Assassin’s Creed Shakeup: Franchise Boss Exits Ubisoft

Recently, Ubisoft announced that its flagship series Assassin’s Creed will now be managed by Vantage Studios, a separate company formed by Ubisoft in partnership with Tencent, which holds a 25% share. Vantage Studios will also oversee the continued development of other popular Ubisoft series including Far Cry and Rainbow Six.

“The influence of Marc-Alexis on our brand, especially Assassin’s Creed, has been profound. His innovative vision and leadership have significantly shaped the gaming experience for both our teams and players. We are immensely thankful for his contributions and wish him great success in his future pursuits,” Ubisoft stated.

Known among his peers as “Mac,” Marc-Alexis Côté began his career at Ubisoft in 2005 as a software engineer, and was involved in the development of Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands as a lead engine programmer. He subsequently joined the Assassin’s Creed franchise during the Brotherhood installment as a lead level designer and later directed Assassin’s Creed 3.

As a creative director, Côté spearheaded several projects with Ubisoft Quebec, the creative force behind the Assassin’s Creed: Black Flag DLC Freedom Cry, Assassin’s Creed Syndicate, and Assassin’s Creed Odyssey, where he served as senior producer.

In March 2022, with Ubisoft Quebec developing Assassin’s Creed Shadows and Ubisoft’s initiative to revamp the series with a cohesive narrative approach via the Animus Hub (originally titled Assassin’s Creed Infinity), Côté was pivotal in overseeing the franchise, planning a Marvel-like lineup of upcoming titles including Assassin’s Creed Hexe, which is yet to be scheduled for release.

Furthermore, during December of last year amidst controversies surrounding the Black samurai protagonist Yasuke in Assassin’s Creed Shadows, Côté passionately defended the narrative direction of the series in a BAFTA speech. He described the online reactions as “devastating” for his team and justified the game’s notable delay as essential to achieving the quality expected by fans.

“Assassin’s Creed is dedicated to presenting the full breadth of human history, inherently embracing its diversity. Honoring historical accuracy involves fully representing varied human experiences and perspectives,” Côté emphasized last year.

The latest update follows a revelation that Ubisoft had scrapped an Assassin’s Creed project that was to be set in the post-Civil War era featuring a former Black slave fighting against the Ku Klux Klan as its protagonist. This early-stage project was cancelled in the summer of 2024, due to sensitivities about the political environment in the United States, despite some preliminary work by Ubisoft Quebec.