened in April 1997 and has gone on to produce some of the company’s biggest hits, including For Honor, Watch Dogs, and Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time. These successes have helped to make Montreal a centre for gaming and other creative industries.
In 2021, Ubisoft had over 4,000 people on the payroll in its Montréal-based studio, making it one of the biggest employers in the city.
Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts is another major player in the gaming world. The company is responsible for some of the most famous games ever created, including the FIFA series, Madden, The Sims, Need for Speed, Battlefield, and Plants vs. Zombies.
Like Ubisoft, the company has a major presence in Montréal. The studio was founded in the city in March 2004 by a former Ubisoft executive. It currently employs over 800 people, though the exact figure has gone up and down over the years.
In almost two decades, the Montréal studio has produced some big hits, including releases in the SSX, Need for Speed, and The Sims franchises.
Eidos-Montréal
Eidos-Montréal is a subsidiary of CDE Entertainment, a Swedish video game company. However, it has only been since late 2022 that the company has fallen under the stewardship of this parent. Before then, Eidos-Montréal was a division of Square Enix, a company that was previously known as Eidos Interactive.
This complicated story began in November 2007 when the studio was founded, nine months after Eidos Interactive unveiled its Canadian expansion plans to the world.
Since then, Eidos-Montréal has gone on to work on some important titles, including Deus Ex, Tomb Raider, and Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy. However, it also spent eight years developing the Dawn Engine, a complex game engine that was used to power most of the studio’s content. Since 2022, this work has been abandoned to focus on video games.
At the last count, Eidos-Montréal employed just shy of 500 people, making it another major player in the city’s gaming industry.