1666 development suspended

Ubisoft has indefinitely suspended development on its mysterious upcoming game 1666, CEO Yves Guillemot revealed today during a post-earnings financial call (via Polygon). The news comes after months of discussions with designer and Ubisoft veteran Patrice Desilets, who has since been let go.

"After more than two months of discussions with [Desilets], we couldn't align our vision both on project development and team management," Guillemot said. "So consequently our collaboration has ended, and we have suspended 1666 for an undisclosed period of time."

Little is known concerning 1666, which was first revealed through a trademark application and then in THQ bankruptcy documents. The game was expected to sell 4 million units.

If its title is indicative of the year in which it was to be set, the game may have focused on the Great Fire of London, the historical conflagration that destroyed hundreds of acres of the city in September of that year.

Desilets originally left Ubisoft in 2010 to head up THQ Montreal and work on an all-new franchise. When THQ went belly-up, Ubisoft purchased the studio and its games.

Despite some initial uncertainty, the publisher at the time expected Desilets to stay on board.

That changed last week when Desilets, along with producer Jean-François Boivin, were let go. Desilets claims he was fired, saying "Ubisoft's actions are baseless and without merit. I intend to fight Ubisoft vigorously for my rights, for my team and for my game."