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<generator>Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/</generator><item><title><![CDATA[Desilets' 1666 'suspended' by Ubisoft following firing]]></title><link>http://www.joystiq.com/2013/05/15/desilets-1666-suspended-by-ubisoft-following-firing/</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.joystiq.com/2013/05/15/desilets-1666-suspended-by-ubisoft-following-firing/</guid><comments>http://www.joystiq.com/2013/05/15/desilets-1666-suspended-by-ubisoft-following-firing/#comments</comments><description><![CDATA[<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2013/05/15/desilets-1666-suspended-by-ubisoft-following-firing/"><img alt="Image" data-src-height="350" data-src-width="530" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2013/05/1666shutterstock-1.jpg" /></a></div>
The creative director on <em><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/game/assassins-creed">Assassin's Creed</a></em> and <em><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/game/assassins-creed-2">Assassin's Creed 2</a>,</em> <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/tag/patrice-desilets/">Patrice Desilets</a>, was <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2013/05/07/patrice-desilets-fired-by-ubisoft/">fired</a> by Ubisoft last week and now <em><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2012/03/14/thq-files-1666-trademark/">1666</a> </em>is also on the outs. Desilets began working on <em>1666</em> at THQ, which Ubisoft <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2013/01/23/thq-bid-winners-prices-and-runners-up/">acquired as part of the THQ asset auction</a> earlier this year.<br />
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"After <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2013/03/14/patrice-desilets-officially-rejoins-ubisoft-following-thq-sale/">more than two months</a> of discussions with [Patrice], we couldn't align our vision both on the project development and the team management," said Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot during the company's <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2013/05/15/ubisoft-ends-fiscal-2013-with-64-8-million-in-profit/">year-end financial</a> call today. "So, consequently, our collaboration has ended, and we have suspended <em>1666</em> for an undisclosed period of time."<br />
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Desilets took a job at THQ and began work on <em>1666 </em>after his <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2011/06/15/patrice-desilets-non-compete-is-up-begins-competing-at-thq-mon/">Ubisoft non-compete expired</a> in 2011.

<div style="text-align: right;"><small>[Image: <span><a href="http://www.shutterstock.com/gallery-317854p1.html" id="portfolio_link">Alexey L </a></span>via Shutterstock</small>]</div><p style="padding:5px;background:#ffffcc;border:1px solid #ffff99;clear:both;"><a href="http://www.joystiq.com"><img src="http://www.joystiq.com/media/feedlogo.gif" alt="Joystiq" style="float:left;padding:0 5px 5px 0;" /></a><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2013/05/15/desilets-1666-suspended-by-ubisoft-following-firing/">Desilets' 1666 'suspended' by Ubisoft following firing</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://www.joystiq.com">Joystiq</a> on Wed, 15 May 2013 14:00:00 EST.  Please see our <a href="http://www.weblogsinc.com/feed-terms/">terms for use of feeds</a>.<br style="clear:both;"></p><h6 style="clear: both; padding: 8px 0 0 0; height: 2px; font-size: 1px; border: 0; margin: 0; padding: 0;"></h6><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2013/05/15/desilets-1666-suspended-by-ubisoft-following-firing/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.joystiq.com/forward/20570476/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2013/05/15/desilets-1666-suspended-by-ubisoft-following-firing/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a>]]></description><category>1666</category><category>patrice-desilets</category><category>ubisoft</category><category>yves-guillemot</category><dc:creator><![CDATA[Alexander Sliwinski]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Wed, 15 May 2013 14:00:00 EST</pubDate></item><item><title><![CDATA[Ubisoft fired another THQ Montreal veteran yesterday, Desilets says]]></title><link>http://www.joystiq.com/2013/05/08/ubisoft-fired-another-thq-montreal-veteran-yesterday-desilets-s/</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.joystiq.com/2013/05/08/ubisoft-fired-another-thq-montreal-veteran-yesterday-desilets-s/</guid><comments>http://www.joystiq.com/2013/05/08/ubisoft-fired-another-thq-montreal-veteran-yesterday-desilets-s/#comments</comments><description><![CDATA[<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2013/05/08/ubisoft-fired-another-thq-montreal-veteran-yesterday-desilets-s/"><img alt="Ubisoft fired another THQ Montreal veteran yesterday, Desilets says" data-src-height="298" data-src-width="530" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2013/05/ac2bov001.jpg" /></a></div>
Ubisoft <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2013/05/07/patrice-desilets-fired-by-ubisoft/">fired</a> original Assassin's Creed creative director Patrice Desilets yesterday, after his rocky transition from Ubisoft, to THQ Montreal and back to Ubisoft. One of his colleagues, Jean-Fran&ccedil;ois Boivin, was also fired yesterday, Desilets <a href="https://twitter.com/PatriceDez/status/332176443628990465">tweeted</a>. Boivin traveled from Ubisoft to THQ Montreal, before being pulled back in at Ubisoft, just as Desilets did.<br />
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"Thinking of my good friend and producer @JFBoivin who also got fired yesterday," Desilets wrote. "I'm sharing your support with him."<br />
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Boivin's <a href="http://www.linkedin.com/profile/view?id=6118978">LinkedIn</a> profile says he joined Ubisoft in 2005 and held a variety of production roles - including production manager for <em>Assassin's Creed </em>and<em> Assassin's Creed 2</em> with Desilets - until 2011, when he joined THQ Montreal to work on a new IP. Desilets left Ubisoft in 2010 and began work at THQ Montreal after a one-year non-compete agreement. When the agreement was up in 2011, THQ brought over <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2011/01/12/patrice-desilets-bringing-key-members-of-ubisoft-to-thq-montre/">three people from Ubisoft</a>, whom Desilets said he needed.<br />
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During the <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2013/01/28/ubisoft-mum-on-thq-montreal-plans-looking-forward-to-working/">THQ bankruptcy auction</a> in January, Ubisoft bought THQ Montreal, effectively rehiring Boivin and Desilets. There's no word if Boivin's firing was as <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2013/05/07/patrice-desilets-fired-by-ubisoft/">dramatic as Desilets'</a>.<p style="padding:5px;background:#ffffcc;border:1px solid #ffff99;clear:both;"><a href="http://www.joystiq.com"><img src="http://www.joystiq.com/media/feedlogo.gif" alt="Joystiq" style="float:left;padding:0 5px 5px 0;" /></a><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2013/05/08/ubisoft-fired-another-thq-montreal-veteran-yesterday-desilets-s/">Ubisoft fired another THQ Montreal veteran yesterday, Desilets says</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://www.joystiq.com">Joystiq</a> on Wed, 08 May 2013 18:00:00 EST.  Please see our <a href="http://www.weblogsinc.com/feed-terms/">terms for use of feeds</a>.<br style="clear:both;"></p><h6 style="clear: both; padding: 8px 0 0 0; height: 2px; font-size: 1px; border: 0; margin: 0; padding: 0;"></h6><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2013/05/08/ubisoft-fired-another-thq-montreal-veteran-yesterday-desilets-s/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.joystiq.com/forward/20562710/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2013/05/08/ubisoft-fired-another-thq-montreal-veteran-yesterday-desilets-s/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a>]]></description><category>fired</category><category>firing</category><category>layoffs</category><category>patrice-desilets</category><category>THQ</category><category>thq-bankruptcy</category><category>thq-montreal</category><category>Ubisoft</category><dc:creator><![CDATA[Jessica Conditt]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Wed, 08 May 2013 18:00:00 EST</pubDate></item><item><title><![CDATA[Patrice Desilets fired by Ubisoft]]></title><link>http://www.joystiq.com/2013/05/07/patrice-desilets-fired-by-ubisoft/</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.joystiq.com/2013/05/07/patrice-desilets-fired-by-ubisoft/</guid><comments>http://www.joystiq.com/2013/05/07/patrice-desilets-fired-by-ubisoft/#comments</comments><description><![CDATA[<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2013/05/07/patrice-desilets-fired-by-ubisoft/" target="_self"><img alt="" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2009/09/tgsassassinscreed2_1_530x298.jpg" /></a></div>
Former <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/game/assassins-creed"><em>Assassin's Creed</em></a> and <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/game/assassins-creed-2"><em>Assassin's Creed 2</em></a> Creative Director Patrice Desilets was let go by Ubisoft today. "Contrary to any statements made earlier today, this morning I was terminated by Ubisoft," Desilets said in a statement to <a href="http://www.polygon.com/2013/5/7/4308980/patrice-desilets-departs-ubisoft-a-second-time">Polygon</a>.<br />
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This marks the second time Desilets left the company, as he announced his departure in <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2010/06/13/assassins-creed-creative-director-patrice-desilets-leaves-ubiso/">June 2010</a> for a "creative break from the industry" before joining THQ Montreal in <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2011/06/15/patrice-desilets-non-compete-is-up-begins-competing-at-thq-mon/">May 2011</a>. Desliets officially re-joined Ubisoft in <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2013/03/14/patrice-desilets-officially-rejoins-ubisoft-following-thq-sale/">March</a> of this year, following the acquisition of THQ Montreal by Ubisoft in <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2013/01/28/ubisoft-mum-on-thq-montreal-plans-looking-forward-to-working/">January</a>.<br />
