Title Image by WildcatJF via deviantart
One day, sometime between now and the end of eternity, Beyond Good and Evil 2 will be released. Other than that, no one outside of the development studio knows much about the title. Every other bit of information regarding the game has been given in a mosaic of brief mentions by those attached to the project and unofficial announcements from corporate Ubisoft. While the fact that a sequel to the original is even in production should suffice for the happiness of its fans, the endless wait accompanied by the shroud of secrecy surrounding the title is enough to make one’s frustration with Ubisoft climb into the stratosphere.
It’s been six years since Michel Ancel’s Beyond Good and Evil bombed, and the game has greatly spread as a topic of discussion since. Beyond Good and Evil was in no way a trend setter or even a pioneer in some new form of game mechanic, but it is nonetheless beloved by many and lately has been showing up on quite a few “Best Games of the Decade” lists. Rather than trying to presumptuously claim to know why Beyond Good and Evil is loved by so many gamers (I’ve seen many great articles discuss the game and somehow very few of them retread the same ground), I opt only to explain why it is appreciated so much by this gamer.
From the human to pigman, to a society of animal hybrids, it is the memorable, relatable cast of characters that Ancel crafted for this game that makes the experience of playing it such pure, unadultered escapism. Beyond Good and Evil presents a world inhabited by characters as appealing as any of Disney’s in a story as mature and mysterious as any of Miyazaki’s. Somehow these characters, regardless of their status as fictional species, have such an ability to evoke emotional responses from the player that we are given a personal stake in their conflict.