Ubisoft’s recent wave of cancellations and studio closures made waves this week, but in the midst of the upheaval, Beyond Good & Evil 2 somehow remains untouched. The game, announced back in 2008, has weathered an incredible storm of setbacks—key staff leaves, internal scandals, and countless delays have stretched its development saga across nearly two decades. Now, Ubisoft insists the reason the sequel is still alive is simply due to its status as an open world game, fitting neatly into the publisher’s declared focus on open world and live service titles.
That explanation feels a little too neat. Beyond Good & Evil 2 doesn’t just align with Ubisoft’s strategic priorities; it exists as something more of an exception. The company has shown it’s willing to cut unprofitable projects faster than you can say Prince of Persia remake, yet this one somehow survives. There’s clearly more at play than just a shift toward open worlds and live services. The truth is probably less exciting: investment sunk too deep, a reluctance to fully abandon a beloved legacy, or complications tied up in its long and tangled development history.
Ubisoft’s decision to keep pushing on with Beyond Good & Evil 2 isn’t a sign of unwavering confidence in the game’s eventual success. It’s a cautious bet on a title that has become part of the company’s identity, even if it no longer fits perfectly with the streamlined portfolio the publisher is trying to build under Tencent’s oversight. As the world waits to see if the project will ever truly come together, we’re reminded just how rare it is for a game to dodge the chopping block this long, no matter how murky the reasons.
Source: rockpapershotgun.com
