After Rayman 2’s launch in 1999, its creator Michel Ancel deeply wanted some change from the series that made him one of the most acclaimed game designers in the industry. He gathered a team in Montpellier, France, to start his new project. Jean-François Le Quéré joined this team in July 2000 as a level designer after passing a few tests and an interview with Michel. Beyond Good & Evil was his first professional experience in the industry. “Videogames schools didn’t exist at the time, so the team was made of passionate people coming from diverse environments,” he tells us. “Each of them could bring their own background and references to enrich the game, making it a very varied experience.”Thus, variety became Beyond Good & Evil’s main characteristic. Variety in terms of gameplay mechanics, considering that stealth and fighting phases alternate with hovercraft races and animal shooting sessions thanks to Jade’s handy camera. There’s also variety in terms of level design, with Beyond Good & Evil offering open-world features you can access with air or land vehicles, while memorable puzzle-solving moments are found in its dungeons. The latter provide a distinct Legend Of Zelda flavour, which is not surprising, considering, “Everyone in the studio was very fond of Shigeru Miyamoto’s productions, starting with me,” admits Jean-François. “Also, Jacques Exertier, who wrote Beyond Good & Evil’s story with Michel Ancel, loved to organise live treasure hunts with the team, sometimes lasting several days. You can find this mix of exploration, observation and puzzles to solve in the game.”The Beyond Good & Evil development team also counts Hayao Miyazaki, cofounder of Studio Ghibli, among its other influences and inspirations. Florent Sacré joined the team at the beginning of 2001 as a 2D/3D graphic designer, when the team consisted of between 20 to 30 people. He mostly designed vehicles, settings and materials for the game, while Alexandra Ancel, Michel’s wife, was handling character design. Retro Gamer: Subscribe! This feature originally appeared in Retro Gamer magazine. For more in-depth features and interviews on classic games delivered to your door or digital device, subscribe to Retro Gamer or buy an issue!As the game’s development evolved, Florent ended up taking on the role of lead artist. “Visually speaking, Beyond Good & Evil’s influence is 2000% Miyazaki,” he explains. “We were fascinated by what was considered exotic at the time. Hayao Miyazaki wasn’t as popular in the West then as he is now. Many team members were also sensitive to the French and Belgian bande dessinée production and Disney’s. But Miyazaki remains the biggest poetic inspiration.” An iconic Japanese game also proved to be important to Beyond Good & Evil’s evolution, with Jean-François telling us, “Ico was also one of our influences. We loved Fumito Ueda’s videogame and Michel and Jacques wanted Beyond Good & Evil’s players to feel the same strong relationship between that game’s characters.”Being clearly considered as an invitation to dream and travel, Ubisoft Montpellier’s game needed a music composer with very eclectic, international tastes. Christophe Héral was an ideal choice. “I am a composer who loves musical instruments,” we’re told. “Wherever I travel I can’t help bringing back an instrument with me. These can be quite large. In this case I just buy more airplane tickets. I joined the team in 1999. Michel Ancel was looking for someone who didn’t come from the videogame industry, without particular knowledge about game mechanics. Someone who would come from documentary or linear narrative production. Beyond Good & Evil was meant to be a game for adults, dealing with topics like genetic manipulation to become immortal, which was what the DomZ were trying to achieve. But Jade herself uses a camera as a documentation tool, not a gun. I think there might have been some kind of link.”Being clearly consisports bettingdered as an invitation to dream and travel, Ubisoft Montpellier’s game needed a music composer with very eclectic, international tastes. Christophe Héral was an ideal choice. “I am a composer who loves musical instruments,” we’re told. “Wherever I travel I can’t help bringing back an instrument with me. These can be quite large. In this case I just buy more airplane tickets. I joined the team in 1999. Michel Ancel was looking for someone who didn’t come from the videogame industry, without particular knowledge about game mechanics. Someone who would come from documentary or linear narrative production. Beyond Good & Evil was meant to be a game for adults, dealing with topics like genetic manipulation to become immortal, which was what the DomZ were trying to achieve. But Jade herself uses a camera as a documentation tool, not a gun. I think there might have been some kind of link.”Beyond beats Thus, Beyond Good & Evil’s soundtrack became diverse, playing sounds and music coming from all over the world: Latino during a few hovercraft races, reggae whenever Jade pays a visit to Mammago Island, as well as Asian and Indian themes. “There isn’t really any logic. Except for Mammago Island, obviously, populated by rhinos wearing Rasta hats. We had to record the echoing sounds created on a neighbour’s anvil,” explains Christophe. “We added music coming from an instrument found when travelling, some Indian instrument designed for tourists and sold at the airport! There are Arabic musical extracts when Jade wanders around the city. I am Mediterranean and I like Arabic and Andalusian music. On top of this extract I added my voice singing what I believe was Bulgarian or maybe Croatian words. I have no idea what these words meant but I found it interesting. I could say the same about the Hispanic track, where you can hear fictional Spanish words, just for fun. Beyond Good & Evil is multicultural,” adds Christophe, “and gives a feeling you get when you walk around a city in the Blade Runner film, populated with people from a variety of different backgrounds.”Sign up to the GamesRadar+ Newsletter
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“Beyond Good and Evil’s influence is 2000% Miyazaki”: 21 years on, the developers behind Ubisoft’s cult classic reflect on how it came to be
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