Beyond Good and Evil 2: 7 Quick Facts You Should Know

They say good things come to those who wait. If you saw Michel Ancel’s reaction to the long-awaited unveiling of his Beyond and Good Evil 2 at E3 2017, you should know that a lot of patience goes a long way. There were many reveals over the three day bonanza of jumbled “exclusive” terminology, awkward YouTuber appearances, and vague promises, but not much else on display caught the attention quite like the almost mythical sequel to a cult classic getting its first exhibition after so many years of waiting.

While all we saw at the show itself was a sweary CG trailer, interviews and showcases post-E3 have clarified what kind of game Beyond Good and Evil 2 is shaping up to be. It’s certainly ambitious, to say the least; a huge gamble to invest so much time and money into the entirely too safe AAA industry. Beyond Good and Evil 2 doesn’t look like it fits the standard Ubisoft mold that’s been a dependable crux for the publisher in recent years.

Of course, all this ambition comes with a price: its release date is AWOL. Even the most optimistic of gamers shouldn’t place any bets on it coming out in 2018 – the year after is a more likely window. With plenty of time to kill, let’s tick off some quick facts we already know about Beyond Good and Evil 2.

 

1. Beyond Good and Evil 2 will be a prequel

Whether the decision to go backwards in the BG&E universe was a wise one or not remains to be seen, but it certainly is an interesting one. With no Jade at its front and center, Beyond Good and Evil 2 is relying on a new cast of characters in a world set before the former protagonist was even born. With a world this expansive, though, it might not be too big a deal.

 

2. Beyond Good and Evil 2 will feature character customisation

There’s a lot of scope within BG&E 2’s character customisation, allowing players to not only customise the look of their character but to also choose a species. As a game with an emphasis on social commentary, don’t be surprised if NPCs react to you differently based on the way you look. That being said, if you get given the option to play as a genetically modified monkey human and don’t take it, you aren’t doing video games right.

 

3. Crew dynamics will be important in Beyond Good and Evil 2

Like an infinitely more obscene version of Firefly, BG&E 2 will allow you to bring a crew together to go spacefaring and visit new planets and the societies that inhabit them. But it won’t all be plain sailing: much like the Mass Effect series, your crew will react differently to the choices you make, or even leave if they’re particularly offended by your actions. The ability to jettison dissenters into the sun has not yet been confirmed.

 

4. There will be no loading times in Beyond Good and Evil 2

The logistics of travelling from planet to planet without any loading times makes my head hurt, but Ancel and co. are trying to achieve just that. While it will almost definitely “hide” the loading in the background, the possibility of seamlessly leaving a planet’s atmosphere before travelling through space and then landing on the next one -all without hiccups- is going to cause a stir if they can pull it off.

 

5. Beyond Good and Evil 2 features procedural generation

Typically the parlour trick of the indie game, procedural generation will also be a big part of Beyond Good and Evil 2. It will be something similar to Sundered (but obviously on a much bigger scale): part hand-designed, part-procedurally generated. It will all come together with a “logic system” so that, presumably, there aren’t a hundred toilets with five meters of each other.

 

6. Beyond Good and Evil 2 will have online co-op

If you wanted the most obvious indicator that the industry has changed immeasurably since Beyond Good and Evil was first released, you need only look at what its sequel is trying to do with co-op. You will be able to explore either solo or with friends and also experience a shared universe, which Ancel thinks will allow players to create their own stories from.

“‘I’m going through a story and there’s a start, there’s an end.’ But you know how it is when you have online play — the real stories are going to come from people playing with each other.”

 

7. Beyond Good and Evil 2 will have plenty of RPG elements

You can find RPG elements in almost every big release these days, and Beyond Good and Evil 2 is no different. It will set you off from the very bottom of the ladder before allowing you ascend to the thoroughly excellent title of Space Captain. Along the way, you and your crew will also be able to acquire and improve skills which will tie in with the cultures you visit. Sounds bonkers.

Are you excited for Beyond Good and Evil 2? Drop your opinions down below.