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Beyond Good & Evil 2 finally resurfaces, gets a full CGI trailer

It's a prequel, set before Jade was born, featuring co-op.

After nearly 15 years the long, long, loooong anticipated sequel to Beyond Good & Evil has finally been unveiled. Only it isn't a sequel at all, but rather a prequel.

Indeed series creator Michel Ancel is full of surprises. Closing Ubisoft's E3 press conference moments ago, Ubisoft unveiled a CGI trailer showing the new cast of this adventure.

Cover image for YouTube videoBeyond Good and Evil 2 Trailer - E3 2017

The trailer begins with an anthropomorphic monkey trading a relic for a disc with a sinister-looking pig-man sporting a Fu Manchu moustache. The deal goes south when the pig-man realises he's been given a chocolate trophy and things go all The Fifth Element as the monkey man hops onto his getaway flying motorbike driven by a dark-skinned human woman with a fro.

As the chase comes to a close our heroes reunite with their crew on a ship and the disc reveals data for a new destination. A woman whose face - or the little of it we can see anyway - looks a lot like Beyond Good & Evil protagonist Jade says "true freedom lies beyond" and they dash off.

Only it's not Jade! Ancel came to the stage and proclaimed that this follow-up is a prequel set before Jade was even born. Could this be her mother? Who knows, but it seems likely enough.

Another surprise is that this prequel will feature co-op.

According to Ubisoft's official announcement, “you can play alone or with friends, everyone will take part in the intense action and drama found throughout System 3's planets, moons and space.” The publisher also noted this prequel will contain “robust online systems.”

As far the plot goes, Ubisoft said “Beyond Good & Evil 2 puts players in System 3, a solar system that is at the center of interstellar colonization and trade in the Milky Way in the 24th century. While private enterprises exploit hybrid slave for domination over resources, System 3 colonists struggle to survive and give meaning to their existence by weaving together the diverse heritages of Old Earth. So begins a new era of space piracy.”

Cover image for YouTube videoBeyond Good and Evil 2: E3 2017 Trailer Breakdown with Michel Ancel | Ubisoft [NA]
Michel Ancel walks us through the announcement trailer, pointing out enticing details we might have missed.

Ubisoft Montpellier has invited fans to communicate with the developer by joining the “Space Monkey Program” to “share ideas and feedback, as well as have opportunities to participate in the game's live development.” You can sign up for this at bgegame.com.