Ubisoft has announced a new leadership team for the Assassin’s Creed series, with Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag veterans among the newly installed managers going forward.
Ubisoft’s Vantage Studios–which is charged with overseeing the Assassin’s Creed, Far Cry, and Rainbow Six franchises–will have three main leaders for the Assassin’s Creed franchise specifically. These will be Martin Schelling as Head of Assassin’s Creed Brand, Jean Guesdon as Head of Content for Assassin’s Creed, and François de Billy as Head of Production Excellence.
Vantage Studios, meanwhile, is headed up by Charlie Guillemot, who is the son of Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot–and yes, he’s aware of the nepotism concerns. Vantage’s other boss is Christopher Derennes.
As for the Assassin’s Creed leaders specifically, Schelling will be responsible for the “overall strategy and long-term vision of the brand.” He worked on a variety of Assassin’s Creed games over the years, including Revelations, Black Flag, Origins, and Valhalla. He was Ubisoft’s Chief Production Officer prior to starting the new role at Vantage.
Guesdon, meanwhile, will lead the “overall creative direction” of the Assassin’s Creed series. He worked on the 2007 original Assassin’s Creed, and is perhaps best known for being creative director on Origins and Black Flag
De Billy, meanwhile, will “strengthen production practices and execution across the brand” for Assassin’s Creed in his role as Head of Production Excellence. He was previously production director on Valhalla and Origins.
Vantage Studios is the new Ubisoft subsidiary backed by Tencent. It is one of the five “creative houses” that Ubisoft previously announced. These changes are coming at a time of upheaval for Ubisoft, which in recent times has enacted mass layoffs and canceled a handful of games. Looking ahead, Ubisoft is now working on multiple new Far Cry and Assassin’s Creed games, along with “several” new IPs.