Ubisoft is one of the most well-known names in the video game industry, and the toxic work culture and crunch hours are nothing new in the industry, as there have been several instances where employees have reported this. Ubisoft is currently working on its free-to-play shooter xDefiant, and the game has been delayed multiple times due to different issues.
The main reason behind this seems to be a group of executives and directors working on the title, as reported by Insider Gaming’s Tom Henderson. He also stated that the company has a toxic work culture, among other things, that has driven employees to part ways, and the statements have now been corroborated by a former Ubisoft developer who left the job due to these issues.
Former Ubisoft Developer Speaks on the Statements Made Against the Company
In an exclusive report by Insider Gaming, Tom Henderson stated that a group of individuals called “The Boys Club,” which includes executives and directors working on xDefiant, have created problems with the development of the game.
Henderson stated in his report that the group that started with a “few individuals” soon expanded into over a dozen people, both male and female. He said that the group has been a major cause behind the toxic work culture, crunch, missed deadlines on the game, and people leaving the studio.
This is why I left @Ubisoft SF during SPTFB.
“The Boys Club” are a known abusers. Domestic abuse included.
I was verbally insulted constantly. Called “a stupid bitch” in front of my team.
“Ni**er” (Hard ER) was written on a whiteboard at a meeting I attended.
Bullying was… https://t.co/niJIv4KVBy— Lisette Titre-Montgomery 🔜 GDC (@zette16) March 28, 2024
A former Ubisoft developer, Lisette Titre-Montgomery, has now spoken about these statements and corroborated them, saying that this is why she left her job at the Ubisoft San Francisco studio. She said “The Boys Club” are “known abusers”, adding that it also includes “domestic abuse.”
The former developer added that she was “constantly” verbally insulated at the studio and called names in front of her team. She also said that bullying and crunching at the studio were “common practice,” and she was “regularly and purposefully” left out of the meetings and discussions at the studio that directly affected her team and the processes of the game development.
The Toxic Culture Has Been at Several Ubisoft Studios
Titre-Montgomery further said that this kind of behavior was “prevalent”, and that several employees had “mental breakdowns” during their time at the studio. She also said that she wanted to complain about this to the Human Resources department but couldn’t.
Tom Henderson also said in his report that the lack of work ethic and unpleasant behavior from the individuals in the group created a “really unhealthy place to work.” Henderson has also stated that knowledge of the group was also spread to other Ubisoft studios, which is again corroborated by Titre-Montgomery.
She said that she knows people who have gone through the same experiences at other studios, including its editorial division in Paris, adding that there are “same stories from Montreal and the Philippines studios.” She lastly said that all these things are going “downhill” with “no accountability.”
What are your thoughts about these statements against Ubisoft? Let us know in the comment section below.
