‘Not a fun time’: Quebec video game industry in limbo as studios cut back
Quebec's video game industry is facing a period of instability as major studios like Bethesda implement layoffs amid a broader market restructuring. The sector is struggling with reduced investment and shifting consumer demand following the post-pandemic boom.
Why it matters
The layoffs reflect a wider trend of contraction in the global tech and gaming sectors as companies adjust to post-pandemic economic realities.
‘Not a fun time’: Quebec video game industry in limbo as studios cut back Christopher Reynolds Sun, July 12, 2026 at 8:36 p.m. EDT 6 min read Ubisoft offices are shown in Montreal, Thursday, May 16, 2013. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Graham Hughes - The Canadian Press MONTREAL — At 10:30 a.m. last Monday, about a dozen employees at Bethesda Game Studios in Montreal learned they would be laid off.
The group, part of a larger team of 120 at the Xbox-owned company, had been riding high with the ongoing success of action role-playing video game "Fallout 76" and another one called "The Elder Scrolls VI" in the works.
Instead, roughly 10 per cent of them were told via video conference by a director in Maryland they would be laid off in two months and locked out of company systems until then, said one worker who was present.
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