The video game industry is at a point now where there are numerous iconic visionaries who have left their mark and could retire knowing their work will inspire generations to come. Michel Ancel is among them, and soon he’ll be doing just that.
In a recent Instagram post, Ancel has revealed that he’s leaving the video game industry after 30 years to focus on another passion of his – wild life. He’ll be involved with an open sanctuary dedicated to education and preserving habitats for wild animals.
As he alludes to, Michel Ancel joined Ubisoft as a graphic artist at the age of 17, with his first job being graphics for the Atari ST’s The Intruder in 1989. His big break was his directorial debut and perhaps most iconic creation — Rayman. He had input on practically all of the limbless hero’s adventures, even directing the more recent Origins, Legends, and mobile spin-offs.
Ancel is also well known for his other critically acclaimed creation – Beyond Good & Evil. The GameCube-era adventure game was ambitious, and its currently in-the-works sequel is so big it’s being called “AAAA” by Ubisoft. Both Beyond Good & Evil 2 and Ancel’s independent project Wild are supposedly still in the works with the teams working autonomously without Ancel, according to the above post.
We wish Michel Ancel all the best with his future endeavours!
Written by Tom Brown
Whether it’s an exciting new entry in a series long established or a weird experiment meant only for the dedicated, Tom is eager to report on it. Rest assured, if Nintendo ever announces Elite Beat Agents 2, he’ll be there.
