Emile Morel dies at 40 — creative mind behind Rayman Legends and Beyond Good & Evil 2

Game designer and creative director Emile Morel has suddenly died at age 40. The last game he was involved in was Beyond Good & Evil 2.

Emile Morel (Source: gTV France)

Two of Morel’s colleagues shared the news on LinkedIn (spotted by IGN). The cause of death remains undisclosed.

M. Gabrielle Shrager, former narrative director of Beyond Good & Evil 2 and currently lead writer at Tencent’s Lightspeed LA, wrote that Morel “left us behind this week at the shockingly young age of 40.”

“Emile was so very proud of Beyond Good & Evil 2, the Space Monkeys and his teammates. He will be sorely missed.”

“I’m grateful to have worked with you on so many projects,” Ubisoft Montpellier producer Greg Hermittant said. “Even through the most difficult times, you always remained the caring and supportive person you were with your beautiful positive mind.”

Prior to joining Ubisoft, Emile Morel spent nearly four years at Eden Games. He was a level and game designer on Alone in the Dark and also served as senior game designer on Test Drive Unlimited 2.

Morel’s journey at Ubisoft started in 2009 where he worked on The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn. He is probably best known for helping design Rayman Legends, a 2013 platform game that received critical acclaim and sold nearly 4.5 million copies globally.

“With no doubts Rayman Legends is my best memory. I will miss our private jokes and imitations,” Hermittant noted in his tribute.

Morel was also involved in the production of Beyond Good & Evil 2, which is still under development at Ubisoft Montpellier. Earlier this year, he became the creative director for the game.