Beyond Good & Evil 2 'done for the new generation'
by Ludwig Kietzmann 
{ May 29th 2008 at 7:00PM }
Says Guillemot: "We had a different audience at that time. We had more core gamers than casual gamers than we have today." Let's not be dense about this -- Beyond Good & Evil was a beloved, abysmal commercial failure that caused the industry to bust a gut whenever a continuation was mentioned. We can hardly begrudge Ubisoft for wanting loads of people to actually buy it this time around. However, it's is a very fine line to walk, and the desires of core and casual gamers don't necessarily agree. Guillemot himself admits that "so many customers were extremely happy with the game," and we can only hope that he doesn't see Fit to pull their pants down just because it'll make the casuals giggle.
For now, we'll have to trust in series (OMG it's a series now!) creator, Michel Ancel, being able to deliver the game as he envisions it. Heck, the man's paid his dues in Rabbids by now, hasn't he? Ubisoft owes him.
Gallery: Beyond Good & Evil 2
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
Dirty @ May 29th 2008 7:07PM
nooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!
voodoo_craig @ May 29th 2008 7:10PM
KHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAN!!!
DangerMouse @ May 29th 2008 7:18PM
SNAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAKKKEEEE
Enycma @ May 29th 2008 7:26PM
AAAAAAAH HO HO HOOOOOEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEYyyyyyyy...
Big Ed @ May 29th 2008 8:28PM
I DON'T KNOW WHAT WE'RE YELLING ABOUT!
Lewis (GT: StoneRevolver) @ May 29th 2008 9:03PM
LOUD NOISES!
Gehodra @ May 29th 2008 9:03PM
COMBO BREAKER!!!!!!!!!
i_hate_mtv @ May 29th 2008 9:16PM
PENIS!!!
fredrik_dunder @ May 29th 2008 9:28PM
hey GUISE, WE ARE MAKING A GAME BUT WE WONT RELEASE IT UNTIL THE YEAR 2010 or 2011
just stupid..
Josh @ May 29th 2008 9:30PM
SAKURAAAAAIIIII!!!!!
D_Average @ May 30th 2008 11:09AM
Looks like we're screwed and theres nothing we can do.
Mr.ESC @ May 29th 2008 10:09PM
KAMEHAMEHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!
snarfoogle @ May 29th 2008 10:18PM
WRYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY
The Ninth Doctor @ May 29th 2008 10:42PM
NEW AND EXCITING!!!!!!
OR MAYBE NOT THE SECOND PART!!!!one!
KeenCommander @ May 30th 2008 12:28AM
MAAAAAAAAAAAAAADDDDDNNNESSSSSS!!!
Joe P @ May 30th 2008 1:45AM
KAAAAAAANADAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
GearSecond! (a.k.a AwesomeStuff) @ May 30th 2008 8:25AM
BAAAZOOOOKAAAAA!!!!
FemaleOrca @ May 30th 2008 11:23AM
CAAAAAAAAAAAKEEE HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAATS?!!?!?!
Levi @ May 30th 2008 11:47AM
TETSUOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!
tmacairjordan87 @ May 29th 2008 7:10PM
And so the plague begins.
rTwelve [xbl:chilblane] @ May 29th 2008 9:17PM
This comment works well, underneath all the ones above us.
tmacairjordan87 @ May 29th 2008 9:22PM
Hahaha you're right it does :P
ChooChooCharlie (MK 0430-8740-2222) @ May 29th 2008 7:10PM
This doesn't necessarily mean the game will be bad. I'm sure they're just doing this to guarantee sales figures higher than those for BG&E. More "casual" games can still be good.
The "hardcore" gamer (aka - game blog readers) already knows about the sequel, but introduce a heavy ad campaign targeted at the casual market and they should see a significant increase in sales. I think it's a smart move.
Shagittarius @ May 29th 2008 7:13PM
Selling out is never a smart move. Lucrative yes, smart, no.
ChooChooCharlie (MK 0430-8740-2222) @ May 29th 2008 7:28PM
I wouldn't say they're selling out. It's just that this time around they won't be taking any risks financially. Maybe if more people had bought the first game, this wouldn't be the case.
