15 years after announcing the sequel, Ubisoft is gonna try to remember how to release a Beyond Good and Evil game with a new edition of the first one

Jade from Beyond Good and Evil.
(Image credit: Ubisoft)

There are 29 separate entries on PC Gamer's list of times Ubisoft has assured everyone that it's still definitely, totally, 100% working on Beyond Good and Evil 2, and yet somehow the prospect of that game coming out seems more remote than ever. But cheer up, because the first game is still quite excellent, and a recent leak from the ESRB—the US game ratings board—suggests that we're due for a new version of it imminently.

Spotted by Twitter user Knoebelbroet, a listing for "Beyond Good and Evil 20th Anniversary Edition" is live on the ESRB's website right now, and is marked as coming to PS4, PS5, Switch, modern Xboxes, and, yes, good old Windows PC. There are even links to storefronts where you'll presumably be able to buy it, although none of them lead to proper purchase pages right now. 

Actually, that's not quite true, but I don't think Ubisoft intends for me to buy the 2018 edition of Nietzsche's Beyond Good and Evil that pops up when I click the Amazon link.

Honestly? That's pretty much all the news there is right now, unless you count the "Rating summary" that just sums up the same Beyond Good and Evil plot you know and love from 2003. Nevertheless, I'm more excited by this than I probably should be. I loved the original BG&E. It was something I picked out basically at random at a shopping centre as a kid after my parents caved and agreed to buy me a game. The fact that it was actually brilliant came as a total surprise.

Although I've long abandoned any hope I had for the second game, the first has held a place in my heart ever since. The ESRB doesn't give any information at all about what kind of thing this 20th anniversary edition is going to be, but I have to imagine it's some kind of quick and (relatively) easy remaster. That suits me fine. The current version of BG&E you can buy on Steam is more than a little awkward. It runs at HD resolutions, true, but it's filled with blurry fonts and textures, players report numerous bugs, and there's no controller support.

If whatever this new version is—presuming it's real and not just someone at the ESRB getting real confused—only fixes that stuff? I'll be pretty content. That is unless Ubisoft does something buckwild like charge £50 for it, but I probably shouldn't give anyone any ideas.

TOPICS
Joshua Wolens
News Writer

One of Josh's first memories is of playing Quake 2 on the family computer when he was much too young to be doing that, and he's been irreparably game-brained ever since. His writing has been featured in Vice, Fanbyte, and the Financial Times. He'll play pretty much anything, and has written far too much on everything from visual novels to Assassin's Creed. His most profound loves are for CRPGs, immersive sims, and any game whose ambition outstrips its budget. He thinks you're all far too mean about Deus Ex: Invisible War.

Read more
assassin's creed shadow naoe
Despite everything, Assassin's Creed Shadows preorders are 'tracking solidly,' Ubisoft says, 'in line with those of Assassin’s Creed Odyssey, the second most successful entry of the franchise'
Watch DOgs 2
Ubisoft's grudging crawlback to Steam continues with achievements for Watch Dogs 2 added a mere 9 years after release
Assassin's Creed Shadows promo image
Ubisoft had an absolutely dire 2024 and desperately needs a win
Shodan, the villainous AI from System Shock
Nightdive's spent 6 years on its update of System Shock 2, so it's now the '25th Anniversary Remaster' and will finally announce its release date on March 20
Desmond sitting in the Animus
13 years on, Ubisoft adds Steam achievements to the one mainline Assassin's Creed game you can't actually buy, but not the updated version you can
The G-Man looking at the camera.
8 bold gaming predictions for 2025
Latest in Adventure
Image of illuminated manuscript-style drawings from the game Pentiment.
Random characters kept swearing in Obsidian's font-obsessed murder-mystery when its procedural error system ran amok: 'Naughtiness abounded'
An image of a corpse with the text "You've been re-educated."
I played the lost videogame sequel to 1984, and came away more nostalgic than ever for gaming's awkward adolescence in 1999
Rosella encounters a satyr in a forest in King's Quest 4
Eagle-eyed streamer spots that Roberta Williams' portrait in King's Quest 4 is based on her author photo on the back of the game box: 'I never noticed it before.'
Myst puzzle game
'You’ve been asking, and we’ve been listening': Myst remake adds a whole new world to the classic adventure, one originally introduced in another overhaul from 25 years ago
The character takes a test in a school room.
Expelled! review
Max, protagonist of Life is Strange and Life is Strange: Double Exposure, stares with trepidation at something off-screen with her friend.
Life is Strange: Double Exposure reportedly a 'large loss' for Square Enix, says analyst, who adds: 'The company's IP fundamentally varies too much between good and bad'
Latest in News
The snazzy red and black HyperX Cloud Alpha wireless headphones float in a teal void. The microphone is attached to the headset.
The best wireless gaming headset is now even better in the Amazon Big Spring Sale, boasting a more than $50 discount
A chip being held up in an Intel fab
Intel is reportedly 'working to finalize commitments from Nvidia' as a foundry partner, suggesting gaming potential for the 18A node
Amazon box
Don't panic! The 'Do Not Send Voice Recordings' option Amazon just removed was only used by 0.03% of customers and they can still have it
Digital generated image of people surrounded by interactive transparent and glowing panels with data. Visualising smart technology, blockchain and artificial intelligence
Now I shall demand the cookies! Proposed new browsing agreement turns the tables and lets users dictate terms to websites
Intel CEO, Pat Gelsinger, with a 18A SRAM test wafer
Former Intel CEO, Pat Gelsinger becomes executive chairman of a 'Technology Platform Connecting the Faith Ecosystem' to work on Christian AI using DeepSeek
Assassin's Creed Shadows immersive mode - Naoe holding a tanto in her hand as two guards fall to the ground behind her.
Assassin's Creed Shadows' first hotfix addresses stability issues and a photo mode crash