A top Ubisoft developer who was ousted for allegedly abusing his position at the company is now working for Tencent. Ashraf Ismail, who worked on the Assassin's Creed series from 2009 to 2020, is working as a consulting creative director at Tencent's Montreal studio, Timi, which is made up of several former Ubisoft employees.This comes shortly after Ismail was fired from Ubisoft following allegations that he "abused his power" to form romantic relationships with multiple women. It was alleged that Ismail lied about his martial status to hide his apparent infidelity, and dated more than ten women who were "much younger" than him and fans of his games.This news was first reported by Axios, with Tencent not announcing that Ismail is working with its Montreal studio itself. The gaming giant has since confirmed Ismail's involvement, saying that he has conducted himself in a "professional manner" since starting at Timi. He has reportedly been at Timi since last year.The source also commented: "We strive to provide a safe, respectful working environment for all and will continue to do so as our team grows and expands."
The allegations of his infidelity came June 21, 2020, from Twitter user Dani (@matronedea). In a lengthy Google doc that details her year-long relationship with Ismail, she shares text screenshots in which Ismail denies that he is married. Dani also says that fifteen other women reached out to her with similar stories.
"There would have been no chance of any sort of sexual or romantic relationship with me if I had known he had a wife from the beginning", Dani wrote at the time. "I would not consent to a relationship with a married man."
Ismail has not commented on his role at Timi, nor has he updated his social media to say that he works there.