Shagittarius @ May 29th 2008 7:31PM
Thats what I want "safe" game designs. Government approved Gaming. We're game deisgners against the hard-core.
Suck Satans Cock!
Taco_Hell @ May 29th 2008 7:39PM
So Shaggy, your angry at them because they want their game to sell and not be the financial disaster, although an amazing financial disaster, that was the first one?
eldee @ May 29th 2008 8:52PM
The first one would have sold just fine if they MARKETED IT properly. It got glowing reviews and everyone who ever played it still sings its praises to this day. The problem is not accessibility- the problem is exposure.
If they re-released the original BGE with next-gen graphics, and gave it the same marketing push as say... assassin's creed or raving rabbids, they would make every penny they deserve. Instead they're bending over to the wii-generation.. "Hey, people really love these mini-games, lets make another!"
Sir Fidlious Wong (Justin T. McElroy Memorial Burn of the Day Award) @ May 29th 2008 9:35PM
well then, eldee, explain how the original Sands of Time also flopped down and failed and it had a TON more exposure. Didn't they even try to push BG&E by giving free copies with the purchase of Splinter Cell or Prince of Persia?
John McPoop (PSN:johnnynumber5) @ May 29th 2008 11:52PM
The word "elitist" is almost as over used as the word "hyperbole" here on Joystiq
eldee @ May 30th 2008 12:03AM
Wong: Simple, it didn't flop. It's easy to make shit up on the internet but here's some simple logic- If the original PoP 'rebirth' game flopped, why did they make two sequels and pique the interest of Jerry Bruckheimer and his piles of cash? I don't have the sales data for Sands of Time, but I can guarantee that it didn't "flop" as you say it did. Warrior Within didn't do as well as Sands of Time, that may be what you're thinking of- but it hardly flopped either.
Marketing muscle can make or break any game, good or bad. It's why we've got so many shitty mini-games and ports on the wii, and why people still line up to see garfield movies. If you pump enough cash into advertising, people will buy what you're selling. Case Closed.
Jeremy @ May 30th 2008 9:17AM
As I remember it, Pop: SoT did not sell well during its initial holiday release, but the game had legs and ended up doing just fine. However, I think that's more to do with the glut of great games in Q4 than marketing prowess.
As for BG&E, the marketing got to me (you had to find clues hidden on the IGN website), but none of my friends had ever heard of it (and the game dropped to $20 in 3 months).
The writing was on the wall then. If a game is going to be successful by todays standards, you've got to appeal to the lowest common denominator. The hardcore alone cannot cement the kind of sales numbers publishers are looking for. Hopefully that means clever marketing as opposed to a complete dumbing down of games as we know it.
Jhongerkong @ May 29th 2008 7:13PM
Imagine: Beyondz Goodz andz Evilz CONFIRMED TITLE
...Just kidding
..Hopefully
WRE (PSN: WorstReviewEver; Gamertag: HaloKissesBoys; Wii Friend Code: 4204-4590-6106-3583) @ May 29th 2008 8:21PM
What if it were a sims-type game where Jade decorates her new apartment?
Title?
Bed, Bath & Beyond Good and Evil.
tmacairjordan87 @ May 29th 2008 8:53PM
Worst Review Ever:
Hahaha that was fucking awesome
SoCoolCurt (PSN: KillaKornbread) @ May 30th 2008 1:11AM
lol @ WRE.
that is hilarious.
Sir Fidlious Wong (Justin T. McElroy Memorial Burn of the Day Award) @ May 29th 2008 7:15PM
Isn't Mario Galaxy approachable by anyone? Did that ruin the game? The fact that it's one of the few Wii games I've completely should be self evident.
My only concern at this point, and I know this is a nitpicky thing that nothing is known about, is Jade is less dressed than in the original. I fear she's going tank top on us which would suck but this is also a dry desert and not the humid sea breezed chilled local of the first. That's the only place I want to judge this because Jade's design was flawless and it will be disappointing to see her join the ranks of "tit monsters."
