In A Controversial Statement Ubisoft CEO, Yves Guillemont, Says Creating A Video Game Requires Friction
Image Source: YouTube
During an interview with La Presse, Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot stated that “You need a little friction” in the creation of video games, sparking up the controversy of the company’s workplace issues. Ubisoft has faced major criticism since 2020 from a long history of workplace abuses coming to widespread attention. A history that many feel Ubisoft is making little progress in rectifying. This latest statement from the CEO highlights the immoveable barrier to progress the company faces within its upper management.
When asked about those accusations in the interview, translated from French, Guillemot states that the company is “progressing very well to ensure that life in the company is as everyone wishes.” That was followed up with asking why such toxic behaviour exists within the industry, to which Guillemot replied that making video games is not easy, and that “you need a little friction, because everyone has to succeed in getting their idea across.”
RELATED:
He later clarified to PC Gamer after the interview was published that he was talking about the creative tension that arises within development as ideas are challenged and debated. It is the work of a studio to prevent or address the negative emotions that might come from such heated debate, through essential procedures, policies, and values. That same statement saw Guillemot say, “Over the past two and a half years, we have made a lot of progress on that front to deliver safe and great experiences to all our teams. Healthy, respectful working environments are our top priority and we’re pleased to say that according to our latest surveys, our team members are reassured that we are on the right track.”
While that might be the case, such thoughts are clearly not shared by everyone at the company. A movement of current and former Ubisoft employees under the name of ‘A Better Ubisoft’ have called out Ubisoft management across the last year for not acting fast enough to resolve the issues within the company. Their latest comments to GamesIndustry.biz reveal that some feel things aren’t being taken seriously enough, with anonymous reports of abuse ending in victim shaming or a stubborn refusal to accept that the victim does not want to be named. One developer even felt that their report was only taken seriously because it was presented as a formal complaint.
READ NEXT:
Sources: PC Gamer, La Presse, GamesIndustry.biz