Marc-Alexis Côté, who spent more than 20 years at Ubisoft and led the massive franchise in recent years, has filed a lawsuit in Quebec's Superior Court seeking CAD $1.3 million in damages. The claim centers on what he calls constructive dismissal, arguing his October 2025 exit wasn't truly voluntary.
Côté, who helped shape Assassin's Creed from titles like Brotherhood through to the recent Shadows launch, says the company pushed him out by restructuring leadership in a way that sidelined him. In his LinkedIn post clarifying the situation back then, he wrote: "The truth is simple: I did not make that choice." He added: "Ubisoft decided to transfer the leadership of the Assassin's Creed franchise to someone else." And: "A different position was mentioned, but it did not carry the same scope, mandate, or continuity with the work I had been entrusted with in recent years.
"The trouble traces back to last summer when Ubisoft set up Vantage Studios, a Tencent-backed subsidiary handling Assassin's Creed, Far Cry, and Rainbow Six. Côté claims he learned the company planned to hire a new "head of franchise" role overseeing those big IPs. That position, based in France rather than Quebec where Côté worked, wasn't offered to him. Instead, he says he got proposals to become "head of production" under the new head or to run a creative house for smaller franchises.
He turned both down, viewing them as major steps down from his previous direct reporting line to CEO Yves Guillemot. Côté describes the offers as an "unacceptable demotion" which was "disguised as a dismissal." When he pushed back and requested severance, he alleges Ubisoft announced his departure as voluntary both internally and to the public, a move he believes was designed to dodge payout obligations and enforce his non-compete agreement.
The lawsuit demands two years' salary plus CAD $75,000 for moral damages tied to reputational harm and stress. Côté is also asking the court to void the non-compete clause so he can pursue new opportunities in an industry still reeling from widespread layoffs.
This comes after Ubisoft's official line at the time framed his exit as a personal choice amid the March 2025 organizational changes. The company expressed gratitude for his contributions while noting confidence in the teams moving forward under Vantage's new structure, led by figures like Christophe Derennes and Charlie Guillemot.
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