Beyond Good & Evil: 20th Anniversary Edition Review

Ubisoft brings us a new reissue of one of its most famous games, Beyond Good and Evil: 20th Anniversary Edition. The year passed by 2003 when the French studio surprised locals and foreigners with one of those that today are considered the best, one of the best works of the French team. The creators of Rayman They have managed to design a universe with a deep plot and which, without a doubt, still has much to exploit. With the expectation of a second part which has recently been confirmed (read here) to be still in development, we find this title which allows us relive his first part in the best possible way. Read on to find out everything that’s inside this anniversary edition.

For this analysis, I played on a Xbox Series X to the version of Xbox Series X/S. I mainly selected the quality mode (recommended).

We return to the Beyond Good & Evil universe 20 years later, and we discover that it is still as good as ever.

We just need to stand in front of the TV/monitor for a while. a few hours to realize how big it is Beyond Good and Evil: 20th Anniversary Edition. I don’t know if it’s the settinghe the charisma of his charactersare history nominal (although very well built), its riddles…Or simply the way of designing a title which, from the first moment, makes it clear that here, It will take some work to move forward..

Why am I saying that ? It’s not that the title has overly complicated puzzles, far from it, but lately we’re getting used to a little voice (in this case, the secondary character on duty) telling us what and how to proceed to move on to the next phase. Although some games that carry out this practice if they leave room for imagination for their secondary tasks, in case of Beyond Good and Evil It’s totally different. The courage to take on a job in which, yes, you can sometimes get stuck simply because you don’t know where to go or what to look for, is commendable.

And the most curious thing is that while replaying this superb title, I discovered playable mechanics

and especially, of scenarioswho still today Ubisoft tries to imitate. It is a pity to see how these ideas, which without being the most original in the world, have allowed themselves the luxury of adding them without fear of reprisals. Even now, They are not able to reproduce it. We hope that, with its second part, we will be able to see an evolution of the concepts already covered in this work.

The story, the charisma of its characters, the setting… the universe of Beyond Good & Evil has enormous potential.

To go back to the story a bit, in case anyone doesn’t already know, we are told the story of Jade. This one, who lives in a kind of colony on a planet called The hillssuffers every day from a terrible alien invasion. THE DomZthey kidnap humans and so far I can read (because, even if the work is several years old, it’s always good that it can continue to be discovered by those who haven’t played it). The same people involved in the conflict Jadehis uncle Zerdy and more characters. Of which we emphasize Double HOr Triple Zas he would like to call himself.

With this premise, we try to discover some kind of intrigue This seems to exist between these aliens and the sections Alpha (who are supposed to defend the inhabitants of The hills). During this adventure we will discover all the characters who give life to this saga, gain our unconditional affection and respect in a short time. His story, told in a more than correct way for the time (even if today its weaknesses are visible), reaches captivate us thanks to all the variables listed in the previous paragraphs.

Not only do we keep everything surrounding the universe of Beyond Good and Evil. If he is remembered for anything, it is for the a lot of mechanics that he had proposed at the time. Since then Direct melee action, vehicle driving, racing, puzzles, stealth sections…Really, I had everything (or almost everything). It is true that currently, many of these mechanisms seem too minimal, although effective. But putting all this in relation to the duration of the title, it made At no time could one be bored

.

Ubisoft’s title offers a wide variety of mechanics that could be exploited today and reach unsuspected limits.

In this remastering, I noticed some much more ergonomic and precise controls. I particularly appreciate the sections of secret (even if the enemies are a bit limited). Yes, I think the gameplay is one of the best things the game has to offer. But where it really shines is in its level design and sound design “mini” open world. For what Beyond Good and Evil It allows you to discover new areas, pursuits, races, infiltrations… as you progress. The game gives you the option to complete the one that interests you the most. You should always take this with a grain of salt, because at some point you have to manage to a series of pearls This can only be achieved by doing these side quests.

In any case, we see that these, from the simplest to the most complex, coincide in their various situations. Playing with a style of constant headachebecause to advance several times, we will have almost no clues. How to enter this place, how to reach a ledge, how to open a sealed door… We will constantly ask ourselves these questions, having to be attentive to our surroundings and let our imagination run free to move forward.

We cannot ignore the strugglein close combat as well as at the helm of our vehicle. The hills It is divided into small islands, these will be accessible thanks to our kind of “ship” which will also have a series of weapons. It the melee is pretty basicwe will carry a cane, relying only on an attack button and a dodge button. The final boss fights are also fairly straightforward, although the design The last one is very interesting. In addition, we will have a button to activate the special ability of our companionwhich will be very useful even for unblocking passages.

But what does this 20th anniversary edition bring?

And the base game is already more than enough reason to immerse yourself in this great work, the additions generate even more incentives. From some more refined mechanics As I mentioned earlier, until the inclusion of quality of life improvements which are noticeable, and many. Now we have self-observednail general improvement of the visual aspect of the product which we will analyze in the corresponding section, a gallery on how the game was designed, up to the inclusion of a new mission which will act as a bridge between this first part and its expected sequel.

By focusing on this new mission, even if it doesn’t add anything new to the gameplay, it does narratively. Well, thanks to the famous floppy disks (CD/DVD) that are used to view reports or listen to audios, we will be told something that directly connects to the possible story of Beyond Good and Evil 2. Which, in reality, is something that all fans of this universe have been waiting for about 20 years. It seems that, This wait is about to end.

So what do we ask of Beyond Good & Evil 2?

Well, the answer is simple, even if it is just an opinion, I think many will agree that what we want is for don’t lose your essence

. Don’t give up on your character’s development, know how to exploit its formidable setting, dive into the emotions of Jade and above all, in his past. What everything it offers mechanically is exploited at 120% and continue to grant this a multitude of situations to which we are already well accustomed. And above all that be brave on how to design your puzzles so that we can enjoy solving the mysteries they involve.

Although the expectations are really highFor now we just need to see something gameplay and an approximate release date. As I explained at the beginning of the analysis, from the Ubisoft confirmed that They are still working on this sequel and it is expected that sooner or later we will have more news about it. We know that the French studio is immersed in a multitude of projects, but it would not be too much to ask that it also focuses on Beyond Good and Evil 2.

The technical and audiovisual part, a clear improvement which greatly increases the quality of life of the product

Although it is a 2003 game, a remake could be expectedto have a more than worthy remastering. With a graphic quality that, at least in Xbox Series Xoffers 4K resolution and a stable frame rate of 60. Although it is not the most important, it has been added new texturesCharacter design has been greatly improved, continuing with a artistic style Cellular shading.

Regarding audio, we still have a masterful soundtrack who knows how to get noticed at the most opportune moments. He The Spanish dubbing is always remarkable and finally, after many years, we hear in a certain section the correct pronunciation of our protagonist’s name, Jade.

conclusion

Beyond Good and Evil This is one of those works that we remember over time. The first time I had it, and this last time, the sensations were the same Well, this story, these characters, this level design and its mechanics are really imperishable. Nail a timeless work and serves as an example of how, no matter what times we live in or the current state of the industry, video games They are capable of achieving much more than just entertainment. They give us the opportunity to think, to imagine, to develop and above all, discover new adventures. If you haven’t been able to play it yet, or if you already have, have no doubt that this 20th Anniversary Edition This is the best way to do it.

Beyond Good and Evil: 20th Anniversary Edition is available for Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, PS4, PS5, Nintendo Switch And PC. Stay with us and visit our website through the following link.