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"I was notified of this termination in person, handed a termination notice and was unceremoniously escorted out of the building by two guards without being able to say goodbye to my team or collect my personal belongings," he added. "This was not my decision." The earlier statement Desilets referred to, which was sent by Ubisoft to the press, reads:<br />
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"The acquisition of THQ Montreal in January allowed Ubisoft to welcome 170 experienced developers, including Patrice Desilets, to our existing and renowned workforce. 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 Montreal's past and future successes."<br />
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Desilets said that "Ubisoft's actions are baseless and without merit. I intend to fight Ubisoft vigorously for my rights, for my team and for my game." According to <a href="http://www.gameinformer.com/b/news/archive/2013/05/07/patrice-desilets-departs-ubisoft-again.aspx">Game Informer</a>, the publisher refused to comment on the state of both <em>1666</em> and <em>Underdog</em>, the two THQ Montreal games acquired by Ubisoft during the asset purchase in <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2013/01/23/new-thq-montreal-game-in-auction-filing-underdog/">January</a>.<p style="padding:5px;background:#ffffcc;border:1px solid #ffff99;clear:both;"><a href="http://www.joystiq.com"><img src="http://www.joystiq.com/media/feedlogo.gif" alt="Joystiq" style="float:left;padding:0 5px 5px 0;" /></a><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2013/05/07/patrice-desilets-fired-by-ubisoft/">Patrice Desilets fired by Ubisoft</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://www.joystiq.com">Joystiq</a> on Tue, 07 May 2013 14:45:00 EST.  Please see our <a href="http://www.weblogsinc.com/feed-terms/">terms for use of feeds</a>.<br style="clear:both;"></p><h6 style="clear: both; padding: 8px 0 0 0; height: 2px; font-size: 1px; border: 0; margin: 0; padding: 0;"></h6><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2013/05/07/patrice-desilets-fired-by-ubisoft/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.joystiq.com/forward/20560836/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2013/05/07/patrice-desilets-fired-by-ubisoft/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a>]]></description><category>patrice-desilets</category><category>thq-montreal</category><category>ubisoft</category><dc:creator><![CDATA[Mike Suszek]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Tue, 07 May 2013 14:45:00 EST</pubDate></item><item><title><![CDATA[Patrice Desilets officially rejoins Ubisoft following THQ sale]]></title><link>http://www.joystiq.com/2013/03/14/patrice-desilets-officially-rejoins-ubisoft-following-thq-sale/</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.joystiq.com/2013/03/14/patrice-desilets-officially-rejoins-ubisoft-following-thq-sale/</guid><comments>http://www.joystiq.com/2013/03/14/patrice-desilets-officially-rejoins-ubisoft-following-thq-sale/#comments</comments><description><![CDATA[<div style="text-align: center;"> <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2013/03/14/patrice-desilets-officially-rejoins-ubisoft-following-thq-sale/"><img alt="Patrice Desilets is officially back at Ubisoft" data-src-height="298" data-src-width="530" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2013/03/tgsassassinscreed23.jpg" /></a></div>Patrice Desilets is officially employed at Ubisoft - again - the studio tells <a href="http://www.polygon.com/2013/3/14/4104556/acclaimed-game-designer-desilets-returns-to-ubisoft-after-thq-collapse">Polygon</a>. The designer <span><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2010/06/13/assassins-creed-creative-director-patrice-desilets-leaves-ubiso/">left Ubisoft</a> in 2010 after serving as creative director on </span><em>Assassin's Creed </em><span>and </span><em>Assassin's Creed 2</em><span>, and once his non-compete agreement expired he began work at <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2011/06/15/patrice-desilets-non-compete-is-up-begins-competing-at-thq-mon/">THQ Montreal</a>.<br /><br />When THQ <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/tag/thq-bankruptcy/">went under</a> and sold off its studios this year, Ubisoft walked away with Montreal and, supposedly, Desilets, though it was </span><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2013/01/28/ubisoft-mum-on-thq-montreal-plans-looking-forward-to-working/">unclear</a><span> if he would rejoin his former employer.</span><br /><br />Ubisoft also absorbed all of THQ Montreal's current and unannounced projects, including Desilets' <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2012/03/14/thq-files-1666-trademark/"><em>1666</em></a> and something called <em><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2013/01/23/new-thq-montreal-game-in-auction-filing-underdog/">Underdog</a></em>.<p style="padding:5px;background:#ffffcc;border:1px solid #ffff99;clear:both;"><a href="http://www.joystiq.com"><img src="http://www.joystiq.com/media/feedlogo.gif" alt="Joystiq" style="float:left;padding:0 5px 5px 0;" /></a><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2013/03/14/patrice-desilets-officially-rejoins-ubisoft-following-thq-sale/">Patrice Desilets officially rejoins Ubisoft following THQ sale</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://www.joystiq.com">Joystiq</a> on Thu, 14 Mar 2013 19:00:00 EST.  Please see our <a href="http://www.weblogsinc.com/feed-terms/">terms for use of feeds</a>.<br style="clear:both;"></p><h6 style="clear: both; padding: 8px 0 0 0; height: 2px; font-size: 1px; border: 0; margin: 0; padding: 0;"></h6><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2013/03/14/patrice-desilets-officially-rejoins-ubisoft-following-thq-sale/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.joystiq.com/forward/20504584/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2013/03/14/patrice-desilets-officially-rejoins-ubisoft-following-thq-sale/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a>]]></description><category>Assassins-Creed</category><category>assassins-creed-2</category><category>microsoft</category><category>patrice-desilets</category><category>pc</category><category>playstation</category><category>ps3</category><category>thq-montreal</category><category>Ubisoft</category><category>xbox</category><dc:creator><![CDATA[Jessica Conditt]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Thu, 14 Mar 2013 19:00:00 EST</pubDate></item><item><title><![CDATA[Ubisoft mum on THQ Montreal plans, 'looking forward' to working with Patrice Desilets]]></title><link>http://www.joystiq.com/2013/01/28/ubisoft-mum-on-thq-montreal-plans-looking-forward-to-working/</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.joystiq.com/2013/01/28/ubisoft-mum-on-thq-montreal-plans-looking-forward-to-working/</guid><comments>http://www.joystiq.com/2013/01/28/ubisoft-mum-on-thq-montreal-plans-looking-forward-to-working/#comments</comments><description><![CDATA[<div style="text-align: center;"> <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2013/01/28/ubisoft-mum-on-thq-montreal-plans-looking-forward-to-working/"><img alt="" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2009/09/tgsassassinscreed2_1_530x298.jpg" /></a></div>The dust is beginning to settle after the pieces of <a href="http://joystiq.com/tag/thq">THQ</a> were <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2013/01/23/thq-bid-winners-prices-and-runners-up/">sold off one-by-one</a> last week. Among those pieces is <a href="http://joystiq.com/tag/thq-montreal">THQ Montreal</a>, which was acquired by Ubisoft. CEO of Ubisoft Montreal and head of Ubisoft Canada, Yannis Mallat, spoke to the <a href="http://business.financialpost.com/2013/01/24/qa-ubisoft-montreal-ceo-on-what-the-future-holds-for-thq-montreal/">Financial Post</a> about the publisher's plans for the studio. First of all, regarding the two IPs acquired in the sale, <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2012/03/14/thq-files-1666-trademark/"><em>1666</em></a> and <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2013/01/23/new-thq-montreal-game-in-auction-filing-underdog/"><em>Underdog</em></a>, Mallat didn't offer concrete details, saying that both are still unannounced projects and "we don't talk about that." For now, Ubisoft is conducting a "thorough analysis" of the studio in order to decide what to do with it going forward.<br /><br />Mallat said that Ubisoft plans to keep the existing studio space, as well as the "possibility" for existing employees to stay with the studio. When asked explicitly whether any staff would be let go, Mallat said only "we had and we still have very ambitious plans in terms of growth even before this acquisition," adding that Ubisoft is "thrilled" to be working with the studio on future projects.<br /><br />Of course, one of the most interesting notes of the sale is that THQ Montreal's creative director is none other than <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/tag/patrice-desilets">Patrice Desilets</a>, who previously served as creative director on both <em>Assassin's Creed</em> and its <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2010/01/01/joystiqs-top-10-of-2009-assassins-creed-2/">fantastically received</a> follow-up, <em>Assassin's Creed 2</em> (pictured). Desilets <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2010/06/13/assassins-creed-creative-director-patrice-desilets-leaves-ubiso/">left Ubisoft in 2010</a>, later <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2011/06/15/patrice-desilets-non-compete-is-up-begins-competing-at-thq-mon/">signing on with THQ</a> in 2011. "I've known Patrice for 13 years and I know him very well, he's a great talent and I respect him as a creator," said Mallat, though he did not directly confirm whether Desilets will remain with the studio. Mallat did note, however, that the team is "very happy to look forward to working with him again" and that there are "definitely" plans to discuss Desilets' return to Ubisoft.