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Managing director Christophe Derennes also put out a statement, thanking “all those who sent us messages of solidarity. This touches us enormously.”
Ubisoft Montreal has been in teleworking mode since the pandemic began, which means most employees work from home. About 4,000 people normally work at the studio, but only about 200 were in the building on Friday.
Paul Desbaillets, a partner in the Bishop & Bagg pub, said he saw police flock to the building down the street that houses Ubisoft employees.
“I’ve never seen this many cops roll out quickly, block off streets and start running down the street,” Desbaillets told the Montreal Gazette by telephone. “I also see a lot of ambulances so I hope everybody is OK. It could just be procedure.”
The fact Ubisoft produces first-person shooter games such as Rainbow Six Siege makes the hostage situation even more jarring, Desbaillets said.
“It’s insane. It’s almost surreal.”
Public mischief is punishable by imprisonment for up to five years in Canada.
Frédéric Tomesco, Pat Hickey, Katherine Wilton, Jason Magder and T’Cha Dunlevy of the Montreal Gazette contributed to this report.
