DICE's Former Head Of Design Joins Ubisoft

Ubisoft has hired Battlefield developer DICE's former Head of Design, Fawzi Mesmar, to become the Assassin's Creed publisher's new Vice President of Editorial.

In that role, Mesmar will work with Ubisoft's development teams around the world to "shape the creative direction" of the company's franchises. He will also work with Ubisoft's teams to "ensure they are including diverse perspectives throughout the production process and creating enriching entertainment experiences for all players." Mesmar will report to Ubisoft Chief Creative Officer Igor Manceau.

Mesmar was DICE's Head of Design from 2019-2021 where he worked on projects like Star Wars: Battlefront II, Battlefield V, and Battlefield 2042. Before that, he spent almost four years at Candy Crush developer King in various roles, including Studio Director, Production & Game Design.

He also wrote the book Al-Khallab on the Art of Game Design, which is among the first Arabic language books on game design. "At Ubisoft, Fawzi will continue to build on a proven track record of leading diverse, globally distributed teams, drawing on his past experiences working in Germany, Japan, Jordan, New Zealand, Saudi Arabia, and Sweden," the company said.

"Fawzi is one of the industry's most respected game designers and has a strong track record of uniting teams across various projects, expertise, and backgrounds," Igor said. "We are delighted to welcome him to the Editorial department and I'm confident he will develop strong partnerships with teams across Ubisoft. His expertise will help us to continue uniting around a shared vision, strengthening and growing our broad portfolio of games, and providing players enriching, memorable experiences."

Ubisoft has been accused of having a toxic, frat house culture. CEO Yves Guillemot has pledged to improve the company's culture in a number of ways, including by revamping HR processes, installing a new code of conduct, rolling out mandatory training regimens, and hiring new leadership. According to GI.biz, Ubisoft has made minimal changes in the wake of the allegations.