Ubisoft and Patrice Désilets have come to an agreement over the rights to project 1666 Amsterdam
Ubisoft and Mr. Patrice Désilets have agreed today to put an end to the legal dispute with regards to project 1666 Amsterdam. Following this agreement, Mr. Désilets is withdrawing his legal action against Ubisoft from the Superior Court of Québec. The company thereby also give the rights of project 1666 Amsterdam to Mr. Désilets, who will hereafter have all creative and business control over the project.
“Putting aside our past differences, Patrice and I are above all interested in the creation of videogames and the evolution of this medium of entertainment,” said Yannis Mallat, Chief Executive Officer of Ubisoft Montréal and Toronto. “This agreement is good news for everyone. Ubisoft’s creative teams are currently working on innovative projects that will mark our industry for years to come. This is precisely where we want to focus our energy, on our teams, to continue what we have been building in Quebec for nearly 20 years. As we have always said, Patrice is a talented designer and we wish him all the best in the development of his future endeavours.”
“I’m glad Ubisoft and I were able to come to an agreement that will allow me to obtain the rights to project 1666 Amsterdam,” said Mr. Désilets. “I will now devote myself entirely to the development of Ancestors: the Humankind Odyssey, my next game with Panache Digital Games. This is what matters most to me today: making the best games and showing the world the creative talent of Quebecers. I also wish every success to the Ubisoft teams.”
1666 Amsterdam ~ in-game footage from the unreleased title
Footage from the unreleased 1666 Amsterdam, whose rights just returned to creative director Patrice Desilets.
The game would have been for the PS3 and Xbox 360, and the footage comes from a build of that era, 2 years ago. It would have become next (now current)-gen if the studio had not closed.
The game's theme is "be worse than the devil," which is why the protagonist can control animals traditionally associated with black magic.
This footage shows a real player running through the game in-engine.