Producer: Ubi Studios
Publisher: Ubisoft
Year: 1995
Keywords: Platform Adventure Single-player Side-scrolling 2D
Compability: MS-DOS, Atari Jaguar, PlayStation, Sega Saturn, Game Boy Color, Game Boy Advance, Nintendo DSi, iOS, Android
The original Rayman video game was released across multiple platforms in 1995, followed by DOS in 1996. Thanks to its huge popularity it was later adapted to many modern formats, including Android and iOS. Rayman is one of the most influential platform games in history, resulting in a franchise consisting of 45 games across multiple platforms.
In Rayman we follow the recurring protagonist Rayman; a literally limbless cartoon with floating appendages. The character is easily recognizable and famous for his trademark helicopter hair and literally throwable punches. Rayman lives in a colorful and peaceful universe, inhabited by many strange creatures. In the middle of the world stands the Great Protoon; a power cell that creates balance in the universe. Everything is peaceful until one day when the evil and mysterious Mr. Dark steals the power source and kidnaps the small creatures known as the Electoons.
It is now up to Rayman to restore balance to the universe. In the game we follow him through 6 worlds where he needs to find and free all the caged Electoons, gather special powers bestowed by Betilla the Fairy and defeat the bosses. When all the Electoons have been freed, the final challenge awaits at Candy Château; the home of Mr. Dark.
The world of Rayman
The feeling of vastness in Rayman’s world was unlike anything anyone had ever experienced back when the game was released. The 6 unique worlds are centered around inspired and imaginative themes so unlike each other that it makes the game feel much bigger than it actually is. The themes range from the beautiful and magical Dream Forest to the harsh and cold Caves of Skops. And my personal favourite, Band Land; an icy music world with an excellent soundtrack, where the player must use acrobatics tricks and skate through the slippery lands full of evil notes and instruments in order to reach the evil saxophone boss Mr. Sax. The game faces Rayman with the following worlds and bosses:• The Dream Forest - Moskito
• Band Land - Mr. Sax
• Blue Mountains - Mr. Stone
• Picture City - Space Mama
• The Caves of Skops - Mr. Skops
• Candy Château - Mr. Dark
The game also throws in the odd mini-boss and bonus levels where Rayman has to quickly escape a chasing enemy or rising water level, making the player have to race against the side-scrolling screen. In addition, many of the Electoons in the early levels can not be reached and rescued until Rayman has received a certain special power. This leads to some good old metroidvania-style backtracking where the player continues to discover secrets in previous worlds. The difficulty is progressive, which means that the early levels are a piece of cake, while later bosses such as Space Mama can be more frustrating than modern games such as Dark Souls. If you do not love a challenge, odds are that you will not finish Rayman. (Find out more about odds at https://oddsgurun.com/)
Graphics, sound and gameplay
Back in the mid 90’s when Rayman was released it was one of the most beautiful games anyone had ever seen. The graphics still stand surprisingly strong even today. Nothing less can be said about the soundtrack; unique and magical compositions specially made for each of the 6 different worlds in order to create the perfect atmosphere. The gameplay is flawless as well. The player instantaneously understands how to control Rayman, and every time a new power (such as the ability to run, hang or fly using the helicopter hair) is introduced, Betilla the Fairy tells the player how to use this new ability. One major issue with the game is the difficulty. The game was released without ever being play-tested, which has led to it being renowned for its difficulty even today. It is far from impossible, but a majority of players never complete the game.Rayman - In conclusion
Rayman is an absolutely fantastic game and an immortal classic. It has inspired countless game developers and spawned a series of 45 games, the original perhaps the best one. The world, characters, powers and bosses are one-of-a-kind, and the sound and visual effects are way ahead of their time. I really want to give the game a full score of 5/5, but because of the tremendous difficulty it makes many players rage-quit towards the end of the adventure. For this reason alone we stop at a rating of 4. If you want a nostalgic and magical platform experience and do not fear a proper challenge, Rayman may be the perfect option for you!posted by admin // 02-11-2020 // permalink
