15 years after its first tease, Beyond Good and Evil 2 loses key developer amid investigation into employee welfare

Beyond good and Evil 2
(Image credit: Ubisoft)

Beyond Good and Evil 2's road to release has been rocky, to say the least, and the troubled title has run into yet more difficulties and major ones at that. 

As reported by Kotaku, last week, staff at Beyond Good and Evil 2 developer Ubisoft Montpellier were informed that managing director Guillaume Carmona had left the company. Carmona, who's spent nearly two decades at Ubisoft and has been head of the Montpellier studio since 2019, is said to have been absent since the beginning of the year. No reason was given for his departure.

On top of that, there have been several other notable shifts within the development team, including senior creative director Jean-Marc Geffroy being replaced by Emile Morel, who previously worked on the game as an associate director. Additionally, following the departure of Benjamin Dumaz, Charles Gaudron has taken on the role of game director. 

As well as the changes within the core team, the studio is also reportedly facing a labour investigation due to "an unprecedented number of developers experiencing burnout and going on sick leave." According to Kotaku sources, over the past year, dozens of developers at Montpellier, including higher-ups, have been taking extended leave for stress or sickness. Some have returned while others have left the company entirely, prompting a visit from the Inspection du Travail in Montpellier last December.

This has led to a third-party being appointed to interview Montpellier employees and provide a full report on their health and well-being. A spokesperson for Ubisoft told Kotaku, "The health and wellness of our teams is an ongoing priority. Given the length of the development cycle with Beyond Good & Evil 2, the Montpellier development team is undergoing well-being assessments through a third-party for preventative measures and to evaluate where additional support may be needed."

Last year Beyond Good and Evil 2 surpassed Duke Nukem Forever to become the game with the longest-ever development period. Given all the issues with the game's production, you'd be forgiven for assuming it will never see the light of day. Back in 2021, Ubisoft confirmed that the game is still in development and is "progressing well" but admitted that it's "too early" to say when it'll be released. Now almost two years later, we're still none the wiser.

Beyond Good and Evil 2 may be in limbo, but plenty of great titles are launching before the year is out. See them all in our guide to new games 2023

Anne-Marie Ostler
Freelance Writer

Originally from Ireland, I moved to the UK in 2014 to pursue a Games Journalism and PR degree at Staffordshire University. Following that, I've freelanced for GamesMaster, Games TM, Official PlayStation Magazine and, more recently, Play and GamesRadar+. My love of gaming sprang from successfully defeating that first Goomba in Super Mario Bros on the NES. These days, PlayStation is my jam. When not gaming or writing, I can usually be found scouring the internet for anything Tomb Raider related to add to my out of control memorabilia collection.

Read more
Assassin's Creed Shadows cinematic screenshot
Ubisoft says it's "deeply disturbed" by abuse allegations at support studio that contributed to Assassin's Creed Shadows, Dark Souls, The Last of Us, and more
Assassin's Creed Shadows cinematic screenshot
Ubisoft shareholder plans protest in response to mismanagement, Assassin's Creed Shadows delays, and alleged acquisition talks with Microsoft and EA
Assassin's Creed Shadows screenshot showing Yasuke kneeling and praying while wearing a traditional purple robe
Assassin's Creed Shadows delayed yet again, this time to March 2025, amid Ubisoft's "renewed focus on gameplay quality and engaging Day-1 experiences"
Beyond good and Evil 2
Upcoming Ubisoft games: Every new Ubisoft game in development
Death Stranding 2 screenshot
Hideo Kojima is hard at work on Death Stranding 2, but he doesn't know how much longer he can stand the grueling game development process: "It's incredibly tough"
Assassin's Creed Shadows cinematic screenshot
Ubisoft "won't comment" on reports of Tencent buyout, only says it's "exploring different options" and "will inform the market if and when a transaction materializes"
Latest in Action
Tomb Raider
5 years after Avengers, 2 years after its last layoffs, and who knows how long before Perfect Dark and Tomb Raider return, Crystal Dynamics announces another round of layoffs
Naoe looks over at a dense, lush, green forest in Assassin's Creed Shadows from a viewpoint
Getting Assassin's Creed Shadows on PS5 and Xbox Series X was all about adding "dynamism" to the open world, but the devs seem most proud about the trees
Naoe and Yasuke walk in the sunset in a screenshot from Assassin's Creed Shadows
Following Assassin's Creed Shadows controversy, Baldur's Gate 3 publishing director says "every big AAA game could be better," but players shouldn't be mad "just because some dude told you to"
Assassin's Creed Shadows Wanted Status
How to remove Wanted status in Assassin's Creed Shadows
Naoe kills a target with a black and white filter over the camera highlighting the red of blood spray in Assassin's Creed Shadows, with an On The Radar orange frame
Assassin's Creed Shadows "has a little bit of Tarantino flavor", but its real secret ingredient is intrigue: "It's almost like you're watching an episode of Shogun"
God of War
20 years later, God of War's original monster art has been revealed: behold this army of stick figures slapped on a whiteboard, no clue Kratos is coming for them
Latest in News
Pillars of Eternity
10 years later, in a post-Baldur's Gate 3 and Avowed world, Obsidian is giving its own throwback CRPG Pillars of Eternity a turn-based combat mode
Destiny 2 Lightfall
When Destiny 2 "weekly active users dropped lower and faster than we'd seen since 2018," Bungie assembled an A-Team to put out some fires: "We needed to do something"
Velma, Daphne, Fred, Shaggy, and Scooby-Doo looking at a giant key which is also a clue
Netflix is rebooting Scooby-Doo as a live-action series from the producer of Supergirl and The Flash centered around a "supernatural murder" at a summer camp
Astro Bot
Astro Bot went through 23 pitch iterations before its director promised PlayStation "happy gameplay" and "overflowing charm," though it did once end with robot decapitation that made "some people really upset"
Tomb Raider
5 years after Avengers, 2 years after its last layoffs, and who knows how long before Perfect Dark and Tomb Raider return, Crystal Dynamics announces another round of layoffs
AI Limit
"AI is not as effective as it might appear": Dev of AI-focused Soulslike RPG says they didn't use any AI-generated content and it can't match "genuine creativity"