We did not hear anything about Beyond Good and Evil 2 at the recent Ubisoft Forward showcase, or at any point during the recent Summer Game Fest blowout. In fact, we haven't heard anything about it for more than a year, and that wasn't really about the game so much as the reportedly awful working conditions at developer Ubisoft Montpellier. Prior to that, we kicked off 2023 by counting the number of times Ubisoft has promised that BG&E2 is still in development, which for the record was 28.
But now we can up that number by one, because Ubisoft has given word that, yes, Beyond Good and Evil 2 is still happening.
The latest reassurance comes by way of Ubisoft's Beyond Good and Evil 20th Anniversary Edition website, which went live earlier today after a multi-pronged botch the likes of which we haven't seen from the French since the Maginot Line. But after somehow leaking the BG&E remaster not once, but twice, it's up, it's official, and it contains this interesting little tidbit about what players can expect:
"Learn more about Jade's childhood and her link to Beyond Good and Evil 2 thanks to a new treasure hunt throughout Hillys! Collect exclusive cosmetic rewards as you progress through the game and explore the planet."
In case you think that may be a typo or some old assets, a press blast email that went out today announcing the new edition of Beyond Good and Evil made the same reference:
"This special edition will feature [a] hunt in which players can discover more about Jade’s past and collect exclusive cosmetic rewards. This exclusive new mission also reveals more about the narrative link to Beyond Good and Evil 2, showing Ubisoft’s enduring commitment to the franchise."
So there you have it—that's twice, and that's good enough for me.
As for when BG&E2 might be happening, that remains a very big question mark. News writer Joshua Wolens predicted it will show up sometime after the end of the Stelliferous Era, which I googled and was surprised to find is not something he made up but actually one of the five ages of the universe, which will conclude after most of the extant stars have exhausted their fuel, leaving only white and brown dwarfs, neutron stars, and black holes. I'm not sure what that breaks down to in years, but Beyond Good and Evil 2 surpassed Duke Nukem's world record for "longest development period for a videogame" in 2022, so he might be right.