<p style="padding:5px;background:#ffffcc;border:1px solid #ffff99;clear:both;"><a href="http://www.joystiq.com"><img src="http://www.joystiq.com/media/feedlogo.gif" alt="Joystiq" style="float:left;padding:0 5px 5px 0;" /></a><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2013/01/28/ubisoft-mum-on-thq-montreal-plans-looking-forward-to-working/">Ubisoft mum on THQ Montreal plans, 'looking forward' to working with Patrice Desilets</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://www.joystiq.com">Joystiq</a> on Mon, 28 Jan 2013 14:30:00 EST.  Please see our <a href="http://www.weblogsinc.com/feed-terms/">terms for use of feeds</a>.<br style="clear:both;"></p><h6 style="clear: both; padding: 8px 0 0 0; height: 2px; font-size: 1px; border: 0; margin: 0; padding: 0;"></h6><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2013/01/28/ubisoft-mum-on-thq-montreal-plans-looking-forward-to-working/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.joystiq.com/forward/20440537/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2013/01/28/ubisoft-mum-on-thq-montreal-plans-looking-forward-to-working/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a>]]></description><category>1666</category><category>patrice-desilets</category><category>thq</category><category>thq-montreal</category><category>ubisoft</category><category>underdog</category><category>yannis-mallat</category><dc:creator><![CDATA[Richard Mitchell]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Mon, 28 Jan 2013 14:30:00 EST</pubDate></item><item><title><![CDATA[THQ's new prez stands behind Montreal studio, though 'there may be empty seats']]></title><link>http://www.joystiq.com/2012/06/10/thqs-new-prez-stands-behind-montreal-studio-though-there-may/</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.joystiq.com/2012/06/10/thqs-new-prez-stands-behind-montreal-studio-though-there-may/</guid><comments>http://www.joystiq.com/2012/06/10/thqs-new-prez-stands-behind-montreal-studio-though-there-may/#comments</comments><description><![CDATA[<div style="text-align: center; "> <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2012/06/10/thqs-new-prez-stands-behind-montreal-studio-though-there-may/"><img alt="THQ's new prez stands behind Montreal studio, though 'there may be empty seats'" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2012/06/thqmontrealmapleleafhomefront.jpg" /></a></div>When THQ announced its Montreal, Canada-based studio <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2009/12/03/thq-to-open-new-montreal-studio/">in 2009</a>, the plan seemed a bit on the ambitious side. 400 new employees across five years, <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2010/10/19/thq-montreal-will-be-a-two-team-studio-working-on-great-origin/">two big projects</a> - one of which is overseen by ex-Assassin's Creed creative lead <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2010/10/19/patrice-desilets-to-head-up-new-ip-at-thq-montreal/">Patrice Desilets</a>, the <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2011/03/04/homefront-franchise-to-be-co-developed-by-thq-montreal-manhatt/">other being a followup</a> to 2011's <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/game/homefront"><em>Homefront</em></a> - and a brand new campus meant a lot of money needed to be spent, even with a potentially generous tax credit from the Canadian government.<br /><br />And that was long before THQ's <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2012/05/15/thq-sees-net-loss-of-239-9-million-still-in-business/">recent financial troubles</a>. It's in that context that we asked newly hired president <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2012/05/29/thqs-bilson-exits-as-jason-rubin-takes-prez-spot/">Jason Rubin</a> to address the future of the Montreal location during an E3 interview. "I think the decision needs to be made which projects we can do, what we can afford to do, and stick to it. Even though THQ Montreal's space may be bigger than what we need right now, there's nothing about that space that prevents us from succeeding," Rubin said.<br /><br />We asked Rubin whether THQ could fulfill the planned 400-person contract across five years in its current financial state. "There may be empty seats," he admitted, but he's not worried that those contractual obligations will affect THQ - nor the Montreal location's - long-term survival. "I'm not saying that we wouldn't fulfill our obligations," Rubin told us. "But assuming for a moment that we don't reach whatever our contractual obligations are, there are very specific clauses in the contract that say what would happen. And I've read the contract, I've gone over it, it was one of the things I did before starting. And there's nothing about the contract or our failing under that contract that would cause the company to fail."<br /><br />Rubin stressed that THQ under his leadership remains dedicated to the Montreal studio and its agreement with the government. "I love Montreal. I definitely wanna do right by Montreal, and I definitely wanna fill that studio. But having said that, if we fail to do that for any reason, that's not going to be a cause for failure for the company." He also addressed potential concern that other THQ studios employees could be moved to the Montreal location. "Were I able to pick up and move people without worry about their families, the projects they're working on, and everything else, I would fill that space in a second," Rubin said.<br /><br />Beyond the <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2011/09/20/homefront-2-developed-by-crytek/">co-developed <em>Homefront</em> sequel</a> and the unknown Desilets project, it is unclear what else THQ Montreal is working on, if anything.<p style="padding:5px;background:#ffffcc;border:1px solid #ffff99;clear:both;"><a href="http://www.joystiq.com"><img src="http://www.joystiq.com/media/feedlogo.gif" alt="Joystiq" style="float:left;padding:0 5px 5px 0;" /></a><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2012/06/10/thqs-new-prez-stands-behind-montreal-studio-though-there-may/">THQ's new prez stands behind Montreal studio, though 'there may be empty seats'</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://www.joystiq.com">Joystiq</a> on Sun, 10 Jun 2012 17:15:00 EST.  Please see our <a href="http://www.weblogsinc.com/feed-terms/">terms for use of feeds</a>.<br style="clear:both;"></p><h6 style="clear: both; padding: 8px 0 0 0; height: 2px; font-size: 1px; border: 0; margin: 0; padding: 0;"></h6><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2012/06/10/thqs-new-prez-stands-behind-montreal-studio-though-there-may/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.joystiq.com/forward/20255414/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2012/06/10/thqs-new-prez-stands-behind-montreal-studio-though-there-may/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a>]]></description><category>canada</category><category>e3-2012</category><category>homefront-2</category><category>jason-rubin</category><category>legal</category><category>patrice-desilets</category><category>subsidy</category><category>tax-break</category><category>tax-incentive</category><category>tax-subsidy</category><category>thq</category><category>thq-montreal</category><dc:creator><![CDATA[Ben Gilbert]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Sun, 10 Jun 2012 17:15:00 EST</pubDate></item><item><title><![CDATA[Patrice Desilets' non-compete is up, begins competing at THQ Montreal]]></title><link>http://www.joystiq.com/2011/06/15/patrice-desilets-non-compete-is-up-begins-competing-at-thq-mon/</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.joystiq.com/2011/06/15/patrice-desilets-non-compete-is-up-begins-competing-at-thq-mon/</guid><comments>http://www.joystiq.com/2011/06/15/patrice-desilets-non-compete-is-up-begins-competing-at-thq-mon/#comments</comments><description><![CDATA[<a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2011/06/15/patrice-desilets-non-compete-is-up-starts-at-thq-montreal-com/"><img alt="" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2010/10/patrice-desilets-2225px.jpg" style="padding-right: 10px; width: 225px; height: 267px; float: left; " /></a> While his non-compete clause was <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2011/01/12/patrice-desilets-bringing-key-members-of-ubisoft-to-thq-montre/">presumably up on May 29</a>, THQ just announced that Patrice D&eacute;silets has finally, officially "joined the THQ studio system as a creative director" working at the <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2010/10/20/watch-thq-montreal-studio-announcement-and-press-conference/">recently opened Montreal location</a>. The press release says that D&eacute;silets will now begin building a team, no doubt with some transplants from Ubisoft, and begin working on "a yet to be created title." Because he was totally not working for the last year ... because that would be competitive ...<br />
<br />
"The creative freedom that THQ gives its artists and developers--and their willingness to make games that truly reflect an artistic vision--really drew me to THQ," the <em>Assassin's Creed</em> creator told a press release. "I plan to build an incredibly talented team at THQ, and am very anxious to get started on creating a new project."<br />
<br />