ChooChooCharlie (MK 0430-8740-2222) @ May 29th 2008 7:21PM
Actually, she always had a tank top.
http://www.smokingpermitted.net/images/BGE_ART_02.jpg
I know what you mean, though. It is possible to have a woman character without turning her into Bigtits McGee. Hopefully they keep this in mind.
Nick the Hero of Canton @ May 29th 2008 7:25PM
Yeah. Gaming needs more, strong female leads that don't involve us watching a shaking ass for 20 hours.
Shagittarius @ May 29th 2008 7:26PM
Big Booty Hos, Hump wit' it.
Ludwig Kietzmann @ May 29th 2008 7:27PM
I don't think it ruined Mario Galaxy, but I certainly feel that the game would have been *better* had it been more difficult. I'm not saying making a game more approachable is bad, per se, but the attempt to do so may not please the people who begged for a sequel in the first place.
Unfortunately, Mario Galaxy's success in this regard doesn't rule out BG&E2's potential failure, especially knowing what Ubisoft's idea of a casual game is.
Sir Fidlious Wong (Justin T. McElroy Memorial Burn of the Day Award) @ May 29th 2008 7:32PM
I know, but her jacket is missing from the trailer as is majority of her pouches and such. She was never really billed as a sexy female lead. I mean, let's put it this way, THIS is her cover art... http://www.paylessgames.com/catalogimages/24ac938e99381090b48365c0740BeyondGoodAndEvil_full.JPG
Now compare... http://images.ciao.com/iuk/images/products/normal/643/product-61643.jpg
tmacairjordan87 @ May 29th 2008 7:36PM
I think this just means our hobby is going to be dumbed down to the point where only mindless casuals will play. Probably won't happen entirely for 5, maybe 10 years.
Sure halo and gta sold great...but they would have sold better if they were puppy dog simulators.
Damn you casuals. Damn you all to hell >:(
Sir Fidlious Wong (Justin T. McElroy Memorial Burn of the Day Award) @ May 29th 2008 7:36PM
Okay, I'll grant you that, Ludwig. I just want to remain hopeful that keeping the game approachable means they avoid some of the pitfalls of the first. Such as sometimes not having any directions or punishing the player for failure to meet random challenges rather than giving them a shot at a retry.
I guess it all hinges on what he means by making it approachable. Hopefully it isn't a minigame comp...
Fatass of Sarcasmness @ May 29th 2008 7:50PM
"I think this just means our hobby is going to be dumbed down to the point where only mindless casuals will play."
That is one of the dumbest slippery slope arguments I keep on seeing on the net and it's actually starting to leave bruises on my face, at the rate I keep seeing it and responding by burying my face into my right palm.
tmacairjordan87 @ May 29th 2008 7:53PM
You can mock it all you want and stupidly hit yourself all you want, but it's happening even if it's slow.
ChooChooCharlie (MK 0430-8740-2222) @ May 29th 2008 7:56PM
"Damn you casuals. Damn you all to hell"
What we need to do is bring them over to OUR side. I bought my mom a Wii because she liked playing Wii Sports when I let her try it on mine. Since then, I've steadily introduced her to more and more hardcore games: SM Galaxy, GH3, Twilight Princess, Trauma Center, etc.
She still plays a lot of casual games, but I'm careful to steer her away from the crap.
Fatass of Sarcasmness @ May 29th 2008 7:56PM
I'll keep that in mind. *goes to play one of the fifty thousand epic games that have come out in the last two years*
tmacairjordan87 @ May 29th 2008 7:58PM
If that would work with the majority of them I would be glad to do that but most of them just want their retardedly simple, pick up and play with no thought games and that's all. It would be a dream come true if they moved on from wii sports to call of duty 4, but it's not going to happen.
John Z @ May 29th 2008 8:15PM
tmac, I want to teach a hamster how to make Baked Alaska, but that ain't happening either. Does that mean all food is going to eventually be little nutripellets? Of course not.
Attention everyone decrying anything casual as a threat to traditional gaming: Some people just aren't going to play the kinds of games we like to play. Our hobby is no longer exclusively our own. This does not degrade the quality of the games that exist nor will it be a bad thing in the long run. Shut up and deal with it by playing the games you like and not pissing off the people who play other stuff.