Ubisoft is donating 500,000 Euros to help rebuild the Notre-Dame cathedral. The company is also offering its Paris-set game Assassin's Creed Unity free for a week on PC via Uplay.
France's 850-year-old cathedral was recently victim to a large blaze that claimed much of its roof and caused its spire to collapse. Much of the historic cathedral's interior has also been damaged. French President Emmanuel Macron has pledged to rebuild the cathedral "even more beautifully" than before. The cause of the blaze is not yet known, but Paris public prosecutor Rémy Heitz is not treating the fire as arson and doesn't think it was intentional.
Ubisoft's 500,000 Euro donation joins around €800m that has already been raised by companies and individuals worldwide. In a blog post on its official website, Ubisoft says it's very close to the city of Paris and considers itself "deeply connected" to the French capital. Giving away Assassin's Creed Unity makes sense, too; the game is set in French Revolution-era Paris and contains a painstaking recreation of the Notre-Dame cathedral as part of its sandbox environment. Ubisoft is also encouraging anyone with the means and inclination to donate if they can. You can do so here.
It doesn't end there, though. Ubisoft's recreation of Notre-Dame in Assassin's Creed Unity was so convincing that it will actually be used to help in the restoration effort. Architects and designers will be looking closely at any imaging source they can for the recreation of the cathedral, and since Unity's level artist Caroline Miousse spent literally years on the game's depiction of the building, using it in the restoration effort makes sense. It's touching to know that video games can be used to help real-life causes in this way.
Don't forget to claim your free copy of Assassin's Creed Unity while you can (you'll need to download Uplay if you don't already have it). Notre-Dame will thank you for seeing it as it should be.
How do you feel about the Notre-Dame fire and Ubisoft's contribution? Let us know in the comments below!