Known for mouthwatering visuals and challenging level design,Raymanhas earned its place among gaming’s elite franchises. Admittedly, in recent years, Ubisoft has not exactly treatedRaymanlike an important license, as the series has been primarily limited to mobile devices.
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Putting aside the property’s recent woes,Raymanhas still produced a number of fantastic titles over the years. As tends to be the case when a game series hits it big,Raymanalso lent its name to some rather questionable spin-offs that did little to strengthen the franchise’s brand prestige. Here areRayman’s five best and worst games ever!
10Best: Rayman (1995)
1995’s original side-scrolling platformer deserves recognition for introducingRayman’s colorful universe to the gaming world. Even today,Rayman’s visuals are still nothing short of mesmerizing, boasting colors that pop out of the screen and make each stage feel like a work of art. With six worlds emphasizing their own themes, Ubi Soft (yes, that’s how it was written at the time) went out of its way to ensure that each area felt distinct.
In terms of gameplay,Raymanoffers little to no surprises for anyone familiar with platformers from this era. Some of Rayman’s more unique moves include a glide ability and a detachable and upgradable fist to attack enemies. The level design gets a bit unforgiving inRayman’s later levels, often coming across as unfair. That said, the first half of the campaign is nearly flawless.
9Worst: Rayman Raving Rabbids 2 (2007)
Rayman’s main entries and mobile games are generally quite consistent; however, the same does not hold true for the spin-offs. A party game that highlights the annoying (or hilarious, depending on the person) Rabbids,Rayman Raving Rabbids 2has a wide selection of around 40 minigames, even if their value tends to fluctuate all over the place.
While not the worst project to carry theRaymanname,Rayman Raving Rabbids 2is a step down from its predecessor and cannot hold a candle to thebest party gameson the Wii.
8Best: Rayman Origins (2011)
Nearly a decade afterRayman 3: Hoodlum Havoc, Ubisoft brought the license back withRayman Origins, which reverted back to the side-scrolling platforming of 1995’s original game. The end result is a highly polished and fun old school platformer that improves upon every aspect that madeRaymansuch an enduring title.
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Gorgeous graphics are a given with any mainline entry in the series, butRayman Originswould be nothing without tight level design and precise platforming, two features that remain of high quality throughout the 10-hour campaign.
7Worst: Rayman Rush (2002)
Published asRayman Min Europe,Arenawas a multiplayer party game designed to hold fans over until 2003’sRayman 3: Hoodlum Havoc. With various playable characters and decent enough controls, the spin-off’s two game modes - racing and arena battles - are somewhat entertaining.
In a baffling move, Ubisoft took the 6th generation game and created a PlayStation 1 port calledRayman Rush, only containing the racing mode. Along with obviously looking far worse,Rushis less responsive than its bigger sibling. Just a baffling release.
6Best: Rayman Fiesta Run (2013)
Mobile games have more than earned their reputation as blatant cash grabs that are seldom worth the data required to download them. However,Raymanhas proven to be a fantastic license for respectable mobile games. WhileFiesta Runis the only one to earn a spot on this list,Jungle RunandAdventuresare also quite good.
Transfering Rayman’s basic moveset into a runner proves to be a great match, mainly due to the instantly comprehendible design of the levels. With 75 stages and a number of harder bonus levels,Fiesta Runis a sizable adventure.
5Worst: Rayman: Hoodlums' Revenge (2005)
Serving as a continuation to the story ofRayman 3: Hoodlum Havoc,Hoodlums' Revengesought to bring a fleshed-outRaymanexperience to Nintendo’s Game Boy Advance. Opting for an isometric camera,Hoodlums' Revengeretains the scoring system fromHoodlum Havoc, although it is nowhere near as satisfying in the GBA game.
Unfortunately,Hoodlums' Revengedoes not quite manage to seamlessly replicateRayman’s usually weighty but flexible controls. The end result is a game that is more frustrating than fun.
4Best: Rayman Legends (2013)
Rayman Legendsis the franchise’s best side-scrolling platformer, easily surpassing 1995’sRaymanandOrigins. 2013’s game even contains a number ofOrigins' stages, making its 2011 predecessor somewhat obsolete in the process. With over 100 stages,Legendsis a thoroughly complete and epic adventure, one that ranks among thebest platformers of all time.
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Legendshas everything someone could ever want from a 2DRaymangame: Varied environments, impeccable level design, a robust moveset, and extremely difficult bonus levels.
3Worst: Rayman Brain Games (2001)
Also known asRayman Junior,Brain Gamesis Ubisoft’s attempt to create an educational title starring its humanoid mascot. Is it fair to judge an educational game by the same criteria as the other titles? After all, its goal is firstly to educate rather than entertain, although the former is unlikely to happen without the latter.
Criticized solely on its educational value,Brain Gamesis way too difficult, frustrating, and lethargically paced to teach children much of anything. As a game,Brain Gamescontrols badly, is packed with cheap deaths, and quickly overstays its welcome. So, the spin-off is a failure on any metric.
2Best: Rayman 2: The Great Escape (1999)
A stark departure from its side-scrolling predecessor,Rayman 2: The Great Escapeis the most important entry in the series, even if it has aged somewhat since 1999. While a 3D platformer, the levels are still quite linear, although there are branching paths leading to harder to find collectibles.
Rayman 2has the perfect mix of platforming, puzzles, and enemy encounters. Rayman gradually unlocks new moves that can be used to access previously unreachable paths in levels, in turn allowing more lums to be collected to open new areas in the world.Rayman 2is an excellent game and one ofUbisoft’s best.
1Worst: Rayman 3: Hoodlum Havoc (2003)
To avoid any misunderstandings, we should preface this entry by making it clear thatRayman 3: Hoodlum Havocis not a bad game. In fact, it is pretty decent. That said, 2003’s sequel is the worst of the mainline entries in the franchise. Not bad, just not as good as what came before, specificallyRayman 2: The Great Escape.
Hoodlum Havocrefines its predecessor’s platforming, creating the most responsive 3D Rayman in history. It is just unfortunate that the game prioritizes combat over platforming, while also featuring levels that are a bit too linear for their own good. For some strange reason,Hoodlum Havocalso doubles down on the voice acting. It was not a smart decision.
