Michel Ancel (48) is considered a brilliant designer of video games. He created the Rayman series and the game Beyond Good & Evil for Ubisoft. With the new games Beyond Good and Evil 2 and WiLD, he made headlines. Now he is surprisingly stepping down. His departure is unappetizing. People wanted to destroy him and his project with false information, he says after his departure.

This is Michel Ancel: The Frenchman is now 48 years old, he developed his first game at the age of 17. In 1995, the first Rayman was released. He became famous with this “jump’n run” series.

His masterpiece was delivered by Ancel in 2003 with “Beyond Good & Evil”, an action-adventure that is cultishly revered by some. Ancel had been with Ubisoft in France for a long time. Over the decades, he built a reputation as a creative mind with his own style like few designer legends in the video game industry.

Recently, he had 2 projects in development:

• Beyond Good & Evil 2 – a fantastically looking, futuristic game with animal-human hybrids, that seemed to set new standards in creating a video game world. It was presented at E3 2017.
• Wild – a kind of shamanistic video game experience, where players can turn into animals. It also seemed like someone had pressed an ambitious artistic vision into a game. Breathtaking concept art that invited to dream has been circulating for several years.

That was the departure: Almost two weeks ago, Michel Ancel announced that after more than 30 years he is now quitting video games to devote himself to his second passion, the wilderness.

Fans should not worry, WiLD and Beyond Good & Evil 2 are in good hands. Great teams are working on them.

Insider article portrays Ancel as a toxic hothead

This was the attack: A major French daily newspaper deals with the scandals surrounding Ubisoft: There was said to have been a sexist atmosphere. They have now directly linked Ancel’s departure to the scandal at Ubisoft.

It was said that Ancel had developed a “toxic management style”. Ubisoft confirmed that an investigation into him is underway as part of the large, internal “investigation” at Ubisoft.

It is said by the French daily newspaper (via liberation):

• Beyond Good & Evil 2 has been in development for 7 years – and the development is hell.
• Ancel constantly changes direction. This leads to exhaustion, depression, and burnout among the team.
• Ancel confirmed in an interview how difficult the development of Beyond Good & Evil 2 is. It is a large project that exhausts him as well.
• The designer has informed the medium that he is voluntarily leaving Ubisoft now.

The picture the article paints is that of a toxic, unpredictable manager who tyrannizes his employees. There is about a quote from a source:

He can explain to you that you are a genius, that your idea is wonderful, and then he tears you apart in a meeting. He tells you that you are nothing but a piece of crap and your work is worthless and then he doesn’t speak to you for a month.

Article excerpt about Michel Ancel

Fake News – Enviers want to destroy him, says Ancel

This is how Ancel reacts now: He firmly defends himself on Instagram against the article about him. He calls the description of the circumstances of his departure “fake news.” He has some issues with the image that others portray of him:

• Some envious people are said to have gossiped about him out of anger.
• The news has come across as if it were connected to the events of sexual harassment at Ubisoft – such accusations are a disgrace.
• He is not toxic at all, but always respected his employees. He does not manage the project, but only contributes ideas. Important managers would handle that. Journalists should talk about them.

• He quit his job out of exhaustion, and there are no other reasons. He did not try to escape his responsibilities. He is participating in the investigation because he still believes in truth and justice.
• The article from the daily newspaper contains “false information that comes from some few people who want to destroy him and his project” (via instagram).
• He sharply criticizes the daily newspaper: They should have taken more time with their reporting and should have questioned him regarding the allegations.

Fans react in shock to the development. One writes to him: As a farewell, he could have at least left them one last Rayman.

The French publisher Ubisoft is considered the software company in Europe. However, Ubisoft has been shaken by serious accusations against some of the company’s managers for several weeks now. Over the years, a toxic atmosphere is said to have developed. The head of Ubisoft has now announced a change in culture and some key employees have been dismissed.

An insider report provided insight into the company culture problems:

Insider report paints a bleak picture of Ubisoft – sexism as a system

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First testers have been able to try out the new Xbox Series X and now share their experiences. Exciting statements are made about the loading times, the console’s noise level, and the games’ performance.

This is what happened: Some media outlets had the opportunity to test the new console from Microsoft. It seems that they can finally talk about it, leading to exciting test results.

So, if you haven’t pre-ordered the Xbox Series X or want more information, you will find exciting news here.

