The offices of Ubisoft Montpellier was recently evacuated in response to a bomb threat. Although no one was injured, the threat has raised questions and likely left Ubisoft employees feeling shaken.
This kind of terrifying moment is something that has unfortunately happened repeatedly in the gaming industry, including at another Ubisoft site in the past. Back in 2020, a similar scenario occurred when reports came in of a hostage situation at Ubisoft Montreal. That event turned out to be a hoax, but it obviously created a lot of fear and excitement.
Ubisoft's Splinter Cell Remake Toronto Studio Hit with Layoffs
Ubisoft Toronto is facing a difficult transition as internal changes have fans questioning what the future of the studio might look like.
Ubisoft Montpellier faces bomb scare
It has now been reported that on February 19 in France, Ubisoft Montpellier, known for developing games that Raymanhad to be evacuated due to a bomb threat. An email was sent to state police claiming an explosive device was located somewhere in or near the building, prompting law enforcement to arrive at the scene and set up a security perimeter. Close to 500 employees from Ubisoft's offices were evacuated, as were several hundred more from nearby buildings. Bomb specialists and firefighters combed through Ubisoft's office, but were unable to find an explosive.
Rearrange the cases in the correct US release order.
Start
Rearrange the cases in the correct US release order.
Light (5)Medium (7)Hard (10)
Since then, Ubisoft employees have returned to the Montpellier studio, according to a spokesperson speaking to GameSpot. It is not clear if the hoaxer may still pose a threat to the building, or if this was essentially a prank, where a false crime in progress is reported to get the police to show up at an unsuspecting victim's location. The people working at Ubisoft Montpellier and the surrounding buildings were likely spooked by the threat, but thankfully no one was hurt.
Unfortunately, this kind of thing has become all too common in the gaming industry. Big names like Nintendo, Capcom, Insomniac Games have all faced threats against the studio itself or individual developers working for them, leading to canceled gaming events and frayed nerves. With the relative anonymity of the internet, some have become flippant about making threats when things don't go their way in games. For example, performer Laura Bailey received death threats due to players being angry with her character, Abby, in The last of us part 2while studios and developers have received threats for everything from not putting out updates fast enough to games not being as “good” as the individuals who had expected the threats.
In some cases, studios have threatened legal action against those making the threats, while others have seen the suspects brought to justice. In Ubisoft's case, the Ubisoft Montreal hostage hoax resulted in the accused being sentenced to three years of community service and mandatory mental health care. In another case, an arrest was eventually made after Nintendo was forced to cancel a live event as early as 2024 to protect its staff and attendees from potential dangers.
Gamers aren't immune to this kind of thing either, with swatting happening all too often, especially for streamers. These incidents have seen streams interrupted by police suddenly swarming their homes or offices, leading some streamers to develop PTSD. In worst-case scenarios, a hit-and-run incident has resulted in a victim being killed by police. In one such case, the victim was not even involved in the initial incident that led to the slap and lost his life as a result of the so-called prank. In that case, an arrest was made, and the perpetrator was found guilty and sentenced to 20 years in prison.
So far, it remains to be seen if the police manage to locate the person who carried out the hoax bomb threat.
Source: Midi Libre