We know that sounds like it's a long ways off; however, THQ Montreal will be <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2010/10/19/thq-montreal-will-be-a-two-team-studio-working-on-great-origin/">a two-team studio</a>, so there's a chance that the not-D&eacute;silets project is further along ... then again, that's <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2011/06/13/thq-shutters-homefront-dev-kaos-studios-and-thq-digital-warringt?icid=sphere_blogsmith_inpage_engadget">probably <em>Homefront</em></a>.<p style="padding:5px;background:#ffffcc;border:1px solid #ffff99;clear:both;"><a href="http://www.joystiq.com"><img src="http://www.joystiq.com/media/feedlogo.gif" alt="Joystiq" style="float:left;padding:0 5px 5px 0;" /></a><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2011/06/15/patrice-desilets-non-compete-is-up-begins-competing-at-thq-mon/">Patrice Desilets' non-compete is up, begins competing at THQ Montreal</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://www.joystiq.com">Joystiq</a> on Wed, 15 Jun 2011 11:45:00 EST.  Please see our <a href="http://www.weblogsinc.com/feed-terms/">terms for use of feeds</a>.<br style="clear:both;"></p><h6 style="clear: both; padding: 8px 0 0 0; height: 2px; font-size: 1px; border: 0; margin: 0; padding: 0;"></h6><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2011/06/15/patrice-desilets-non-compete-is-up-begins-competing-at-thq-mon/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.joystiq.com/forward/19967691/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2011/06/15/patrice-desilets-non-compete-is-up-begins-competing-at-thq-mon/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a>]]></description><category>Patrice-Desilets</category><category>THQ</category><category>THQ-Montreal</category><dc:creator><![CDATA[Christopher Grant]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Wed, 15 Jun 2011 11:45:00 EST</pubDate></item><item><title><![CDATA[Patrice Desilets bringing three 'key members' from Ubisoft to THQ Montreal]]></title><link>http://www.joystiq.com/2011/01/12/patrice-desilets-bringing-key-members-of-ubisoft-to-thq-montre/</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.joystiq.com/2011/01/12/patrice-desilets-bringing-key-members-of-ubisoft-to-thq-montre/</guid><comments>http://www.joystiq.com/2011/01/12/patrice-desilets-bringing-key-members-of-ubisoft-to-thq-montre/#comments</comments><description><![CDATA[<a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2011/01/12/patrice-desilets-bringing-key-members-of-ubisoft-to-thq-montre/"><img width="225" height="267" vspace="0" hspace="0" border="0" align="left" style="padding-right: 10px;" alt="" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2010/10/patrice-desilets-2225px.jpg" /></a>"I trust him ... basically it's all about trust and support," THQ's "Core Games" head Danny Bilson told us in an interview this morning, speaking about soon-to-be <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/tag/thq-montreal">THQ Montreal</a> studio head <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/tag/patrice-desilets">Patrice D&eacute;silets</a>. Bilson was detailing the hiring of "key members" for D&eacute;silets' team, something he briefly mentioned during a stage presentation that kicked off the company's NYC "gamer's week" today. He wanted to reiterate that THQ Montreal is entirely in D&eacute;silets trusted hands.<br />
<br />
When we pressed Bilson for more info on the new hires, he couldn't name anyone specific, though he would confirm all three people are from Ubisoft. "I don't think I can talk about the other three people we've already contracted because I wouldn't ... I just know Patrice said, 'I need these three guys.' And I said 'Okay! Whatever you need!'," Bilson said. "We put all of them on retention and got them started on their non-competes [<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Non-compete_clause">non-compete clauses</a>]. I kind of know what their roles are, but they were the most important people to Patrice. All three of them are Ubi." <br />
<br />
Which isn't to say that D&eacute;silets is doing anything nefarious. Bilson assured us that the forthcoming hires will be, "not just Ubi, but people from the community in Montreal and all over the world." And none of this is happening just yet. D&eacute;silets doesn't start at THQ until May 29 ("when his non-compete ends"), so it'll be quite some time before we see the fruits of THQ's <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2010/10/19/thq-montreal-will-be-a-two-team-studio-working-on-great-origin/">largest studio yet</a>.<p style="padding:5px;background:#ffffcc;border:1px solid #ffff99;clear:both;"><a href="http://www.joystiq.com"><img src="http://www.joystiq.com/media/feedlogo.gif" alt="Joystiq" style="float:left;padding:0 5px 5px 0;" /></a><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2011/01/12/patrice-desilets-bringing-key-members-of-ubisoft-to-thq-montre/">Patrice Desilets bringing three 'key members' from Ubisoft to THQ Montreal</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://www.joystiq.com">Joystiq</a> on Wed, 12 Jan 2011 18:25:00 EST.  Please see our <a href="http://www.weblogsinc.com/feed-terms/">terms for use of feeds</a>.<br style="clear:both;"></p><h6 style="clear: both; padding: 8px 0 0 0; height: 2px; font-size: 1px; border: 0; margin: 0; padding: 0;"></h6><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2011/01/12/patrice-desilets-bringing-key-members-of-ubisoft-to-thq-montre/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.joystiq.com/forward/19798938/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2011/01/12/patrice-desilets-bringing-key-members-of-ubisoft-to-thq-montre/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a>]]></description><category>danny-bilson</category><category>patrice-desilets</category><category>thq</category><category>thq-core-games</category><category>thq-montreal</category><category>ubisoft</category><dc:creator><![CDATA[Ben Gilbert]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Wed, 12 Jan 2011 18:25:00 EST</pubDate></item><item><title><![CDATA[Watch: THQ Montreal studio announcement and press conference]]></title><link>http://www.joystiq.com/2010/10/20/watch-thq-montreal-studio-announcement-and-press-conference/</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.joystiq.com/2010/10/20/watch-thq-montreal-studio-announcement-and-press-conference/</guid><comments>http://www.joystiq.com/2010/10/20/watch-thq-montreal-studio-announcement-and-press-conference/#comments</comments><description><![CDATA[<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2010/10/20/watch-thq-montreal-studio-announcement-and-press-conference/#continued"><img vspace="4" hspace="4" border="1" alt="" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2010/10/thq530pxmontrealvid.jpg" /><br />
</a></div>
It's an exciting time for THQ. The company announced <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2010/10/19/thq-montreal-will-be-a-two-team-studio-working-on-great-origin/">a new studio</a> and Ubisoft vet, Patrice D&eacute;silets, has <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2010/10/19/patrice-desilets-to-head-up-new-ip-at-thq-montreal/">joined the squad</a>. To relive all the drama, excitement and soft-spoken executives who were in Montreal earlier this week, head past the break for the conference in full. Profitez-en!<br />
<div class="postgallery"><p><strong>Gallery: <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/photos/thq-montreal/">THQ Montreal</a></strong></p><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/photos/thq-montreal/#3491106"><img src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2010/10/img3736_thumbnail.jpg" alt="" title="" /></a><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/photos/thq-montreal/#3491107"><img src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2010/10/img3739_thumbnail.jpg" alt="" title="" /></a><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/photos/thq-montreal/#3491108"><img src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2010/10/img3878_thumbnail.jpg" alt="" title="" /></a><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/photos/thq-montreal/#3491109"><img src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2010/10/img3908_thumbnail.jpg" alt="" title="" /></a><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/photos/thq-montreal/#3491110"><img src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2010/10/img3912_thumbnail.jpg" alt="" title="" /></a></div><p><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2010/10/20/watch-thq-montreal-studio-announcement-and-press-conference/" rel="bookmark">Continue reading <em>Watch: THQ Montreal studio announcement and press conference</em></a></p><p style="padding:5px;background:#ffffcc;border:1px solid #ffff99;clear:both;"><a href="http://www.joystiq.com"><img src="http://www.joystiq.com/media/feedlogo.gif" alt="Joystiq" style="float:left;padding:0 5px 5px 0;" /></a><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2010/10/20/watch-thq-montreal-studio-announcement-and-press-conference/">Watch: THQ Montreal studio announcement and press conference</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://www.joystiq.com">Joystiq</a> on Wed, 20 Oct 2010 20:30:00 EST.  Please see our <a href="http://www.weblogsinc.com/feed-terms/">terms for use of feeds</a>.<br style="clear:both;"></p><h6 style="clear: both; padding: 8px 0 0 0; height: 2px; font-size: 1px; border: 0; margin: 0; padding: 0;"></h6><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2010/10/20/watch-thq-montreal-studio-announcement-and-press-conference/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.joystiq.com/forward/19682750/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2010/10/20/watch-thq-montreal-studio-announcement-and-press-conference/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a>]]></description><category>montreal</category><category>patrice-desilets</category><category>thq</category><category>thq-montreal</category><category>thq-studio-montreal</category><dc:creator><![CDATA[David Hinkle]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Wed, 20 Oct 2010 20:30:00 EST</pubDate></item><item><title><![CDATA[THQ Montreal will be a two team studio working on 'great, original IP']]></title><link>http://www.joystiq.com/2010/10/19/thq-montreal-will-be-a-two-team-studio-working-on-great-origin/</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.joystiq.com/2010/10/19/thq-montreal-will-be-a-two-team-studio-working-on-great-origin/</guid><comments>http://www.joystiq.com/2010/10/19/thq-montreal-will-be-a-two-team-studio-working-on-great-origin/#comments</comments><description><![CDATA[<img border="0" hspace="4" vspace="4" alt="THQ Montreal" width="226" height="93" align="left" style="padding-right: 10px;" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2010/10/thq-montreal.jpg" />During a press event in Montreal this morning, THQ Core Games veep - and certified Straight Shooter[TM] - Danny Bilson took the opportunity to not only <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2010/10/19/patrice-desilets-to-head-up-new-ip-at-thq-montreal/">welcome <em>Assassin's Creed</em> designer Patrice D&eacute;silets</a> to the newly created THQ Montreal studio, but to also tell the assembled press that THQ would be "building a second large-scale game in that studio. It's a two-game studio." To fuel that type of production, Bilson said that THQ Montreal will be the "largest studio in the THQ system," hiring as many as 400 developers over the next five years. If we didn't know better, we'd guess that the majority of Montreal is inhabited exclusively by game developers at this point. <br />
