Ubisoft has announced the acquisition of March of Giants, along with the development team behind the project from Amazon, marking another step in Amazon’s gradual shift away from developing and publishing its own games in a deal whose terms are not disclosed yet.
March of Giants, the upcoming free-to-play 4v4 War MOBA that places players in control of towering Giants, tasked with leading armies of soldiers and deploying tactical structures known as “Battleworks” across devastated urban battlefields.
The title is still in development and recently concluded a closed alpha test earlier this year, indicating that a full release remains some distance away.
In a statement accompanying the announcement, Ubisoft Co-Founder and CEO “Yves Guillemot” highlighted the strategic value of the acquisition, noting that March of Giants presents an opportunity to deliver a fresh experience within one of gaming’s most competitive genres.
He also emphasized the importance of welcoming back experienced developers who previously worked at Ubisoft, describing the team’s ambition and creativity as closely aligned with the publisher’s long-term vision of building bold and enduring IPs.
From Amazon’s side, “Steve Boom”, VP of Audio, Twitch, and Games, praised the team’s achievements and expressed confidence that the developers would continue to thrive under Ubisoft’s leadership, delivering compelling experiences for players.
ESBN MENA Analysis: Regional Esports and Business Impact
This acquisition signals a strategic push toward scalable competitive titles at a time when publishers are actively reassessing how and where esports growth will emerge next.
While the global MOBA market is mature, emerging regions such as MENA continue to present expansion opportunities, particularly for free-to-play multiplayer titles that prioritize accessibility and long-term engagement.
From a business standpoint, acquiring a near-production IP with a validated alpha allows Ubisoft to reduce development risk while accelerating its entry into a genre with proven monetization models.
Live-service MOBAs remain attractive due to their ability to support in-game economies, seasonal content, and community-driven competition, key pillars for sustainable esports ecosystems.
For the MENA region specifically, March of Giants aligns well with current market dynamics. Free-to-play competitive games dominate player behavior across the region, supported by a young audience that increasingly engages with organized online competition.
If Ubisoft invests early in regional servers, Arabic localization, and publisher-backed grassroots tournaments, the title could become a viable entry point for emerging talent and semi-professional ecosystems.
More broadly, the deal reflects a wider industry shift as publishers are prioritizing markets like MENA not just for player acquisition, but for ecosystem development, sponsorship activation, and regional event scalability.
The deal also reinforces Ubisoft’s ongoing investment in competitive multiplayer experiences, while underlining Amazon’s continued retreat from in-house game development, reshaping the competitive landscape of the global games industry.
