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Reports in three separate French outlets depict a pattern of inappropriate behavior, sexist and homophobic jokes, and an overall toxic environment at Quantic Dream, something the video game studios executives strongly deny.

In response to a request for comment, co-CEO Guillaume de Fondaumire gave Kotaku the following statement:

QD categorically denies the allegations. As for myself, Im furious and outraged by these accusations, which I take very seriously. And I will take all possible legal actions to defend my honor.

According to Le Mondes report, by way of Eurogamer, five former employees filed a complaint in spring of 2017 against the company and one of its employees for circulating degrading images. In February of 2017, a trove of 600 photoshops of various employees that were homophobic or sexist in nature, and some which even included Nazi symbols, was discovered by an IT manager who had been the subject of one of them. These files dated back to 2013 with some even displayed in the open spaces, although studio heads David Cage and Guillaume de Fondaumire claimed they werent aware of the offensive ones.

You can see a small sample of the types of photoshops discovered over at Canard PC. One includes a picture of a male stripper with David Cages head holding a power tool with a dildo affixed to the end of it. Despite 83% of the 180 person studio behind Heavy Rain and Beyond Two Souls consisting of men, Cage told the Le Monde that Quantic Dream was not like a rugby locker room.

According to an email sent on Feburary 27, 2017 obtained by Le Monde, de Fondaumire recognized that the photoshops had existed for years and were a mistake. The outlet reports that for the former employees who filed the complaint, the issue is less with particular instances of offensive office jokes but rather the overall toxic work environment that they allegedly were born from. This includes allegations of long work weeks, sexual misconduct at work parties, and occasional racism.

Two people told the paper that once, after reviewing surveillance footage of a burglary at the company, Cage asked an employee of Tunisian descent if one of the perpetrators in the video was their cousin. Calling these charges and others absurd, Cage told Le Monde, per Eurogamer,

You want to talk about homophobia? I work with Ellen Page, who fights for LGBT rights. You want to talk about racism? I work with Jesse Williams, who fights for civil rights in the USA... Judge me by my work.

A trailer for Cage and Quantic Dreams latest work, Detroit: Become Human, caused controversy last year after it aired during Paris Games Week for its seemingly glib approach to the subject of domestic abuse and the way the game appeared to be gamifying serious issues. Le Mondes sources told the paper they warned Cage about the misogynistic nature of the scene and that it was likely to cause offense but said he wasnt interested in their feedback or revising anything. The game, a narrative exploration of the humanity of robots, is scheduled to release later this year.

The employee accounts reported by Le Monde point to Cage being difficult to work with. Despite good pay, the paper reports theres high turnover at Quantic Dream with some 50 people leaving between 2015 and 2016, many due to depression or just general burnout. Cage and de Fondaumire deny all of the allegations, from homophobia, racism, and sexism to general office mismanagement, calling them just rantings of former employees.

The African Union, a group representing the continent's countries, issued a blistering statement demanding that President Donald Trump retract and apologize for comments referring to African nations as "shitholes."

"The African Union Mission wishes to express its infuriation, disappointment and outrage over the unfortunate comment made by Mr. Donald Trump, President of the United States of America, which remarks dishonor the celebrated American creed and respect for diversity and human dignity," the African Union mission to the United States said in a blistering statement.

Condemning the comments "in the strongest terms," the group demanded "a retraction of the comment as well as an apology, not only to the Africans, but to all people of African descent around the globe."

It's a question of whether they pass or not and I don't feel for bad for saying so.

you forget that everything is much more expensive there.

And they don't have to pay any taxes for any of it!

drawing furry porn is lucrative nowadays

He then suggested that the United States should instead bring more people from countries like Norway

Metro2 posted...

Twitter seems to forget that people can have meaningful discussions outside of Twitter. Like I said before, Twitter is not a good platform to have indepth discussions when it encourages juvenile short posts.

Basically, Twitter's just enabling Trump at this point instead of taking away his platform.

Huh? When did Twitter claim they were a platform for good in-depth discussions? And why would they take away President Trump's twitter?

Amid vocal calls for the company to act, Twitter today offered its first explanation for why it hasnt banned President Donald Trump without ever saying the mans name. Elected world leaders play a critical role in that conversation because of their outsized impact on our society, the company said in a blog post. Blocking a world leader from Twitter or removing their controversial Tweets, would hide important information people should be able to see and debate. It would also not silence that leader, but it would certainly hamper necessary discussion around their words and actions.

Twitter has faced regular calls to ban Trump since he was elected in 2016. Among other things, critics have accused Trump of inciting violence with his tweets. This week, a tweet invoking the prospect of nuclear war escalated tensions with North Korea, but was allowed to remain on the service. Protesters projected critical slogans on the walls outside Twitter headquarters as a result. Today, the nonprofit group Color of Change announced a new effort to get Trump banned from Twitter.

In its blog post, Twitter reiterated its previous statement that all accounts still must follow the companys rules. The statement seemed to leave open the possibility that it might one day take action against Trumps account, or the accounts of other world leaders who might use the platform to incite violence or otherwise break its rules. We review Tweets by leaders within the political context that defines them, and enforce our rules accordingly, it said.

The company also pushed back against an oft-tweeted refrain of the companys critics, that it only allows Trump to keep tweeting because it draws attention and ad revenue to the company. No one persons account drives Twitters growth, or influences these decisions, the company said. We work hard to remain unbiased with the public interest in mind.

A significant win for drug reform was announced on Sunday with news that Norways Parliament has effectively decriminalized all drug use.

The Scandinavian nation stated that the responsibility of handling the estimated 10,000 drug addicts or more, most of whom are addicted to heroin, will transfer from the countrys justice system to its health department.

The move received overwhelming bipartisan support from the Labor, Conservative, Socialist and Liberal parties of Norway.

[We] will stop punishing people who struggle, but instead give them help and treatment, said Nicolas Wilkinson, the health spokesman for the Socialist Left Party. Wilkinson added that this move is the beginning of major reform for the country where the government will switch the system from punishment to help.

The deputy chairman of Norways Parliamentary Health Committee, Sveinung Stensland, also stated it is important to emphasize that we do not legalize cannabis and other drugs, but we decriminalize.

Although drug crimes such as trafficking and manufacturing still exist, the move has been hailed as a way to free up precious police resources.

In February, the Health Committee will head to Portugal to research best practices for implementation. Portugal decriminalized all drug use in 2001 and has seen incredible success.