'Beyond Good & Evil 2' Won't Be At E3 2017

Beyond Good & Evil 2 has been in the works for a while now, but fans will have to wait slightly longer to get an extended look at the upcoming action-adventure game. In a comment to a post on Instagram, series creator Michel Ancel said the game won’t be at E3 2017, but it will be highlighted later this year.

“Mhhh, not sure that E3 would be the best place to showcase Bg&e2 but we’re working on the game so sometime this year, you should hear about it!” Ancel wrote.

Read: Beyond Good & Evil 2 First Images Leaked

While the sequel to the cult platformer was periodically rumored, Ubisoft only recently confirmed the title’s existence. In a post on Facebook last October, the developer announced Ancel and Ubisoft’s Montpellier studio were working on the game. Since then, the studio has kept much of the game’s details secret.

The title is the long-awaited next chapter to 2003’s Beyond Good & Evil, which originally released on the Xbox and PlayStation 2. In the game, you took the role of Jade, an investigative reporter who tries to unveil an alien conspiracy in a futuristic world. The game features a distinctive mix of combat and puzzle-focused gameplay within a distinctive and quirky high sci-fi-influenced setting. The series also saw a high-definition remaster that brought the game to the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 in 2011.

While the original Beyond Good & Evil had modest sales numbers, its critical acclaim has made the game a cult classic and helped fuel momentum for the current sequel. At the time of its launch in 2003, Ubisoft and Ancel planned to make Beyond Good & Evil part of a trilogy, but had to shelve plans after the game’s poor launch. Ancel is also best known for his work on Ubisoft’s Rayman and Rabbids franchises.

Beyond Good & Evil 2 was initially announced in 2008 with a teaser, but its development was marked by several fits and starts. Last year on Instagram, Ancel said the technology of the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 had limited what the studio wanted to do with the game, but current-generation consoles finally provided enough power for the game’s scope.

Read: Ubisoft Unveils First Look At Far Cry 5, Set In Montana

Additionally, Ancel is also splitting his time between Beyond Good & Evil 2 and Wild, a game from his own independent Wild Sheep studio. At E3 2016, Ubisoft chief operating officer Yves Guillemot previously said that made it difficult to pin a hard release date for the sequel.

“It’s difficult to say,” Guillemot said. “Michel is working on it, but he’s doing two games at the same time, he’s doing Wild at the same time, it’s coming along, but he has to spend more time on it so we can see it faster."