So back to the Beyond Good and Evil 2 project. hitRECord’s Terms of Use: Licensing and Assignment It all depends on what the parties agree to at the time of the agreement. Licenses can have limited terms, or they can be unlimited. Licenses can be broad or narrow, depending on the terms. To continue with the film adaptation example above, an author of a popular book might sell the “movie rights” to a movie studio because they don’t have the skillset to produce a film. Licensing allows creators to retain their ownership and control over the work while also letting others use the work in a way that maybe they can’t do by themselves. They can also license some, or all, of these exclusive rights. Some of these rights include reproducing the work, distributing copies of the work, using the work for commercial purposes, and creating derivative works-for example, adapting a book into a film.Ĭopyright holders can transfer (or assign) their rights to another, giving up their ownership interest in the work. These rights are defined in Section 106 of the Copyright Act. This ethical issue notwithstanding, are there other risks an artist might face if they submit content to this project? What happens to that artwork when they submit it? What rights does an artist retain, if any, to the work once they’ve submitted? And, are they opening themselves up to liability by self-identifying as fan artists? Copyright and Licensing: What Rights Do Creators Have?įirst, here is a brief overview of the rights that graphic designers, artists, and composers have when they create content.Įvery copyright holder has a set of exclusive rights that relate to what they can do with their work. They felt that Ubisoft’s solicitation of in-game art was unethical. Artists and others spoke up in protest, advocating their belief that artists should be compensated for their work. Instead of being applauded for this opportunity to let fans “be a part of the game,” Ubisoft and hitRECord were hit with a backlash. This collaboration, Ubisoft and Levitt announced, would allow fans to submit graphics, music, and other content that might make an appearance in the game. Oh 2008 Alec, you poor boy.During its presentation last summer at the giant video game conference E3 Expo, Ubisoft announced a collaboration with Joseph Gordon Levitt’s company, hitRECord, for Ubisoft’s upcoming video game, Beyond Good and Evil 2. 'Turns out the world's not such a terrible place after all,' he writes. Just look at Alec's bright-eyed 'Woowoowoo!' excitement in that post.

Games take as long as they take, but at this point it's been thirteen years since Beyond Good & Evil 2 was announced. There have also been changes to its development team since, as BG&E creator Michel Ancel retired from the industry in 2020. The game hasn't appeared at any of Ubisoft's more recent events, except via old footage playing on a loop during the pre-show countdown, like a tantalising and cruel screensaver.

There was ground combat and space travel, a planet-hopping open world, co-op, crew recruitment and a lot more. The last time we saw Beyond Good & Evil 2 properly was in 2018, when we saw, in fairness, quite a lot.

Keep in mind that this doesn't mean that BG&E2 won't come that fiscal year, or that it won't come earlier, even. Beyond Good & Evil 2 - 2008 Announcement Trailer Watch on YouTube

Hit record beyond good and evil 2