Assassin’s Creed Mirage review roundups aren’t the only thing Ubisoft is in the news for, as after a year-long sexual assault and harassment investigation of Ubisoft, the French Police have arrested five former executives, according to the French newspaper Libération via GameIndusty.Biz’s translation.
Three individuals were taken into custody yesterday, with the other two following today. The France-based newspaper outlet revealed that arrested executives include former chief creative officer Serge Hascoët and ex-VP of editorial and creative services Tommy François.
The publicly known executives left the company after claims against the individuals following Ubisoft’s massive wave of abuse, harassment and discrimination allegations that initially broke out in mid-2020. Back then, female employees compared the culture of the publisher to a frat house rather than a professional work environment.
In the fallout, many of the publisher’s top brass resigned, including Hascoet, Francois, VP Maxime Beland, Ubisoft Canada CEO Yannis Mallat and global head of HR Cecile Cornet. One of the lawyers for the plaintiffs in the case, Maude Beckers, said the case goes beyond individual behaviour and is the first time she has seen so much harassment and assault systemically enabled by a company in her 22-year career.
In GameIndusty.Biz’s article, the outlet reached out to Ubisoft for a comment, and the company’s spokesperson said the company “has no knowledge of what has been shared and therefore can’t comment.”
