As part of Ubisoft's earnings briefing, the company announced that it has canceled The Division Heartland. This was planned as a free-to-play multiplayer spin-off.

Ubisoft management said it decided to cancel the game as part of a wider decision to increase the "selectivity of its investments." Development resources on The Division Heartland are now being reassigned to "bigger opportunities" such as XDefiant and the Rainbow Six series.

Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot said Heartland was "not aligned" with Ubisoft's business plans. Ubisoft management said on an earnings call that the company made a "significant" investment into Heartland, but declined to specify the game's actual budget.

The game's cancellation came as a surprise to some, as some signs pointed to the game being nearly ready for release. Ubisoft allowed members of the public to play Heartland as part of a testing phase. There was plenty of gameplay footage and information available, and in the trailer above, Heartland appeared to be far along in development (though the reality of the situation is unknown).

Although Heartland has been canceled, Ubisoft is moving ahead with The Division 3. It's been some time since we've heard about the game, but it could show up during Ubisoft Forward in June. Ubisoft is also working on The Division Resurgence, a mobile game that is slated for release later this year.

In other Ubisoft news, the company just officially revealed Assassin's Creed Shadows and revealed it's coming this November.

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