<br />
"We look forward to filling this place with some of the best game makers in the world," Bilson said. "Starting with Patrice and his team and followed by a second team that I haven't announced yet and we're not going to."<br />
<br />
When asked if the studio would be working on <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/tag/guillermo-del-toro/">the unnamed Guillermo Del Toro project</a>, Bilson teased, "Have we announced that? Uh, no." Instead, Bilson offered the following: "They'll be awesome core games" and "great, original IP." He did concede, "We do look to see what the transmedia opportunities are to make the games more important." While that's not quite the same thing as saying, "Yes, Guillermo Del Toro is making a movie and a game and there will be comic books and action figures," we'll all pretend. <br />
<br />
Ultimately, Bilson wanted everyone to understand that this morning's announcements - centered around the new studio and the hiring of Patrice D&eacute;silets - are intended to continue to weave the story of a new THQ. "We've all been in beautiful facilities at many companies that turned out a 68-rated Metacritic game," Bilson said. "It's not about the facility but the people we put in the facility." We might not know who's leading up this second team, but with recent hires like D&eacute;silets and partnerships with developers like <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/tag/tomonobu-itagaki/">Tomonobu Itagaki</a>, we're increasingly bullish on THQ. <br />
<br type="_moz" /><p style="padding:5px;background:#ffffcc;border:1px solid #ffff99;clear:both;"><a href="http://www.joystiq.com"><img src="http://www.joystiq.com/media/feedlogo.gif" alt="Joystiq" style="float:left;padding:0 5px 5px 0;" /></a><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2010/10/19/thq-montreal-will-be-a-two-team-studio-working-on-great-origin/">THQ Montreal will be a two team studio working on 'great, original IP'</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://www.joystiq.com">Joystiq</a> on Tue, 19 Oct 2010 12:30:00 EST.  Please see our <a href="http://www.weblogsinc.com/feed-terms/">terms for use of feeds</a>.<br style="clear:both;"></p><h6 style="clear: both; padding: 8px 0 0 0; height: 2px; font-size: 1px; border: 0; margin: 0; padding: 0;"></h6><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2010/10/19/thq-montreal-will-be-a-two-team-studio-working-on-great-origin/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.joystiq.com/forward/19679983/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2010/10/19/thq-montreal-will-be-a-two-team-studio-working-on-great-origin/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a>]]></description><category>Danny-Bilson</category><category>Patrice-Desilets</category><category>THQ</category><category>THQ-Montreal</category><dc:creator><![CDATA[Christopher Grant]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Tue, 19 Oct 2010 12:30:00 EST</pubDate></item><item><title><![CDATA[Patrice Desilets to head up new IP at THQ Montreal]]></title><link>http://www.joystiq.com/2010/10/19/patrice-desilets-to-head-up-new-ip-at-thq-montreal/</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.joystiq.com/2010/10/19/patrice-desilets-to-head-up-new-ip-at-thq-montreal/</guid><comments>http://www.joystiq.com/2010/10/19/patrice-desilets-to-head-up-new-ip-at-thq-montreal/#comments</comments><description><![CDATA[<a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2010/10/19/patrice-desilets-to-head-up-new-ip-at-thq-montreal/"><img width="225" vspace="0" hspace="0" height="267" border="0" align="left" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2010/10/patrice-desilets-2225px.jpg" style="padding-right: 5px;" alt="" /></a>Patrice D&eacute;silets, <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2010/06/13/assassins-creed-creative-director-patrice-desilets-leaves-ubiso/">former</a> creative director of Ubisoft's <em>Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time,</em> <em>Assassin's Creed</em> and <em>Assassin's Creed 2</em>, has found a home at the newly opened THQ Montreal. According to an official announcement made this morning, THQ "has the exclusive option to have D&eacute;silets work from the new Montreal studio beginning summer 2011." <br />
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D&eacute;silets will provide impetus to a new development team that will create original franchises for THQ. According to Danny Bilson, Executive Vice President of THQ's Core Games, "We expect calendar 2011 to be a watershed year for THQ, and adding developers like Patrice helps ensure our focus on new IP and great games charted by leading industry artists."<br />
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Other artists that are set to collaborate with THQ on its aggressive demand for new IP include Tomonobu Itagaki, who is currently working on <em><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/game/devils-third">Devil's Third</a> </em>with his own Valhalla Studios, and film director Guillermo del Toro, who has an <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2010/09/29/best-case-scenario-del-toros-lovecraftian-thq-game-in-2013/">unannounced horror project</a> lined up. <br />
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[Image source: <a href="http://www.gamersglobal.com/special/interview/patrice-desilets-on-assassins-creed-jade-raymond?page=0,0">Gamersglobal</a>]<p style="padding:5px;background:#ffffcc;border:1px solid #ffff99;clear:both;"><a href="http://www.joystiq.com"><img src="http://www.joystiq.com/media/feedlogo.gif" alt="Joystiq" style="float:left;padding:0 5px 5px 0;" /></a><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2010/10/19/patrice-desilets-to-head-up-new-ip-at-thq-montreal/">Patrice Desilets to head up new IP at THQ Montreal</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://www.joystiq.com">Joystiq</a> on Tue, 19 Oct 2010 09:22:00 EST.  Please see our <a href="http://www.weblogsinc.com/feed-terms/">terms for use of feeds</a>.<br style="clear:both;"></p><h6 style="clear: both; padding: 8px 0 0 0; height: 2px; font-size: 1px; border: 0; margin: 0; padding: 0;"></h6><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2010/10/19/patrice-desilets-to-head-up-new-ip-at-thq-montreal/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.joystiq.com/forward/19679830/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2010/10/19/patrice-desilets-to-head-up-new-ip-at-thq-montreal/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a>]]></description><category>danny-bilson</category><category>microsoft</category><category>nintendo</category><category>patrice-desilets</category><category>pc</category><category>playstation</category><category>ps3</category><category>thq</category><category>thq-montreal</category><category>wii</category><category>xbox</category><dc:creator><![CDATA[Ludwig Kietzmann]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Tue, 19 Oct 2010 09:22:00 EST</pubDate></item><item><title><![CDATA[Assassin's Creed producer not surprised by Desilets' departure]]></title><link>http://www.joystiq.com/2010/07/09/assassins-creed-producer-not-surprised-by-desilets-departure/</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.joystiq.com/2010/07/09/assassins-creed-producer-not-surprised-by-desilets-departure/</guid><comments>http://www.joystiq.com/2010/07/09/assassins-creed-producer-not-surprised-by-desilets-departure/#comments</comments><description><![CDATA[<p>Filed under: <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/category/weird-but-true/" rel="tag">Weird But True</a>, <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/category/opinions/" rel="tag">Opinions</a>, <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/category/new-in-pop-culture/" rel="tag">New In Pop Culture</a></p><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2010/07/09/assassins-creed-producer-not-surprised-by-desilets-departure/"><img hspace="0" border="0" vspace="4" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2010/07/acbsps05guncounterkill070910.jpg" alt="" /></a></div>
On the eve of E3, Patrice D&eacute;silets, creative director of the <em>Assassin's Creed</em> franchise, <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2010/06/13/assassins-creed-creative-director-patrice-desilets-leaves-ubiso/">unexpectedly left</a> his position, just as Ubisoft prepared to woo the media with the first in-depth look at this November's <em>Brotherhood</em> sequel. Looking to quickly bury the distraction, Ubisoft called D&eacute;silets' departure a "creative break" and said that his work on <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/game/assassins-creed-brotherhood"><em>Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood</em></a> was "essentially done."<br />
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While we still have yet to hear from D&eacute;silets himself, his close colleague, associate producer Jean-Francois Boivin, was not surprised by the creative director's leave. "I totally got where he was coming from because he's been talking about taking a break for a long time," Boivin told UK-based <a href="http://www.gamerzines.com/ps3/news/patrice-desilets-departure.html">GamerZines</a>. <br />
