Just another day at Ubisoft HQ.

Ubisoft has fired the man responsible for the first two Assassin’s Creed blockbusters. As reported by Game Informer, the publisher has confirmed that Ubisoft Montreal creative director Patrice Désilets is no longer with the company. This isn’t the first time the two have parted ways. Désilets resigned in 2010 to take up a position with THQ Montreal. Ironically, THQ was then forced to sell the business to Ubisoft, bringing Désilets back into the fold.

According to an Ubisoft statement, the creative director “left” his position after “good faith discussions between Patrice and Ubisoft aimed at aligning Patrice’s and the studio’s visions” proved “inconclusive”.

Désilets’ account of the process, published by Polygon, differed somewhat from the official line. “I was notified of this termination in person, handed a termination notice and was unceremoniously walked out of the building by two guards without being able to say goodbye to my team or collect my personal belongings.” Désilets vowed to “fight for my rights, for my team and for my game”. As noted by Kotaku, Désilets later confirmed that producer Jean-Francois Boivin has also been shown the door.

At the time of its sale to Ubisoft, the studio was said to be working on unannounced properties Underdog and 1666. The future of these projects is now in question.

Available on 360, PS3 and PC l Published and developed by Trion Worlds l Classified MA15+ l Massively Multiplayer

REVIEW IN BRIEF > Defiance has generated a lot of hype. Arguably it is the first “true” experiment in transmedia. The game (developed by Trion Worlds) and the TV series (produced by the SyFy channel) have been collaboratively developed from the very beginning, and there are even suggestions that developments in the game world will crop up in future seasons of the show. Unfortunately, the game itself is less than spectacular. Although it suffers from a general lack of polish, the things it does do well (especially the MMO elements) are pretty compelling. Read the rest of this entry »

The TimeGate offices were alway pretty quiet on “Pizza Fridays”.

On our most recent podcast, we discussed the plight of TimeGate Studios, and speculated as to the likelihood of the developer surviving the two week period until our next episode. It appears that our fears were very well founded indeed because it has since emerged that the team partially responsible for Aliens: Colonial Marines has filed for bankruptcy protection.

According to court documents uncovered by Polygon, the Texan business owes between US $10m and $50m to its creditors, including the princely sum of $34.80 to a pizza restaurant.

The studio’s former publisher SouthPeak Interactive is also listed as a creditor. In light of recent events, this isn’t a terribly surprising revelation. In April, it emerged that a US court had ordered TimeGate to pay SouthPeak $7.3m after finding the former to be in breach of its contractual obligations.

The prospects for TimeGate’s recently announced Minimum project seem to be growing dimmer by the hour.

Activision today confirmed that Infinity Ward is working on a new Call of Duty blockbuster and emphasised that the game will be powered by a “next generation” engine. The publisher appears to be quite keen on the “next generation” catchphrase, employing it no fewer than 12 times in today’s press release. Dubbed Call of Duty: Ghosts, the game will feature fresh characters and a new setting.

If you’re looking for more detail, we encourage you to check out the colourful live action trailer posted above. It will answer all of your questions, as long as your only question is “Will I be wearing a mask in the new Call of Duty game?”

Recent chapters in the series have landed during the November shopping rush and Ghosts won’t be breaking with tradition. The new game is scheduled to arrive on 360, PS3 and PC on 5 November. Unsurprisingly, it will also be making an appearance on “next generation” systems.