Ubisoft co-founder Claude Guillemot has died. The pioneer of the French video game industry died Friday evening at the age of 69 in a plane crash.
Ubisoft mourns the loss of one of its founders. Claude Guillemot, one of the five brothers who jointly built the French publishing giant since 1986, died Friday evening in a plane crash. He was 69 years old.
According to initial media reports, Guillemot was flying in his private plane with a flight instructor on Friday, en route to the western French coastal town of La Baule. He planned to participate in an air show there over the weekend. The Cessna 421 had taken off from Rennes, where Guillemot lived.
During the approach to La Baule Airport, the aircraftaccording to eyewitness reportssuddenly veered to one side and subsequently crashed into a cornfield. Both occupants were killed in the crash; by the time emergency responders arrived, the wreckage was already engulfed in flames. The cause of the accident is currently being investigated by French authorities.
Ubisoft released a statement on Saturday regarding the sudden death of the company’s founder. The statement said the company is deeply saddened by the tragic accident.Our thoughts are with his family and friends during this difficult time,
said a company spokesperson.
Pioneer of the French Video Game Industry
Claude Guillemot was born on October 30, 1956, in Carentoir, Brittany. Together with his brothers Christian, Gérard, Michel, and Yves Guillemot, he founded the company Ubisoft in 1986. Over the following decades, the small family-run hardware mail-order business grew intoone of the world’s largest game publishers.
Following the success of Rayman (1995), Ubisoft expanded in the late 1990s and established overseas studios in locations including Shanghai, Montreal, and Milan. With franchises such as Splinter Cell and Prince of Persia, Ubisoft finally achieved its international breakthrough in the early 2000s.
Today, the company’s best-known brands include Assassin’s Creed, Far Cry, and Rainbow Six, as well as smaller franchises such as Anno and Just Dance.
Founder Claude Guillemot was a member of theUbisoft Board of Directorsuntil recently. He was also CEO of the Guillemot Corporation, which offers gaming accessories such as steering wheels and flight sticks for PCs and consoles. Ubisoft highlights in theGuillemot’s official biographyhighlights, above all, his experience in the Asian market as well as his knowledge of the hardware and distribution industries.
The French government recognized Guillemot as one of the most important pioneers of the national video game industry. He played a key role in leading France to the forefront of the global gaming industry, wrote Minister of Digital Affairs Anne Le Hénanff on Twitter.