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"In regards to <em>Brotherhood</em>, he did everything that he needed to do," Boivin assured, echoing Ubisoft's initial statement. "Patrice is a very public figure for the franchise, and he's very much the visionary for the <em>Assassin's Creed</em> license, but he's not the only visionary. It wasn't Patrice who did game design necessarily, and we have over two hundred very talented and creative people that work on the license."<br />
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"We know what we're doing," Boivin insisted, addressing concerns that the series would be lost without D&eacute;silets, who had shepherded it for six years. "I'm not at all afraid of the future quality of <em>Assassin's Creed</em> games." Earlier this week, the producer was also not afraid to admit that the franchise <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2010/07/08/one-vote-at-ubisoft-for-giving-the-assassins-creed-franchise-a/">could use a break</a> after <em>Brotherhood's </em>release this fall.<br />
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As for D&eacute;silets plans? "Right now he's watching the World Cup," Boivin said. (The World Cup ends following Sunday's final.) "Who knows what the future will hold for him."<p style="padding:5px;background:#ffffcc;border:1px solid #ffff99;clear:both;"><a href="http://www.joystiq.com"><img src="http://www.joystiq.com/media/feedlogo.gif" alt="Joystiq" style="float:left;padding:0 5px 5px 0;" /></a><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2010/07/09/assassins-creed-producer-not-surprised-by-desilets-departure/">Assassin's Creed producer not surprised by Desilets' departure</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://www.joystiq.com">Joystiq</a> on Fri, 09 Jul 2010 20:15:00 EST.  Please see our <a href="http://www.weblogsinc.com/feed-terms/">terms for use of feeds</a>.<br style="clear:both;"></p><h6 style="clear: both; padding: 8px 0 0 0; height: 2px; font-size: 1px; border: 0; margin: 0; padding: 0;"></h6><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2010/07/09/assassins-creed-producer-not-surprised-by-desilets-departure/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.joystiq.com/forward/19548823/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2010/07/09/assassins-creed-producer-not-surprised-by-desilets-departure/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a>]]></description><category>Assassins-Creed</category><category>Assassins-Creed-Brotherhood</category><category>Assassins-Creed-Multiplayer</category><category>Jean-Francois-Boivin</category><category>microsoft</category><category>Patrice-Desilets</category><category>pc</category><category>playstation</category><category>ps3</category><category>Ubisoft</category><category>Ubisoft-Montreal</category><category>xbox</category><dc:creator><![CDATA[James Ransom-Wiley]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Fri, 09 Jul 2010 20:15:00 EST</pubDate></item><item><title><![CDATA[Assassin's Creed creative director Patrice Desilets leaves Ubisoft]]></title><link>http://www.joystiq.com/2010/06/13/assassins-creed-creative-director-patrice-desilets-leaves-ubiso/</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.joystiq.com/2010/06/13/assassins-creed-creative-director-patrice-desilets-leaves-ubiso/</guid><comments>http://www.joystiq.com/2010/06/13/assassins-creed-creative-director-patrice-desilets-leaves-ubiso/#comments</comments><description><![CDATA[<p>Filed under: <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/category/weird-but-true/" rel="tag">Weird But True</a>, <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/category/opinions/" rel="tag">Opinions</a>, <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/category/new-in-pop-culture/" rel="tag">New In Pop Culture</a></p><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://gameinformer.com/b/news/archive/2010/06/11/patrice-d-233-silets-walks-away-from-ubisoft-and-assassin-s-creed.aspx"><img hspace="0" border="0" vspace="0" alt="" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2010/06/gampatricedeparts.jpg" /></a></div>
Patrice D&eacute;silets, who is credited as creative director on <em>Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time</em>, both <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/game/assassins-creed"><em>Assassin's Creed</em></a> titles and a handful of other Ubisoft Montreal projects, has left the company for a "creative break from the industry," Ubisoft confirmed yesterday. The publisher <a href="http://gameinformer.com/b/news/archive/2010/06/11/patrice-d-233-silets-walks-away-from-ubisoft-and-assassin-s-creed.aspx">explained to Game Informer</a> that D&eacute;silets' role as creative lead on <em>Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood</em> is "essentially done," and that he's no longer involved with the completion of the game.<br />
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The factors which contributed to D&eacute;silets' departure are still largely unknown. We'll try to find answers when we get some facetime with Ubisoft later this week at E3.<p style="padding:5px;background:#ffffcc;border:1px solid #ffff99;clear:both;"><a href="http://www.joystiq.com"><img src="http://www.joystiq.com/media/feedlogo.gif" alt="Joystiq" style="float:left;padding:0 5px 5px 0;" /></a><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2010/06/13/assassins-creed-creative-director-patrice-desilets-leaves-ubiso/">Assassin's Creed creative director Patrice Desilets leaves Ubisoft</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://www.joystiq.com">Joystiq</a> on Sun, 13 Jun 2010 15:30:00 EST.  Please see our <a href="http://www.weblogsinc.com/feed-terms/">terms for use of feeds</a>.<br style="clear:both;"></p><h6 style="clear: both; padding: 8px 0 0 0; height: 2px; font-size: 1px; border: 0; margin: 0; padding: 0;"></h6><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2010/06/13/assassins-creed-creative-director-patrice-desilets-leaves-ubiso/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.joystiq.com/forward/19514324/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2010/06/13/assassins-creed-creative-director-patrice-desilets-leaves-ubiso/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a>]]></description><category>Assassins-Creed</category><category>assassins-creed-brotherhood</category><category>patrice-desilets</category><category>ubisoft</category><category>ubisoft-montreal</category><dc:creator><![CDATA[Griffin McElroy]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Sun, 13 Jun 2010 15:30:00 EST</pubDate></item><item><title><![CDATA[Assassin's Creed II DLC was cut from main game due to time constraints]]></title><link>http://www.joystiq.com/2009/12/22/assassins-creed-ii-dlc-was-cut-from-main-game-due-to-time-const/</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.joystiq.com/2009/12/22/assassins-creed-ii-dlc-was-cut-from-main-game-due-to-time-const/</guid><comments>http://www.joystiq.com/2009/12/22/assassins-creed-ii-dlc-was-cut-from-main-game-due-to-time-const/#comments</comments><description><![CDATA[<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://kotaku.com/5431098/a-2009-view-from-the-top-one-mans-year-making-assassins-creed-ii"><img hspace="0" border="1" vspace="0" alt="" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2009/12/ac2glitch_120409.jpg" /></a></div>
Yes, <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2009/12/16/assassins-creed-2-dlc-detailed-fills-in-missing-chapters-adds/">forthcoming DLC</a> packs, "The Battle of Forli" and "Bonfire of the Vanities," were originally intended to be included in the main <em><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/tag/assassins-creed-2">Assassin's Creed II</a> </em>story. But, as the game's creative director Patrice D&eacute;silets told <a href="http://kotaku.com/5431098/a-2009-view-from-the-top-one-mans-year-making-assassins-creed-ii">Kotaku</a>, "I felt that, 'Okay, there were too many things to do and to finish.' So we said, 'Ok, let's take a portion of the game that was planned and we'll give it in DLC.'" <br />
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The candid D&eacute;silets went on to point out, "I think we gave them so much content that they cannot say that we owe them, that we didn't give them a lot for their 60 bucks." So, don't think of the missing chapters as something torn from your disc of <em>Assassin's Creed II</em> that you paid good money for. Think of it as dead content that's getting a rebirth thanks to the wonders of DLC.<p style="padding:5px;background:#ffffcc;border:1px solid #ffff99;clear:both;"><a href="http://www.joystiq.com"><img src="http://www.joystiq.com/media/feedlogo.gif" alt="Joystiq" style="float:left;padding:0 5px 5px 0;" /></a><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2009/12/22/assassins-creed-ii-dlc-was-cut-from-main-game-due-to-time-const/">Assassin's Creed II DLC was cut from main game due to time constraints</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://www.joystiq.com">Joystiq</a> on Tue, 22 Dec 2009 12:30:00 EST.  Please see our <a href="http://www.weblogsinc.com/feed-terms/">terms for use of feeds</a>.<br style="clear:both;"></p><h6 style="clear: both; padding: 8px 0 0 0; height: 2px; font-size: 1px; border: 0; margin: 0; padding: 0;"></h6><a href=http://kotaku.com/5431098/a-2009-view-from-the-top-one-mans-year-making-assassins-creed-ii>Read</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2009/12/22/assassins-creed-ii-dlc-was-cut-from-main-game-due-to-time-const/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.joystiq.com/forward/19290903/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2009/12/22/assassins-creed-ii-dlc-was-cut-from-main-game-due-to-time-const/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a>]]></description><category>assassins-creed-2</category><category>battle-of-forli</category><category>bonfire-of-the-vanities</category><category>bonfire-of-vanities</category><category>dlc</category><category>Microsoft</category><category>patrice-desilets</category><category>Ubisoft</category><category>ubisoft-montreal</category><category>Xbox-360</category><dc:creator><![CDATA[Justin McElroy]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Tue, 22 Dec 2009 12:30:00 EST</pubDate></item><item><title><![CDATA[Kojima and Desilets trade praise over Assassin's Creed 2 and Peace Walker]]></title><link>http://www.joystiq.com/2009/10/22/kojima-and-desilets-trade-praise-over-assassins-creed-2-and-pea/</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.joystiq.com/2009/10/22/kojima-and-desilets-trade-praise-over-assassins-creed-2-and-pea/</guid><comments>http://www.joystiq.com/2009/10/22/kojima-and-desilets-trade-praise-over-assassins-creed-2-and-pea/#comments</comments><description><![CDATA[<div align="center"><a href="http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3176582"><img vspace="0" hspace="0" border="0" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2009/10/hideolovespatrice580pxheaderimg.jpg" alt="" /></a><br /></div>
