September 24, 2026
schedule2 Min ReadImage via Massive EntertainmentNatalie Francis, former head of studio operations and development at DICE and chief development officer at Avalanche Studios, is joining Massive Entertainment on October 1st.
As announced by the studio, Francis will be the new managing director of the Ubisoft subsidiary, which has worked on the likes of Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora and Star Wars Outlaws in recent times.
"Massive Entertainment has an extraordinary history, built by incredibly talented people and a culture that cares deeply about craft and quality," Francis says in the announcement. "I'm excited to build on that foundation and help create the conditions for the studio and its people to thrive in its next chapter."
Meanwhile, Christoph Hartmann, general manager for Creative House 2—one of the structural subdivisions within Ubisoft after its restructuring earlier this year—speaks about Francis' longstanding legacy and translating those skills to her new role.
"Natalie's extensive experience bringing talented, multidisciplinary teams together around a clear creative and business vision makes her ideally suited to lead Massive into its next chapter. Her track record of delivering ambitious player experiences while connecting long-term strategy with operational excellence provides a strong foundation for the studio and its talented teams moving forward."
Massive Entertainment has had a rocky 2026, which can be said for most of Ubisoft subsidiaries. In October 2025, the parent company announced yet another staff reduction across its global network of studios, specifically around Massive, taking the form of a voluntary buyout. At the time, Ubisoft referred to it as a "voluntary career transition program." Those who took the buyout were set to receive a "comprehensive package" that included "financial and career assistance."
Then, in January of this year, the parent company confirmed that it intended to make 55 people redundant at both Massive Entertainment and Ubisoft Stockholm, with the proposed restructure following the completion of the aforementioned voluntary redundancy program. Other staff members across San Francisco, Winnipeg and Belgrade, and Barcelona were also affected by their own series of job cuts throughout the year.
Massive Entertainment is currently leading the development of Tom Clancy's The Division 2 and the forthcoming Tom Clancy's The Division 3.
UbisoftStudio Management & Team LeadershipTop StoriesAbout the Author
Diego Argüello
Contributor, GameDeveloper.com
Diego Nicolás Argüello is a freelance journalist and critic from Argentina. Video games helped him to learn English, so now he covers them for places like The New York Times, NPR, Rolling Stone, and more. He also runs Into the Spine, a site dedicated to fostering and supporting new writers, and co-hosted Turnabout Breakdown, a podcast about the Ace Attorney series. He’s most likely playing a rhythm game as you read this.
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