We are embedding an initial report from YouTube here. We will show you more details throughout the article:

What testers say about the loading times of the Xbox Series X

This can be summarized: In short, the Xbox Series X is significantly faster than the previous model in terms of game loading times. Microsoft had revealed something similar already.

The magazine “The Verge” has made a large comparison for this purpose. It shows some popular games and their loading times in comparison:

It is noticeable that the Series X is always significantly faster. The difference is sometimes even greater than a minute. Destiny 2 stands out here, loading a full 1 minute and 9 seconds faster. Other games are ready to play in just a few seconds.

Other tests support this picture. Gamespot states that Red Dead Redemption 2 loaded in just 38 seconds for them. On the One X, it took 2:08 minutes there. Thus, the difference is even greater here.

The noise level of the Xbox Series X

What was said about the noise level: Everyone knows the problem: Often, you have to turn up the TV louder because the console simply makes too much noise.

With the Xbox Series X, this should no longer be the case. According to IGN and their tests, the new console is incredibly quiet. When no game is running and it is turned on, the Xbox Series X makes hardly any noise. Even when a game is running, in IGN’s case it was Red Dead Redemption 2, the console is “pretty quiet”.

In comparison to the One X, the new console performs significantly better. IGN says that it is much quieter, and the difference is audible.

How is the performance?

What was said about the performance of the Xbox Series X: Basically, it can also be summarized here that there has been a performance increase – at least according to the testers.

The Verge writes that they noticed a performance increase in almost every game. Here they particularly highlight Destiny 2, which reportedly looks significantly better on the Xbox Series X.

Gamespot also reported something similar. However, they mentioned Final Fantasy XV as an example. The testers there stated that the game ran on the Series X at a steady 60 FPS.

How does it look with playing together? There are also positive test results about this. The Verge states that they were able to play together with other friends on the old Xbox One X without any issues during their tests.

This was different with the One X and Xbox 360. There you could not play together, but had to have the same console.

Testers agree: Xbox Series X is an improvement

This is what every tester says: Across the tests of different magazines, the same result emerges: The Xbox Series X is an improvement compared to the previous model.

It is also said that not everything has been tested yet, and this is just a preliminary assessment. More is expected from the Xbox Series X. Gamespot concludes: “There is still a lot to discover with the Xbox Series X.”

If you want more information about the new Xbox Series X, check here:

Xbox Series X – Everything about release, specs, price, games, and controller

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Since it became known that Microsoft acquired Bethesda, players on platforms like PlayStation or Switch are worried that there won’t be any new Bethesda games for their platforms soon. Official statements from Microsoft and Bethesda are vague, but according to an expert, it is very clear that Microsoft will offer various Bethesda titles exclusively for the Xbox Series X and S.

Who said what? Tom Warren is a Senior Editor at the tech website The Verge. He previously ran his own news site about Microsoft and has frequently gained attention for leaks and analyses on Microsoft, Xbox, and other gaming topics. He is considered well-connected in the industry.

Via Twitter, he recently commented on the ongoing topic “Microsoft buys Bethesda“. Many players are still wondering whether Microsoft will reserve future Bethesda titles exclusively for the new Xbox Series X, S, and Windows, leaving PS5 players out in the cold.

[There are] many debates about whether Microsoft will offer Bethesda games exclusively in the future. Of course, they will. Not every single game, but exclusive content is exactly what companies like Disney, Netflix, and others rely on to attract subscribers. Xbox Game Pass will be the same.

Tom Warren via Twitter

Will Bethesda games really be exclusive to Xbox?

What does that mean? Tom Warren indicates that Microsoft will definitely offer certain titles exclusively for the Xbox Game Pass. Not every game, but certain top titles will likely land exclusively on Game Pass.

For the subscription service, it is already known that new Bethesda titles will be available immediately on the Pass when they are released. Those who think of “Netflix for gamers” are probably correct, and according to Warren, streaming services like Netflix and others work exactly this way. Namely, by attracting and binding customers with highly sought-after titles.

In a reddit thread about the tweet, many users share this opinion:

• TriedToBlockMeReBorn: “I assume that most future games from Bethesda will be exclusively available for Xbox and PC.”
• Gallias: “Well, it’s obvious that you don’t spend $7.5 billion and release your games on other platforms.”
• Cheezewiz239: “You don’t spend $7 billion and not get exclusive rights. Why can’t people understand that? If they only got time-limited exclusive rights, they wouldn’t buy the parent company, and time-limited exclusive rights are achievable with a few million and not a whole 7 billion.”
• Froztbyte: “Considering that every Bethesda release will now take place on day one of Xbox Game Pass. That’s pretty strong!”