<a href="http://www.joystiq.com/tag/assassins-creed-2"><em>Assassin's Creed 2</em></a> head Patrice D&eacute;silets and <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/tag/peace-walker"><em>MGS: Peace Walker</em></a> head Hideo Kojima had a war of compliments in the most recent issue of Famitsu. It seems that the two gentlemen have a bit of a game industry bromance going on, lauding the other's current project in a back and forth translated by <a href="http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3176582">1UP</a>. "I think there are three games that stand out above the rest of the pack in the remainder of this year. One is <em>Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2</em>, one is <em>Uncharted 2</em>, and the third is <em>Assassin's Creed II</em>," said Kojima.<br /><br />"If I had to give my impression of <em>Peace Walker</em>, I'd have to say that I want to play more," D&eacute;silets responded. "It was great fun; I can't wait for the retail version." Kojima expanded a bit on his appreciation for D&eacute;silets' "focus on game design" over style, and said that he's currently considering the possibility of them "maybe, kinda" going steady. Okay, we made up that last part.<p style="padding:5px;background:#ffffcc;border:1px solid #ffff99;clear:both;"><a href="http://www.joystiq.com"><img src="http://www.joystiq.com/media/feedlogo.gif" alt="Joystiq" style="float:left;padding:0 5px 5px 0;" /></a><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2009/10/22/kojima-and-desilets-trade-praise-over-assassins-creed-2-and-pea/">Kojima and Desilets trade praise over Assassin's Creed 2 and Peace Walker</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://www.joystiq.com">Joystiq</a> on Thu, 22 Oct 2009 19:55:00 EST.  Please see our <a href="http://www.weblogsinc.com/feed-terms/">terms for use of feeds</a>.<br style="clear:both;"></p><h6 style="clear: both; padding: 8px 0 0 0; height: 2px; font-size: 1px; border: 0; margin: 0; padding: 0;"></h6><a href=http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3176582>Read</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2009/10/22/kojima-and-desilets-trade-praise-over-assassins-creed-2-and-pea/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.joystiq.com/forward/19206168/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2009/10/22/kojima-and-desilets-trade-praise-over-assassins-creed-2-and-pea/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a>]]></description><category>1up</category><category>assassins-creed</category><category>assassins-creed-2</category><category>famitsu</category><category>hideo-kojima</category><category>metal-gear-solid</category><category>metal-gear-solid-peace-walker</category><category>Microsoft</category><category>patrice-desilets</category><category>peace-walker</category><category>Xbox-360</category><dc:creator><![CDATA[Ben Gilbert]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Thu, 22 Oct 2009 19:55:00 EST</pubDate></item><item><title><![CDATA[Impressions: Assassin's Creed 2]]></title><link>http://www.joystiq.com/2009/09/06/impressions-assassins-creed-2/</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.joystiq.com/2009/09/06/impressions-assassins-creed-2/</guid><comments>http://www.joystiq.com/2009/09/06/impressions-assassins-creed-2/#comments</comments><description><![CDATA[<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/photos/assassins-creed-ii-gamescom/2222728/full"><img width="580" vspace="0" hspace="0" height="326" border="0" align="middle" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2009/09/acii-pax-header.jpg" alt="" /></a><br /> <small><em>click to enlarge</em></small></div>
While the <a href="http://joystiq.com/tag/splinter-cell-conviction"><em>Splinter Cell Conviction</em></a> demo at <a href="http://joystiq.com/tag/pax-2009">PAX</a> was (<a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2009/09/05/pax-2009-sam-fisher-to-see-green-again/">mostly</a>) free of anything new, <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/tag/Ubisoft/">Ubisoft</a> decided to show off a completely new live demo of <a href="http://joystiq.com/tag/assassins-creed-2"><em>Assassin's Creed II</em></a>. The demo was guided by creative director <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/tag/patrice-desilets">Patrice D&eacute;silets</a>, who was a mite nervous giving a demo in front of a frothing throng of rabid fans. After the demo, we can safely say his fears were unfounded.<br /><div class="postgallery"><p><strong>Gallery: <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/photos/assassins-creed-2/">Assassin's Creed II</a></strong></p><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/photos/assassins-creed-2/#1485933"><img src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2009/04/eziohighres1024_thumbnail.jpg" alt="" title="" /></a><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/photos/assassins-creed-2/#2071166"><img src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2009/06/ac2_ca_001_carnival-1024_thumbnail.jpg" alt="" title="" /></a><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/photos/assassins-creed-2/#2071167"><img src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2009/06/ac2_ca_012_sanmarcoplacevenice-1024_thumbnail.jpg" alt="" title="" /></a><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/photos/assassins-creed-2/#2071168"><img src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2009/06/ac2_s_004-1024_thumbnail.jpg" alt="" title="" /></a><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/photos/assassins-creed-2/#2071169"><img src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2009/06/ac2_s_018-1024_thumbnail.jpg" alt="" title="" /></a></div><p><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2009/09/06/impressions-assassins-creed-2/" rel="bookmark">Continue reading <em>Impressions: Assassin's Creed 2</em></a></p><p style="padding:5px;background:#ffffcc;border:1px solid #ffff99;clear:both;"><a href="http://www.joystiq.com"><img src="http://www.joystiq.com/media/feedlogo.gif" alt="Joystiq" style="float:left;padding:0 5px 5px 0;" /></a><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2009/09/06/impressions-assassins-creed-2/">Impressions: Assassin's Creed 2</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://www.joystiq.com">Joystiq</a> on Sun, 06 Sep 2009 13:00:00 EST.  Please see our <a href="http://www.weblogsinc.com/feed-terms/">terms for use of feeds</a>.<br style="clear:both;"></p><h6 style="clear: both; padding: 8px 0 0 0; height: 2px; font-size: 1px; border: 0; margin: 0; padding: 0;"></h6><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2009/09/06/impressions-assassins-creed-2/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.joystiq.com/forward/19152417/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2009/09/06/impressions-assassins-creed-2/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a>]]></description><category>assassins-creed</category><category>assassins-creed-2</category><category>Microsoft</category><category>patrice-desilets</category><category>pax</category><category>pax-2009</category><category>ubisoft</category><category>ubisoft-montreal</category><category>Xbox-360</category><dc:creator><![CDATA[Richard Mitchell]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Sun, 06 Sep 2009 13:00:00 EST</pubDate></item><item><title><![CDATA[Interview: Assassin's Creed 2 creative director, Patrice Désilets]]></title><link>http://www.joystiq.com/2009/06/10/interview-assassins-creed-2-creative-director-patrice-desilet/</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.joystiq.com/2009/06/10/interview-assassins-creed-2-creative-director-patrice-desilet/</guid><comments>http://www.joystiq.com/2009/06/10/interview-assassins-creed-2-creative-director-patrice-desilet/#comments</comments><description><![CDATA[<center><object classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" width="580" height="346" id="viddler_3715a845"><param name="movie" value="http://www.viddler.com/simple/3715a845/" /><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><embed src="http://www.viddler.com/simple/3715a845/" width="580" height="346" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowScriptAccess="always" allowFullScreen="true" name="viddler_3715a845"></embed></object></center><em>Assassin's Creed 2</em> is Patrice D&eacute;silets' first sequel. If there's any anxiety or fatigue squirming inside of him, it's well hidden by an infectious enthusiasm and candor. Speaking with us during E3 2009 in Ubisoft's den (and thus, din), the creative director frankly discussed several issues with us, including one which you may have heard about, over and over again:<br />
<br />
<span style="font-weight: bold;">Joystiq: Do you mind if I go back to Assassin's Creed 1 for just a bit? </span><br style="font-weight: bold;" />
<br />
Patrice D&eacute;silets: Yeah, yeah, no problem.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-weight: bold;">So, that game comes out. You're reading the reviews and people are complaining about repetition. </span><br style="font-weight: bold;" />
<br />
Yeah.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-weight: bold;">What do you feel at this point? Do you agree with them?</span><br />
<br />
Repetition for me is a point of view, really. Like, what is repetitive or not? You know, sometimes you go and play the same game over and over again and you are all right with the repetitiveness of it. And in AC1 some people just couldn't bear it. We listened to them while we were making the second one, but, I wasn't nervous or mad. What I was a little disappointed with was some reviewers, how they treated us. They have the right to their opinions and everything, but I felt like they maybe went too fast. But you know what? I also received [opinions that were] the other way around. People being really happy about the game. Doing it two, three, four, five times.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-weight: bold;">Sure.</span><br />
