Rayman designer Michel Ancel leaves games industry after thirty years – Gaming – News

Michel Ancel, the Ubisoft game designer who was instrumental in the Rayman and Beyond Good & Evil franchises, is retiring. He has been active in the games industry for the past thirty years. The Frenchman is now going to work at a nature reserve.

Ancel is credited as the lead designer of the original 1995 Rayman. From Beyond Good & Evil, from 2003, he was the director, designer and writer. Other games to his credit include Peter Jackson’s King Kong, the Rabbids franchise and the upcoming WiLD. Ancel started in the games industry around the age of 18 and is now 48.

Ancel wants to reassure his fans about WiLD and Beyond Good & Evil 2: in being announcement he states that the teams ‘have been autonomous for many months’ and that his departure makes no difference. Also Ubisoft states that Ancel ‘has not been directly involved with BG & E2 for some time’ and that ‘the development team is continuing to work on the creative foundation he has laid’. Furthermore, Ubi states that it will not show images of BG & E2 this year, but is aiming for next year.

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