Upheaval at Ubisoft continues today with the departure of veteran creative director Clint Hocking, in the middle of development on the company’s next major Assassin’s Creed blockbuster.
Hocking’s exit from Ubisoft, first reported today by VGC, was reportedly revealed to staff this week by the Assassin’s Creed brand’s freshly-installed new leadership team. Hocking had been leading work on Assassin’s Creed Hexe, the upcoming entry in Ubisoft’s flagship series that’s set to feature a witchcraft vibe.
In a statement to IGN, a Ubisoft spokesperson confirmed Hocking was “departing Ubisoft” without providing further detail as to why. His current role as creative director on Hexe will now be assumed by Jean Guesdon, the series’ new Head of Content, who has a lengthy track record working on numerous titles in the series.
“Clint Hocking, creative director on Assassin’s Creed Codename Hexe, will be departing Ubisoft,” a Ubisoft spokesperson said in a statement provided to IGN. “We sincerely thank him for his vision, creative contributions, and dedication over the years, and we wish him the very best in his next chapter.
“Development on Assassin’s Creed Codename Hexe continues with a seasoned team. The game will deliver something distinctive within the Assassin’s Creed franchise. Jean Guesdon, Head of Content for the Assassin’s Creed brand, is now acting as the Creative Director on the project.
“We look forward to sharing more information in the future.”
Hocking initially joined Ubisoft to work on the legendary 2002 stealth action adventure Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell, which he contributed to as a designer and scriptwriter. Hocking then served as creative director on its follow-up, Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory, before holding the same role on 2008’s Far Cry 2.
During a period away from Ubisoft, Hocking served years at LucasArts, Valve and Amazon, respectively, albeit without ultimately launching a game. Hocking then returned to Ubisoft to serve once again as a creative director, this time on Watch Dogs: Legion, which launched to a mixed response. Following that, Hocking moved over to Assassin’s Creed, and had been leading work on Hexe out of the company’s Montreal studio.
Earlier this week, Ubisoft named its trio of top staff tasked with taking the Assassin’s Creed brand forward. Development on the series will now ultimately be led by Martin Schelling, a veteran Ubisoft producer who previously served senior roles on Assassin’s Creed titles such as Black Flag, Origins and Valhalla, and has recently served as Ubisoft’s Chief Production Officer.
Schelling is being assisted Guesdon, who has worked on more than a dozen titles in the franchise, back to Assassin’s Creed 1 in 2007, and notably served in director roles for both Assassin’s Creed: Black Flag and Assassin’s Creed: Origins. Finally, François de Billy will serve as Head of Production Excellence, following previously acting as Production Director on Valhalla and Origins.
The changes follow last year’s sudden departure of Ubisoft’s previous Assassin’s Creed boss Marc-Alexis Côté, a veteran staff member who announced his departure from the company last October, shortly after Ubisoft’s new Tencent-backed subsidiary Vantage Studios took control of the brand. Côté has since launched a lawsuit against Ubisoft over the nature of his replacement.
Last week, Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot reaffirmed that the company had “several” Assassin’s Creed titles in development, comprised of both single-player and multiplayer experiences. Back in 2022, Ubisoft announced a raft of upcoming games including Hexe, as well as a multiplayer spin-off codenamed Invictus. The company is also widely-expected to announce its long-awaited Black Flag remake soon.
In the years since, nothing has been said of Hexe’s progress, though fans had assumed this was simply because Ubisoft was focused on launching and marketing last year’s Assassin’s Creed Shadows. Almost a year on from Shadows’ arrival, there’s no suggestion that Hexe will debut in 2026, particularly after Ubisoft delayed a raft of upcoming titles back in January, as part of the company’s major corporate restructure.
Image credit: Christian Petersen/Getty Images
Tom Phillips is IGN’s News Editor. You can reach Tom at [email protected] or find him on Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social
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