<br />
And we sold some eight million copies of it, you know. <br />
<br />
<span style="font-weight: bold;">Eight million people can't be wrong?</span><p><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2009/06/10/interview-assassins-creed-2-creative-director-patrice-desilet/" rel="bookmark">Continue reading <em>Interview: Assassin's Creed 2 creative director, Patrice Désilets</em></a></p><p style="padding:5px;background:#ffffcc;border:1px solid #ffff99;clear:both;"><a href="http://www.joystiq.com"><img src="http://www.joystiq.com/media/feedlogo.gif" alt="Joystiq" style="float:left;padding:0 5px 5px 0;" /></a><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2009/06/10/interview-assassins-creed-2-creative-director-patrice-desilet/">Interview: Assassin's Creed 2 creative director, Patrice Désilets</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://www.joystiq.com">Joystiq</a> on Wed, 10 Jun 2009 21:00:00 EST.  Please see our <a href="http://www.weblogsinc.com/feed-terms/">terms for use of feeds</a>.<br style="clear:both;"></p><h6 style="clear: both; padding: 8px 0 0 0; height: 2px; font-size: 1px; border: 0; margin: 0; padding: 0;"></h6><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2009/06/10/interview-assassins-creed-2-creative-director-patrice-desilet/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.joystiq.com/forward/19059700/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2009/06/10/interview-assassins-creed-2-creative-director-patrice-desilet/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a>]]></description><category>assassins-creed</category><category>assassins-creed-2</category><category>e3-2009</category><category>Ezio</category><category>interview</category><category>Microsoft</category><category>patrice-desilets</category><category>ubisoft</category><category>ubisoft-montreal</category><category>Xbox-360</category><dc:creator><![CDATA[Ludwig Kietzmann]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Wed, 10 Jun 2009 21:00:00 EST</pubDate></item><item><title><![CDATA[Assassin's Creed 2 will end with a cliffhanger]]></title><link>http://www.joystiq.com/2009/06/04/assassins-creed-2-will-end-with-a-cliffhanger/</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.joystiq.com/2009/06/04/assassins-creed-2-will-end-with-a-cliffhanger/</guid><comments>http://www.joystiq.com/2009/06/04/assassins-creed-2-will-end-with-a-cliffhanger/#comments</comments><description><![CDATA[<div align="center"><img vspace="4" hspace="0" border="1" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2009/04/animusteaser.jpg" alt="" /><br /></div>
"I'm telling you. At the end of AC2 you'll say&sbquo; 'Holy crap, I never saw it coming.'" <br /><br />That's according to <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/tag/assassins-creed-2"><em>Assassin's Creed II</em></a> creative director, Patrice D&eacute;silets. In addition to saying "Holy crap," you should also prepare yourself to exclaim, "But what happens next?!" D&eacute;silets noted that his first Ubisoft sequel will answer plenty of questions -- but not all of them.<br /><br />"There will be a cliffhanger," he admitted. "It's cool to have a cliffhanger." The director feels that players need to experience just a little bit of frustration at the game's completion, though a new way to replay completed missions should counter at least some of that. Oh, and remember that glowing writing on the wall?<br /><br />"It has nothing to do with Assassin's Creed II, what's written on the wall has to do with the Assassin's Creed universe, not the second one."<p style="padding:5px;background:#ffffcc;border:1px solid #ffff99;clear:both;"><a href="http://www.joystiq.com"><img src="http://www.joystiq.com/media/feedlogo.gif" alt="Joystiq" style="float:left;padding:0 5px 5px 0;" /></a><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2009/06/04/assassins-creed-2-will-end-with-a-cliffhanger/">Assassin's Creed 2 will end with a cliffhanger</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://www.joystiq.com">Joystiq</a> on Thu, 04 Jun 2009 20:15:00 EST.  Please see our <a href="http://www.weblogsinc.com/feed-terms/">terms for use of feeds</a>.<br style="clear:both;"></p><h6 style="clear: both; padding: 8px 0 0 0; height: 2px; font-size: 1px; border: 0; margin: 0; padding: 0;"></h6><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2009/06/04/assassins-creed-2-will-end-with-a-cliffhanger/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.joystiq.com/forward/19056970/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2009/06/04/assassins-creed-2-will-end-with-a-cliffhanger/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a>]]></description><category>Assassins-Creed</category><category>Assassins-Creed-2</category><category>e3-2009</category><category>Microsoft</category><category>Patrice-Desilets</category><category>Ubisoft</category><category>Xbox-360</category><dc:creator><![CDATA[Ludwig Kietzmann]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Thu, 04 Jun 2009 20:15:00 EST</pubDate></item><item><title><![CDATA[Wii too casual for Assassin's Creed]]></title><link>http://www.joystiq.com/2007/10/19/wii-too-casual-for-assassins-creed/</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.joystiq.com/2007/10/19/wii-too-casual-for-assassins-creed/</guid><comments>http://www.joystiq.com/2007/10/19/wii-too-casual-for-assassins-creed/#comments</comments><description><![CDATA[<p>Filed under: <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/category/news/" rel="tag">News</a></p><div align="center"><a href="http://blogs.guardian.co.uk/games/archives/2007/10/19/assassins_creed_interview.html"><img vspace="4" hspace="4" border="1" alt="" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2007/10/achorse.jpg" /></a><br /></div>
Recently, the folks over at Guardian Unlimited sat down for an interview with the creative director of <em>Assassin's Creed</em>, Patrice Desilets. When asked if the popularity of the Wii and the growth of the casual market had any impact on the game's creative process, the Ubisoft employee had some not-so-nice things to say about our favorite console.<br /><br />"The Wii is all about casual games. In terms of processing power and graphics capabilities the Wii is roughly equivalent to the PS2 and the first Xbox ... I like the controller and the fact that the Wii is bringing a new audience to games but <em>Assassin's creed</em> [sic] would never run on the Wii hardware. There's a big audience that's looking for immersive gameplay and a cinematic entertainment experience with graphics that rival the best CG."<br /><br />Oh, snap! Now, we know that the Wii <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/10/01/wii-warm-up-in-comparison/">can't compare graphically</a> to the PS3 and Xbox 360, but to bring the Wii to the level of<em> </em>last-gen consoles just seems like a low blow. Also, if the cinematic experience is such an important aspect of <span style="font-style: italic;">Assassin's Creed</span>, one wonders why the team decided to <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/10/11/assassins-creed-confirmed-for-ds-release-in-february/">make a version for the Nintendo DS</a>.<br /><br />Surely, we can't be the only ones bothered by Desilets' assessment? Many developers seem to be under the impression that the Wii is only for casual gaming and ignore the fact that there are <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/10/18/get-your-brush-ready-okamis-on-the-way/">games</a> <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/10/08/fresh-footage-of-umbrella-chronicles/">coming</a> <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/10/10/monster-hunter-3-moved-from-ps3-to-wii/">out</a> that aren't tailored to the casual market. In fact, <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/09/20/ubisoft-our-new-heroes/">Ubisoft themselves are publishing one</a> as we speak. Furthermore, a game like <a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/08/29/metareview-metroid-prime-3/"><em>Metroid Prime 3</em></a> has shown us that the Wii can deliver good graphics and an immersive experience.<br /><br />We hope this isn't a sign of what kinds of games to expect from Ubisoft. We're not saying that <em>Assassin's Creed</em> should be released for the Wii, just that the Wii should not be dismissed as a console for casual games. Maybe Ubisoft's developers need to take notes from the company's publishers and give us the type of games that we've been clamoring for.<p style="padding:5px;background:#ffffcc;border:1px solid #ffff99;clear:both;"><a href="http://www.joystiq.com"><img src="http://www.joystiq.com/media/feedlogo.gif" alt="Joystiq" style="float:left;padding:0 5px 5px 0;" /></a><a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/10/19/wii-too-casual-for-assassins-creed/">Wii too casual for Assassin's Creed</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://www.joystiq.com">Joystiq</a> on Fri, 19 Oct 2007 19:00:00 EST.  Please see our <a href="http://www.weblogsinc.com/feed-terms/">terms for use of feeds</a>.<br style="clear:both;"></p><h6 style="clear: both; padding: 8px 0 0 0; height: 2px; font-size: 1px; border: 0; margin: 0; padding: 0;"></h6><a href=http://blogs.guardian.co.uk/games/archives/2007/10/19/assassins_creed_interview.html>Read</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/10/19/wii-too-casual-for-assassins-creed/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.joystiq.com/forward/1017447/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.joystiq.com/2007/10/19/wii-too-casual-for-assassins-creed/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a>]]></description><category>assassin's-creed</category><category>patrice-desilets</category><category>ubisoft</category><dc:creator><![CDATA[Candace Savino]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Fri, 19 Oct 2007 19:00:00 EST</pubDate></item></channel></rss>