After refuting reported claims of workplace harassment last month, French developer Quantic Dream says it is looking into legal action in order to “defend the reputation of our studio” against what it calls “unfounded attacks.”
“Since January 14, 2018, Quantic Dream has been the subject of a smear campaign by some [media], based on slanderous statements, the truthfulness and origin of which are questionable,” the developer wrote in a French-language post on its Facebook page.
“We categorically refute once again these allegations against the studio, its employees, and its directors. We want these unfounded attacks and the spread of false information to stop, for the protection of our employees.”
Three different French publications reported in January that Quantic Dream founder David Cage and the studio’s executive producer, Guillaume de Fondaumière, fostered or tolerated a hostile workplace culture, where employees alleged they were subjectected to sexual misconduct and racist, sexist and homophobic remarks.
Both Cage and de Fondaumière told Parisian paper Le Monde that the claims were baseless, naming recent work with actors Ellen Page (star of Beyond: Two Souls) and Jesse Williams (featured in the upcoming Detroit: Become Human) as evidence of their inclusivity. Quantic Dream also published a statement on its website at that time, writing that it had privately addressed complaints months prior to the reports, and would continue to do so.
In its latest statement, Quantic Dream reiterated that it is unaware of “any complaint of ‘harassment and discrimination.’” French courts dismissed allegations from two employees just days after the initial reports, according to the studio. A third claim “is in a tie,” the studio wrote.
The studio is now pursuing “several other legal actions”, in an effort to ensure that it is cleared of what it maintains are false claims of internal misconduct.
“We believe in justice and hope that justice will rapidly be served, in a peaceful and appeased climate,” the studio’s post concludes.
Detroit: Become Human, a PlayStation 4 exclusive that drummed up controversy of its own following its appearance at Paris Games Week last fall, is the next game from Quantic Dream. It’s due out sometime this spring.