Emile Morel, a Ubisoft game designer and creative director for Beyond Good and Evil 2, has passed away at age 40.
The announcement was originally spotted by IGN on LinkedIn, where two individuals that worked with Morel made tributes on the website.
"A cherished colleague for over a decade at Ubisoft Montpellier, we laughed and wept through good times and bad, and shipped a lot great games together," Morel's former colleague M. Gabrielle Shrager wrote on LinkedIn. "Emile was so very proud of Beyond Good and Evil 2, the Space Monkeys and his teammates. He will be sorely missed."
According to Morel's LinkedIn page, he began working at Ubisoft in June 2009. Other projects Morel was involved in while employed at Ubisoft include Rayman Legends, where he served as the game's senior game designer. Morel was already involved in Beyond Good and Evil 2, originally serving as the Associate Creative Director, before taking over as creative director for Beyond Good & Evil 2, following the departure of Jean-Marc Geffroy.
"It is with a heavy heart that we share the sudden passing of our friend and colleague Emile Morel. We send our deepest condolences to his family, friends, and teammates all over the world," Ubisoft Montpellier said in a statement posted on LinkedIn. "We would like to take a moment to acknowledge the significant impact he made over the years on different games that make up the rich history of our studio ...We will never forget Emile and his immense contribution to the BGE2 universe will forever endure."
Beyond Good and Evil 2 was initially revealed in 2017 at E3, but Ubisoft has been silent on the game's development since. In February 2022, we learned that the game was still in pre-production. while in August of that same year, we learned that Ubisoft hired Sarah Arellano to serve as the game's lead writer.
Image Credit: Greg Hermittant/LinkedIn
Editor's Note: Story has been updated with a statement from Ubisoft.
Taylor is a Reporter at IGN. You can follow her on Twitter @TayNixster.