Ex-Ubisoft worker Jonathan Morin has joined NetEase Games’ Montreal studio. As the studio’s artistic director, he’ll be engaged on an unannounced sport in a brand new setting for NetEase. 

NetEase opened a Montreal studio in 2019, as a part of the Chinese tech firm’s efforts to additional its international enlargement exterior of China. It was initially fashioned for R&D functions, however since Montreal is a hotspot for developer studios, transitioning to improvement might have been inevitable.

“I’m privileged to hitch a passionate and gifted new staff to create our personal IP,” wrote Morin in a press assertion. “This is the start of one thing particular for me and I can’t wait to say extra.”

During his tenure at Ubisoft, Morin served because the artistic lead on the primary two Watch Dogs video games. We spoke to Morin in 2014 forward of the primary Watch Dogs’ launch about designing emergent gameplay. 

Beyond Morin, NetEase has introduced on a number of trade veterans throughout 2022. NetEase has been letting these veterans kind their very own studios, whereas it is concurrently been buying (or investing in) already established ones. 

The first of those was again in January, when Yakuza creator Toshihiro Nagoshi left Sega to discovered his personal studio with the writer. 

More lately, producer Hiroyuki Kobayashi (of Devil May Cry and Resident Evil fame) left Capcom in August to hitch NetEase. Shortly after, the tech large acquired Heavy Rain developer Quantic Dream.