Ashraf Ismail found a game industry job after Ubisoft, and we’re not surprised where he turned up.

Ashraf Ismail, the creative director of Assassin’s Creed: Origins and Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla, was fired from Ubisoft in August 2020 for extramarital affairs, and for using his power within the company, according to several accusations. But he hasn’t disappeared into the shadows, as Tencent, one of the big Chinese tech companies with a gaming industry presence, has hired him. He is already working on a new game as a consulting creative director at Timi Studio Group.

Tencent confirmed it to Axios, but they were not at liberty to elaborate on what exactly Ismail is working on. Still, according to a source at Axios, Ismail has worked at one of Tencent’s studios in Montreal for over a year (it opened in July 2021). Several ex-Ubisoft Montréal developers are said to be working there. Some of them were working directly under Ismail on the Assassin’s Creed series, so they’re essentially continuing what they’ve been doing, just with different management.

“During our work with Ash, he has carried himself professionally and has consistently shown an eagerness to learn and grow as a team member and person. We strive to provide a safe, respectful working environment for all and will continue to do so as our team grows and expands,” a spokesperson for Timi told Axios.

Timi was founded in 2008 and is best known in the West for Call of Duty Mobile. The game, launched in November 2019, is now at more than 650 million downloads. But the company is also popular for its League of Legends-inspired Honor of Kings: it has become notably popular in China and is one of the top-grossing mobile games worldwide. They also made Pokémon Unite for Nintendo Switch and mobile in 2021, and in May, they announced a strategic partnership with Xbox. By 2020, the company had generated $10 billion, making it the world’s largest developer team by that measure, Reuters reported.

Source: VGC