It’s pushing a year since the last substantive Beyond Good And Evil 2 news, but Ubisoft does have a bone for you diehards. The long-promised HD re-release of Beyond Good and Evil is finally on the calendar (via Gamasutra) for release on March 2 at $10 (800 MSP).

Beyond Good and Evil starred Jade, photographer and orphanage caretaker, as she repelled alien invasion from her homeworld and ignited worldwide revolution. The summary may sound, well, a bit ridiculous. However, the game remains a historical landmark for action-adventure design. Jade herself is held up as one of the better examples for strong gaming heroines, being subjected to neither pandering design nor flimsy resolve.

The prospect of a sequel grew dim when creator Michael Ancel departed Ubisoft, and speculation is flying even now about whether this release will play a role in the sequel’s future. Regardless of any possible impact, there are certainly worse ways to spend your gaming coin.

No special features have been revealed for the reissue, so don’t hold your breath for anything beyond the improved resolution. That said, it would be nice to see a French language track with English subtitles. Oh, and maybe Ubisoft could see fit to resolve the show-stopping slaughterhouse bug?. Not that I’m bitter or anything.

It’s hard to believe that two years have passed since that teaser was released. However, if the 600 days of silence hadn’t convinced you that Beyond Good and Evil 2 is dead, then the departure of series creator Michael Ancel from Ubisoft may. The publishing giant hasn’t officially canceled the project yet, but the game’s [...]

Every now and again, someone pronounces PC gaming dead, but it might really be happening this time. MTV Multiplayer is reporting that the PC distribution of Assassin’s Creed will ship with some bloodthirsty DRM. In addition to the usual requirement that you be online to start the game, Ubisoft also wants you to maintain a [...]

There’s a reason you don’t mix exploration gameplay with sandbox gameplay, and Assassin’s Creed is a good test case. You just end up with aimless repetition, even when each task is technically novel. On the other hand, as a game of carefully plotted murder, Assassin’s Creed recaptures something lost since the days of Deus Ex: freedom. Whether or not you’ll enjoy it depends on your willingness to skip half the game.

A bug has been discovered in Assassin’s Creed 2 that can cripple your saved game (via 1up). There is an autosave after the end of chapter 11 that loads into an empty level with no NPCs or exits. With no interactive elements, it is impossible to advance the game from that autosave. If that happens to be your only saved game, then you’ll have to restart from the beginning. At present Ubisoft hasn’t commented on the bug, so the only workaround is to wait until the next autosave event before quitting.

Games are complex information systems, so show-stopping bugs are more common than anyone would like. However, Ubisoft has delivered a noteable number of corrupted saves, lost interactivity, and broken level design show-stoppers over the years. Some even go unacknowledged and must be fixed by the community.

Where’s the AAA polish?

We’ll be wrapping up our PAX coverage with preview impressions of the Assassin’s Creed 2 demo from Ubisoft. Creative director Patrice Desilets took on the role Ezio to kill his way through the streets of Venice so we could see some of the game’s upcoming features in action. Read on for some of the interesting new tweaks you’ll be able to expect from next month’s sequel.

Beyond Good and Evil is four years old now, and it shows in some places. However, the combination of solid Zelda-style exploration, judiciously applied music, and a compelling plot with a legitimately empathetic heroine make this game worth hunting down.