The overall sentiment is that Bethesda will bring its major titles exclusively to Microsoft systems, as anything else would make no sense. However, there is also excitement about the immediate availability of games on Game Pass, which makes it even more attractive.

However, few users are still hopeful that Microsoft will not make everything exclusive. Because if Microsoft – so the argument – also released games for the PS5, they could cash in twice. Once through Game Pass customers and then again from sales on the PS5.

Microsoft can still make money from sales when they release PS5 games. However, if they have a Game Pass, it’s one more reason to buy an Xbox. I don’t understand how they could lose out on that. But if they make it completely exclusive to Xbox, then there will be no sales on PS5 at all.

User Ihatemyselfbutnotyou

This is the official statement: Officially, there is still no clear statement from Microsoft or Bethesda regarding the exclusivity issue. The last statement from Xbox chief Phil Spencer is that they will definitely offer the games via Game Pass on PC and Xbox.

Whether games will also be released on other platforms, such as PS5, will be decided on a “case by case” basis. Therefore, Tom Warren’s statement could indeed make sense. It is possible that major Bethesda titles like the upcoming Elder Scrolls VI or Starfield will only be released as exclusive titles for Windows and Xbox Series S/X for the time being. This would be at least the method that Netflix would have chosen with a comparable series.

This would be a counterexample: However, Microsoft has so far placed little emphasis on exclusives. The new Minecraft Dungeon is also being released for PlayStation. As the owner of developer Mojang, Microsoft could have released the game only for Windows and Xbox here. Perhaps Microsoft expects other benefits from the Bethesda acquisition and in the end does not want to rely on exclusives.

However, it is unlikely that existing Bethesda titles will disappear from the PlayStation offer. Especially service games like ESO or Fallout 76 will certainly remain playable on PlayStation 5. Fans are already actively speculating which studios Sony could buy in response to match Microsoft.

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Even with the 2nd wave of pre-orders, the PlayStation 5 was quickly sold out. The chances for a 3rd wave of pre-orders are currently low, but not completely hopeless. An old tweet from Sony gives some still hope.

So far, the PS5 pre-orders have gone like this: After Sony announced the price and release date of the PS5, the next-gen console could basically be pre-ordered for the first time shortly thereafter. But it started too early and ended in chaos. In short: the interest was huge, the stocks apparently (too) low. The PS5 was quickly sold out, many interested parties went away empty-handed.

Sony then apologized and promised a restock in the form of a 2nd wave. Although this went a bit smoother, it was still chaotic. And even after that, not everyone who wanted to pre-order a PS5 had secured a console.

PS5 sold out – will there be a 3rd wave or is it over for pre-orders?

This is the current situation regarding pre-order possibilities for the PS: Currently, the PS5 is completely sold out after the 2nd wave. And in the near future, this is unlikely to change. For example, Amazon and MediaMarkt have made it clear that they will not be taking any more pre-orders for the PlayStation 5 for the foreseeable future.

Moreover, there have been recurring rumors that both the PS5 and the Xbox Series X could face supply issues due to the global impacts of Corona – and that could last until spring 2021. Also, rumors suggest that new pre-orders may only be possible around Christmas 2020 and that retailers might not offer PS5 in local markets due to Corona restrictions. But these are just rumors; officially, Sony has kept silent on this so far.

This still gives hope: For some who still hope they might be able to get a PS5 at release, an older tweet from Sony, where the company apologized for the situation and the course of the first wave of pre-orders, might still give some hope.

It says there, among other things: “And more PS5 consoles will be available towards the end of the year.” With this, Sony refers to the possibility of pre-orders, specifically after the 2nd wave.

When exactly this will be the case and how large the possible contingent will be is still unknown. And that is why some are still not giving up hope.

“Towards the end of the year” could mean the immediate Christmas season, but the release time frame with November 12th or 19th is already at the end of the year. So it is quite possible that Sony will announce more consoles for pre-order before the PS5 release.

We will keep a close eye on the matter for you and let you know as soon as there is a new development. Perhaps Sony can still make some interested parties happy directly at the launch of the next-gen PlayStation.

If you are still undecided about your next-gen console choice: PS5 vs. Xbox Series X – Which console should you buy?

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