Amazon is illustrating its commitment to game development with the opening of a new studio, despite its struggles to make a game successful in recent years. The company announced on Tuesday the new Montreal-based studio team, which will create original AAA games with an initial focus on a new online multiplayer title.
The new studio will be led by industry veterans who have worked in the Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Siege. Amazon Games’ Montreal studio is their fourth studio, with three other locations in Seattle, San Diego and Orange County.
“Based on 8 years of experience with Siege, we look forward to starting with a blank page and the creative freedom to create a completely unique experience in the multiplayer space, ”said Xavier Marquis, the creative director of the new studio and one of its founding members hired by Ubisoft.
Amazon has struggled to make a name for itself in the game development space, despite heavy investments in original titles and in-house studios. Most notably, the company withdrew and then completely canceled its free hero shooter Crucible last year. Other struggles that Amazon has faced include withdrawing its video game adaptation from The Grand Tour from showcases after launch to bad reviews in 2019 and the delay of his other big original project New world, sometime later this year.
These flaws are not yet preventing the entry of Amazon CEO Andy Jassy, who expressed commitment to the company’s game development efforts after a conviction. Bloomberg report on the division’s struggles. Jassy told employees via email last month that he believes the game development division can thrive “if we stay strong.”