Ubisoft has officially responded to complaints regarding the opening cinematic for the mobile game Tom Clancy’s Elite Squad with an apology. The video depicts a violent, organized uprising plotted by the game’s villains using a fist symbol commonly associated in modern times with the Black Panther Party and Black Lives Matter movements. Ubisoft states that its inclusion of this symbol in the video “was insensitive and harmful” and is promising that the symbol will be removed by Tuesday, September 1 on Android with an iOS update to follow.
The full apology from Ubisoft starts by acknowledging the specific issue with the video. Namely, the use of what Ubisoft calls the “raised fist” symbol. This term is commonly associated with longstanding revolutionary imagery, including the modern Black Lives Matter logo. Ubisoft’s apology says the use of this imagery was insensitive and harmful in two different ways. First, Ubisoft acknowledges that even using the image was the wrong decision, and second, Ubisoft says that the context of its use was the wrong decision, too.
Suffice to say, Ubisoft is apologizing for the entire situation. While it’s unlikely to be met with much empathy given Ubisoft still allowed the situation to happen in the first place, it’s still acting on the response quickly and doing what’s necessary to change Tom Clancy’s Elite Squad as soon as it’s able.
Of course, the criticism of Tom Clancy’s Elite Squad doesn’t end with just the inclusion of a logo used by Black Lives Matter. The game also involves a story involving the planned usage of a weaponized pandemic, as well as a group of special forces and criminal protagonists fighting against these anti-government villains. At this point, with years of development likely behind the project, it’s difficult to argue that Ubisoft wasn’t familiar and approving of the themes being presented in Tom Clancy’s Elite Squad.
The argument that Ubisoft may not have known better, given that it’s a company based out of France, also doesn’t make much sense. In early June, Ubisoft sent out an official statement via social media stating solidarity with the Black community following the killing of George Floyd. In that statement, Ubisoft says, “We believe in liberty and equality,” “Discrimination, exclusion, and prejudice are things we should all work to change.”
The next step is Ubisoft removing the “raised fist” imagery from Tom Clancy’s Elite Squad starting next Tuesday. It’s possible that will be the end of the issue from Ubisoft’s point of view, but it’s clearly not going to be the end from a portion of Ubisoft’s fans or the greater gaming community.
Tom Clancy’s Elite Squad is available now on mobile devices.
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