Beyond Good & Evil 2 is finally happening

By Brenna Hillier

Beyond Good & Evil is finally getting a sequel, although creator Michel Ancel had to half quit Ubisoft before the publisher would admit it.

Beyond Good & Evil 2 has been teased regularly for years, but in a statement regarding Ubisoft Montpellier’s current project, Ubisoft confirmed that it’s definitely happening.

“In many ways, BG&E is an inimitable game – it appeals to all generations of gamers and is an inspiration behind many of Ubisoft Montpellier’s past and future games,” the publisher told Eurogamer.

“It’s still far too early to give many details about this new title, but what we can say is that while Michel and the team at Ubisoft Montpellier are working with the core tenets of BG&E, they’re developing something that aspires to push past the boundaries of a proverbial sequel and leverages next-gen technologies to deliver a truly surprising, innovative and exceptional game.

“The entire team is excited about the direction this extremely ambitious project is taking, and we’ll have more to share later, as it progresses.”

The news came as a consequence of the revelation that Ancel, who also created Ubisoft mascot Rayman, has founded his own independent developer: Wild Sheep Studio. The new team is composed of 13 staffers and has a game in the works already, with an announcement expected soon.

In addition to guiding this new team, Ancel will remain on board at Ubisoft Montpellier, to work on the studio’s current projects – one of which has now been revealed as Beyond Good & Evil 2.

“In addition to spending some of his time on this new venture, Michel is leading the creative development of select projects at Ubisoft Montpellier, including an extremely ambitious new title that is very close to his and the team’s heart,” Ubisoft’s Xavier Poix said.

Beyond Good & Evil 2 has been on the backburner a long time. Ancel and other Montpellier staffers regularly show teasers, concept art and other materials, but until now Ubisoft’s official line has been that it doesn’t want to confirm anything until the project is firmly underway. Both Ancel and Ubisoft have said the grunt of the PS4 and Xbox One era was required to power their vision for the sequel.