Ubisoft opened its E3 press conference not with a trailer for a new Assassin’s Creed, or images from a new Splinter Cell, but with foul-mouthed, fighting cartoon children. Yes, the big surprise from Ubisoft’s press conference is the announcement of the sequel to South Park: The Stick of Truth, titled The Fractured But Whole. This time around, you’ll continue your friendship with the other kids as the silent protagonist, but instead of high fantasy, the game is built around Butters’ alter-ego Professor Chaos and the other superheroes that the kids portray.
To introduce the new game, Ubisoft brought South Park creators Matt Stone and Trey Parker on stage to discuss the development of the upcoming title. “We might regret it, but we’re doing it again,” was the tone the two friends brought to the stage. The first game was developed entirely in-house, and South Park Studios is working with Ubisoft San Francisco to publish the game.
In The Fractured But Whole, the player will dive deeper into their butthole, learning more about the legend behind your deadly farts. It will take up the same turn-based, classic RPG form that made the first game a success. Players build their character up with new gear, upgraded abilities, and of course a high level of customization.
While on stage, Stone and Parker remarked that they felt like they had finally started to understand making a video game by the time they finished Stick of Truth, and wanted to try their hands at it again with a sequel. We’re glad they did too, since the first game was fun and over the top, putting players right in the middle of what felt like a long episode of the show.
While the game is already available for pre-order on the Ubisoft site, there’s no release date announced as of yet, outside of 2016.