Following the success of Rayman Origins, its sequel Rayman Legends was released by Ubisoft on the PlayStation 3 in August and the PlayStation Vita this month. It was originally planned as a Wii U exclusive but thankfully this didn’t happen as it would have been a shame to miss out on one of the best 2D platforming titles this year.
The plot is simple; Rayman and friends have been asleep for the last century unaware that the Bubble Dreamer’s nightmares have been increasing. A new character Murphy wakes him up to tell him the teensies and the princesses have been captured and need their help, from here the adventure begins.
I’ve already said this about Rayman Origins, but once again the art in Rayman Legends is beautiful. Each level is rich in detail and excellently designed, everything looks like a painted cartoon as Rayman runs through each brightly coloured world. Entrances to secret levels are well hidden in plain sight and you’ll hear an ‘oooo’ when you discover them. The music is fun and upbeat fitting in well with the visual style of the game. The new musical levels are excellent, a song is played fitting in perfectly with how you move through the level, each jump and attack you make blends in with the tune of the song. The only dampener on this is that if you die during the level you will lose the great beat you were making. Each world in the game has several platforming levels, a boss level, a music level and ones that require you to take control of Murphy with the touchscreen.
The Murphy levels are the weakest, when playing on your own, being forced to give up control of Rayman to the computer and having to aid him walking through each level as Murphy by moving around obstacles on screen with your finger feels tedious. I can understand how this could be fun in multiplayer since you’d be working with a friend to get them through the level but it doesn’t work when playing alone. Unlike the PlayStation 3 version which allows up to four players, the Vita version lets you play only two-player with another Vita owner. The Vita version is also missing some extra challenge levels, making it the weaker choice of the two, though like me you may be willing to sacrifice these additions in order to play it on the go with your Vita.
To progress in the game you have to collect teensies, once you collect a certain amount, a new level will be available. In Rayman Origins this stopped the flow of the game when you had to go back and search levels you’d already played but Rayman Legends avoids this with the Back to Origins levels. I found that rather than having to replay levels, by trying out these levels brought in from the previous game I always had enough teensies to continue without having to play a level twice. That’s not to say replaying levels is a bad thing, you’ll need to if you want to collect all the teensies, it’s just better to be given the option of replaying them rather than being forced to.
As well as an abundance of great platforming levels and challenges, Rayman Legends has oodles of extras too. You can unlock lots of different character skins and play as any of the princesses you’ve rescued or Globox and the teensies. There is a two player football mini game and collectable creatures to win with lotto tickets found at the end of levels. Scratching these lotto tickets can win you a creature or unlock a new Back to Origins level. Going online lets you access daily and weekly challenges too, letting you compete with other players around the world.
Rayman Legends takes what made Rayman Origins great and improves upon it. The only obviously weak sections are the Murphy levels and while the Vita version doesn’t have as much to offer as its PlayStation 3 counterpart, it’s still an excellent platforming game not to be missed by fans of the genre.