According to a comprehensive report published on Gamesindustry.biz, Simon Darveau of Scavengers Studio has been accused of a series of toxic and abusive behaviors by employees of Scavenger Studio, manufacturers of The Darwin Project and the next game Season.
In Rebekah Valentine’s report, nine current and former employees of the Montreal-based game development studio described a toxic work environment fostered by studio creative director Simon Darveau and empowered by CEO Amelie Lamarche. (Lamarche was Darveau’s romantic partner when the couple founded the studio).
The pattern described by the employees is as follows: Simon Davreau and other high-level male employees are allegedly regularly involved in degrading behavior, particularly toward the women on the team.
This behavior ranged from sexist comments or to physical palpations. On one occasion, a developer said “it was unrealistic” Season the protagonist (a woman named Abby) should not be able to play the guitar because “the guitar was too complicated for a woman.”
The behavior specifically attributed to Davreau is even more reprehensible. A story aired on GI.biz says Darveau allegedly had an affair with an employee, who simply stopped showing uip to work after Lamarche found out. Another was that Darveau explained his behavior to staff “comparing himself to a hot dog, unable to control himself.”
Apparently, Darveau would also become drunk and strong at company parties. At a party in 2019, several sources alleged that he touched and caught women working for the company.
All of this behavior was apparently enabled by Lamarche, who several employees pointed out could not be impartial at many points in the company’s history because it was related to Darveau.
Stories about Darveau’s alleged behavior only continue and apparently include him participating in various games with employees and even an Xbox representative.
It is worth noting that Simon Darveau’s former company was Ubisoft Montreal, where he was design director Assassin’s Creed III. Reports of an alleged misogynistic work environment at Ubisoft were a huge story that was made public last year.
In response to Valentine’s inquiries, Scavengers Studio set out the policies it would take forward with changes to its company code of conduct and the sexual harassment reporting process. He told GI.Biz that “certain elements in [their] valuations are false, somewhat disproportionately blown or lacking in important parts. “
The company did not specify which “assessments.”
For more information on the allegations about Scavengers Studio and how these developments affect their next game, be sure to read the full Valentine report.