Ubisoft Montreal staffers in potential hostage situation Update: They were swatted.

[jefferz]

Ubisoft Montreal staffers barricade on roof amid possible hostage situation
A potential hostage situation is reportedly taking place at the building in which game developer Ubisoft's Montreal office is housed.

A group of suspects are reportedly holding tens of people hostage at Ubisoft Montreal, according to local (French-language) media outlet LCN. The situation reportedly began around 1:30pm Eastern Time.

Montreal police confirmed that there is an "ongoing police operation" at the intersection where Ubisoft Montreal sits, adding, "We ask people to avoid the area. The SPVM is currently validating information and more details will follow."

Montreal mayor Valérie Plante confirmed that her office is coordinating with the police and monitoring the situation and echoed the police's request for everyone to avoid the area.

According to Radio-Canada (story in French), police were dispatched to the scene following a 911 call reporting a robbery in a nearby commercial building.

Live-streamed footage from an LCN helicopter showed a group of people together on the roof deck of the building behind a makeshift barricade seemingly constructed of folding tables leaning against the access door. Developer Eric Pope confirmed in a Tweet that the individuals on the roof were indeed Ubisoft employees, saying, "This is insane. This is my team on the roof."

This is a developing story and will be updated.

Major police operation underway near Ubisoft building in Montreal's Mile End

Several police cruisers are on the scene, and TV images show heavily armed officers in the area
CBC News · Posted: Nov 13, 2020 2:28 PM ET | Last Updated: 5 minutes ago

A major police operation is underway at one of the Ubisoft buildings on St-Laurent Boulevard in Montreal's Mile End neighbourhood.

Images from the scene show several heavily armed Montreal police officers in the area. Images also show dozens of people on the roof of the red-brick building, and the door opening onto the roof barricaded from the outside with large objects.

Police have set up a perimeter at the corner of St-Laurent Blvd. and St-Viateur Street. Several police cruisers and ambulances are on the scene.

Police are asking people to avoid the area.

Police say there are no immediate reports of injuries related to the operation. They say the operation began in response to a 911 call.

Montreal Mayor Valérie Plante addressed the situation on Twitter, saying the city is in contact with police and asking people to avoid the Mile End area.

 

[Smokes]

That fucking crazy. I hope they make it out alive.

 

[Pliny Pete]

People getting sick of all them micro transactions

 

[jojoRed]

Man this year is some shit.

I hope they make it out alive and physically well. No one deserves this shit.

 

[Dirt Road Soldier]

I heard AC Valhalla wasnt very well received by fans, but this is going a bit far really.

 

[Lovestorm]

Send in the Rainbow Six team.

 

[Dizzy]

Scary stuff. Sounds like things are ok though.

 

[jefferz]

People getting sick of all them micro transactions

Pretty fucked up to be joking about something like this.

 

[Wreckless]

 

[jojoRed]

Pretty fucked up to be joking about something like this.

They seem to be fine now...but as soon as its confirmed, Ill fire off the jokes.

 

[Swing]

Distressing but not surprising. Between the reported working conditions over there in addition to the fact that a lot of the teams probably just came off crunch or are still on crunch (Fenyx Rising released next month), and the general atmosphere of the pandemic there's a smorgasbord of reasons for someone to be disgruntled.

Glad it seems to not have lead to any serious harm.

 

[jefferz]

Well it sounds like it was swatted. Hopefully they find the asshole who did this and prosecute them to the full extent of the law.
The R6 Siege Major had just started.

 

[MCS]

It is good apparently no one ended up in Valhalla.

 

[jojoRed]

It is good apparently no one ended up in Valhalla.

Cause that game sucks

 

[rob mafia]

oops,

was reported earlier that this was just an armed robber in proximity, but i guess that was bs, too.

i don't really understand how/why they all ended up on the roof if they were swatted, but whatever.

 

[Pliny Pete]

Pretty fucked up to be joking about something like this.

Well it sounds like it was swatted. Hopefully they find the asshole who did this and prosecute them to the full extent of the law.
The R6 Siege Major had just started.

Apology accepted

 

[jefferz]

Apology accepted

you're a piece of work.

 

[louiscyphere]

Viral marketing for the next siege game.

 

[PEB]

If it turns out to be an employee they many want to look into if drugs were involved not pot but hard drugs. Video game development not joking is serious and life destructive business many developers and testers can go days without sleep.

Some turn to amphetamines to keep themselves going. A lot of the blame falls on the leadership for pushing employees to the point of breakdown. Many are young breaking into the world with the hopes of becoming a producer were the real money is made "profit share not base pay".

A vast majority end up leaving after a few years of burnout most times way worst off. Montreal and Vancouver has become a growing hot bed for these businesses because of lack of oversight. UBI not alone Microsoft and others run big development businesses in Montreal not just gaming but AI and robotics. You could call them software sweat shops.


EDIT: One company I personally know employees had setup cubicles to be make shift bedrooms were they would bring their sleeping bags. The company had a small gym and showers so the employees did not mind.

 

[PEB]

Here's a story about one place not in Canada but you get the idea.


"
Spending on video games and related equipment reached an all-time high last year, with Americans shelling out $42 billion to immerse themselves in virtual worlds where they can steal cars, shoot cowboys, and fight Nazis with abandon. But as tens of thousands of video game fans and creators gather in Los Angeles this week for the Electronic Entertainment Expo, more commonly known as E3, a difficult truth about the gaming industry is beginning to emerge: what’s seen by outsiders as a fun, creative business is becoming psychologically and financially unbearable for those working in it.

“Every game you like is built on the backs of workers,” says Nathan Allen Ortega, 34, who thought he found his dream job when Telltale Games offered him a position as a community and video manager in 2015. Ortega was such a Telltale enthusiast that he used to participate in cosplay—the practice of dressing up as a particular character for events—as Rhys Strongfork, one of the main heroes in the company’s Tales from the Borderlands. So it was an easy decision to pack up his stuff in Texas and relocate near the company’s headquarters in San Rafael, California. But he was soon so stressed out by work that he developed an ulcer and started coughing up blood."

"
Part of the problem, Ortega says, was that executives would order up game changes at the last minute, sending developers into overdrive, which then led to inferior products. This made Ortega’s job of marketing the game even more difficult. “I was working with compromised games made by people killing themselves to get them out the door month after month after month,” he says. Both his doctor and therapist advised him to quit, but he stuck around until Telltale laid off 25 percent of its staff, including Ortega, in 2017. Telltale shut down permanently in October of 2018 and laid off 250 employees after it failed to secure more funding. The company was then sued by both its co-founder and by one of its former employees. (Records for the first lawsuit were sealed to protect confidential information, and the second lawsuit was dismissed in early February. Lawyers for Telltale did not return TIME’s requests for comment.)"


https://www.google.com/amp/s/time.com/5603329/e3-video-game-creators-union/?amp=true