In an interview with the French media outlet BFMTV, a Ubisoft employee whose identity remained undisclosed revealed that the company has an “anti-online harassment plan” prepared for Shadows’ release.
Reportedly, the company has a dedicated team on standby, monitoring networks such as Twitter, YouTube, and Reddit, and ready to act quickly in case of a targeted attack, offering psychological and legal support to employees who may be targeted. Apparently, Ubisoft is so concerned about backlash that it has even advised developers not to post on social media that they work at Ubisoft to avoid harassment.
Perhaps the most surprising detail, however, is the employee’s claim that “lawyers are already prepared to file complaints in the event of confirmed harassment situations,” and as is often the case with statements like this, the wording raises questions about what Ubisoft actually considers to be “harassment.”
While any reasonable person agrees that threats of violence and similar behavior are unacceptable and should be dealt with accordingly, it’s clear that some are worried Ubisoft might also classify harmless online trolling and criticism of Assassin’s Creed Shadows and its creators as harassment and use the lawyers as an intimidation tactic, which would be equally unacceptable. It’s important to note that, as of now, the existence of this team is based solely on a single anonymous source and has not been officially confirmed or denied by Ubisoft.
So, what are your thoughts on Ubisoft’s new initiative to combat harassment? How do you think they will define “harassment”? Do you believe this approach will make a difference? Let us know what you think down in the comments!
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