Following a recent leak, Ubisoft has not only admitted to the existence of a Beyond Good & Evil re-release, but also shared a launch window of early 2024.
Dubbed the 20th Anniversary Edition, as the original game launched in 2003, Ubisoft was probably saving the reveal for The Game Awards 2023 next week, but it became impossible to deny after a listing appeared prematurely on the Xbox store.
Not only this, but there are even reports of people managing to download and play it via the Ubisoft+ subscription service. The official Beyond Good & Evil Twitter account, though, swears that the leaked version was an old build that isn’t indicative of how the game will look when it officially launches.
“As we celebrate the 20th anniversary of Beyond Good & Evil, our commitment to delivering a game that meets the high expectations of our fans is unwavering,” it says. “We’re excited to announce that the official launch is set for early 2024, and we’re dedicated to making it an experience that truly honors the legacy of the original. Thank you for your understanding and continued support.”
While the game is potentially still several months away, fans are no doubt salivating at the chance to re-experience the cult classic. Plus, it’s an opportunity for more people to discover and fall in love with Beyond Good & Evil, since it previously only ever saw a re-release for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 in 2011.
Ubisoft hasn’t said which platforms the 20th Anniversary Edition will be available for, but Xbox Series X|S is definitely one of them. At the very least, it’ll likely launch for PlayStation 5 and PC as well, and maybe the Nintendo Switch, too.
As exciting as this is, it also raises an uncomfortable question: What happened to Beyond Good & Evil 2? The prequel was announced in 2017 and Ubisoft has barely talked about it since. The few updates it had weren’t exactly good, either; the project has been losing staff, including its original director Michel Ancel and creative director Emile Morel, who sadly passed away in July of this year (via IGN). Additionally, this past February, developer Ubisoft Montpellier came under investigation over labor policy concerns, with multiple employees reportedly having taken extended leave due to “stress or sickness.”
