Patrice Désilets, game designer and creator of the Assassin’s Creed series, has left Ubisoft for the second time in his career. Désilets tells Polygon that he was fired, and that the termination was “baseless and without merit.” He goes on to say that he intends to “fight Ubisoft vigorously for my rights, for my team, and for my game.”
Ubisoft paints a slightly different picture in an official statement issued to Digital Trends. “The acquisition of THQ Montréal in January allowed Ubisoft to welcome 170 experienced developers, including Patrice Désilets, to our existing and renowned workforce,” the statement reads.
“Unfortunately, since the acquisition, the good faith discussions between Patrice and Ubisoft aimed at aligning Patrice’s and the studio’s visions have been inconclusive. As a result, Patrice has left the studio. Our priorities remain with the teams already hard at work on projects in development. They are at the root of Ubisoft Montréal’s past and future successes.”
Désilets joined THQ as a creative director 2011, roughly a year after leaving the post he held at Ubisoft when he co-created Assassin’s Creed. After THQ folded earlier this year, Ubisoft purchased the publisher’s Montreal properties, assets, and workforce, including Désilets. At the time, statements from Ubisoft indicated that the company was “pleased” to have Désilets back.
The Assassin’s Creed creator had been working on a mysterious new game dubbed “1666” at THQ and at Ubisoft after the acquisition. The status of that project is unknown at this time, though Ubi’s statement certainly suggests that any in-progress work will continue as before.
