It is still unclear as of press time whether the incident was prompted by a physical intrusion in or near the studio's Montreal offices, or whether everything began with a false threat. The employees on the building's roof were eventually escorted out, albeit only after being seen holding up their hands and conferring with apparent SWAT officials. Staffers were escorted from the building's lower floors at roughly 3:30pm Eastern Time, while other staffers remained barricaded on the building's roof as local police completed a formal sweep of the building. Developer Eric Pope confirmed in a Tweet that the individuals on the roof were indeed Ubisoft employees, saying, "This is insane. Live-streamed footage from an LCN helicopter showed a group of people together on the roof deck of the building behind a makeshift barricade seemingly constructed of folding tables leaning against the access door. She echoed the police's request for everyone to avoid the area.Īccording to Radio-Canada (story in French), police were dispatched to the scene following a 911 call reporting a robbery in a nearby commercial building. Montreal mayor Valérie Plante confirmed that her office is coordinating with the police and monitoring the situation. "The SPVM is currently validating information and more details will follow." "We ask people to avoid the area," the department advised on Twitter. Montreal police confirmed that there was an "ongoing police operation" at the intersection where Ubisoft Montreal sits. The situation reportedly began around 1:30pm Eastern Time. The story began with a group of suspects reportedly holding tens of people hostage at Ubisoft Montreal, according to local (French-language) media outlet LCN. At one point, dozens of staffers had been barricading themselves on the roof for over two hours. We will continue to provide our teams with all the necessary support to cope with this traumatic event."Ī tense situation at the Ubisoft Montreal game studio ended on Friday with staffers being formally escorted out of the building by police. "We are grateful for the prompt response of the police and local authorities.
"We commend the strength and solidarity of all of our team members in this complex and stressful situation," the company added. Ubisoft issued statement around 7:30pm Eastern Time saying that the company was "relieved" all of its staff in Ubisoft Montreal were safely evacuated. "An investigation will follow to shed light on the call behind this important police force deployment," the SPVM added. Montreal police confirmed only that the police operation is over, with no threat detected and no injuries reported. Update, 7:15pm EST: The 911 call that set the police response in motion was a hoax, the CBC reports.