Assassin’s Creed Hexe in Jeopardy, Director Quits in Shock Move

Assassin’s Creed Hexe may have survived Ubisoft’s recent major games cull, but it’s now hit an unexpected new hiccup.

Clint Hocking, the game’s creative director, has parted ways with Ubisoft, despite Hexe being the Assassin’s Creed franchise’s next mainline release. The timing couldn’t be worse.

Ubisoft’s reputation has struggled in recent years, although I personally have been enjoying the output from the Assassin’s Creed franchise.

Assassin’s Creed Mirage was somewhat of a ‘back to basics’ adventure that felt refreshing; in contrast, Assassin’s Creed Shadows offered an additional RPG flavouring to scratch that Odyssey or Valhalla itch.

Ubisoft

I won’t talk about that awful Attack on Titan crossover though. The less we say about that, the better.

Assassin’s Creed Hexe has been the game I’m most anticipating though, simply due to just how unique it sounds.

Officially, very little has been said of the game.

Assassin’s Creed Hexe Is a Dark New Take On The Franchise

According to leakers though, the title is set within Europe during the witch trials orchestrated by the Holy Roman Empire in the 16th and 17th centuries.

It’ll reportedly follow female protagonist Elsa with Ezio Auditore’s sister, Claudia, possibly also entering the fray.

It’s further been suggested that a mechanic from Assassin’s Creed Syndicate’s Jack The Ripper DLC could return. Perhaps something akin to the panic bombs?

As I said, it’s not much to go on, but this paired with the game’s one and only graphic, which you can see above, implies a game that is dark, grisly, and intense.

Assassin’s Creed Hexe sounds so unlike anything else within the franchise.

Unfortunately though, the project has run into trouble given Hocking’s exit.

Hexe’s Creative Director Has Departed, Development Continues Under New Leadership

As reported by VGC, the news was shared in an internal meeting this week by the Assassin’s Creed franchise's newly-formed leadership team.

You may recall that Ubisoft previously announced Vantage Studios, a new subsidiary and home for the long-running franchise.

Development on Hexe will reportedly continue with Jean Guesdon taking over as creative director. He was positioned as head of content for the franchise.

Guesdon directed Assassin’s Creed Origins and Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag, two excellent entries.

As such, we do somewhat appear to be in safe hands. Even still, you have to question why Hocking left.

Will Hocking’s Departure Be Felt In The Final Product?

Clearly, something pushed him away and gamers will most definitely be wondering if that will affect Hexe’s quality going forwards.

Was management forcing a controversial decision upon the game, perhaps? Can we expect Guesdon to pick up where Hocking left off, or is Hexe going to be composed of two half-baked visions instead of one unified one?

“We sincerely thank [Clint] for his vision, creative contributions, and dedication over the years, and we wish him the very best in his next chapter,” a spokesperson said to VGC.

“Development on Assassin’s Creed Codename Hexe continues with a seasoned team. The game will deliver something distinctive within the Assassin’s Creed franchise. We look forward to sharing more information in the future.”

There’s no release window for the game just yet.

Let’s hope it does indeed live up to our expectations despite this latest troubling development.