It really feels likeUbisoftis incapable of going two weeks without generating some sort of new controversy. Barely a month ago, it drew ire for its mobile titleTom Clancy’s Elite Squad,where its main antagonist organization was depicted with a logo almost identical to the one used for the Black Lives Matter movement. And more recently, it has issued an apology after it was criticized for releasing a new promotional ad for theAssassin’s Creedseries.
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Barely a day after complaints about the lack of any women in the promo,Ubisoftuploaded a new version of the video to include all of the characters that have used the hidden blade, like the aforementioned Eivor, Evie Frye fromAssassin’s Creed Syndicate, and even Shao Jun from the short filmAssassin’s Creed: Embers, alongside a brief apology.
While some may find the backlash to be an overreaction to an otherwise minor mistake, one needs to remember that the company has come under fire for its treatment towards women numerous times in the past. This year alone, Ubisoft has been hit with accusations of sexual harassment and abuse that has since led to several high-ranking employees either leaving or being fired,including the director ofAssassin’s Creed Valhalla.
TheAssassin’s Creedseries itselfis believed to have a serious issue regarding its inclusion and depiction of women characters. For example,Assassin’s Creed Odysseywas apparently meant to only star a women playable character, but a male option was added because Ubisoft’s creative lead said “women don’t sell.”
Some may also find Ubisoft’s apology to be rather hollow considering, despite claiming to take measures to prevent sexual harassment and abuse within the company, withCEO Yves Guillemotacknowledging the controversies and allegations in a short video, it appears to be doing very little about it, or at least not as much as people hoped or expected.
Neither of its Ubisoft Forward presentations addressed the issues either, which in turn led to more complaints and accusations that Ubisoft is trying to distract audiences with new game announcements, likethePrince of Persiaremakeand re-release of theScott Pilgrim vs the Worldgame.
