Rayman Legends Retold

[Pirez]

It's the richest version of the world, the widest set of characters.

Hard disagree on this one. I think R3's world is the richest and as for Legends... Well the character set is so wide that it features 30 alternates of Barbara and they had to include Betilla back into the retelling. For the record I think R2 has the widest set of characters, including the widest character Clark.

[Hunchman801]

I agree with Pirez, the dozens of Barbara and Teensie clones don't make the world feel any richer. The same goes for the environments, most of which are directly inspired by human tropes in Legends. Whatever happened to the rich bestiary and wide variety of environments we had in Rayman 3?

[danyq94]

I think they intended the playable characters

[SuperSinge]

Origins is already a very ambitious reinvention of Rayman 1, sort of... Legends has bigger issues we think we could solve. For example, the navigation with the gallery of paintings was a bit on the weaker side.

Wait, what? Are they seriously arguing that Origins didn't need to be the priority because its story was slightly better, but Legends did because the menu screen was bad? You do not need a massive AAA budget and 3 years of development just to fix a level select screen...

The absolute funniest part is at the very end where Gounon says the golden age of platformers was the early PS2 days with Rayman 2 and Mario 64. If you openly admit that 3D era was the peak of the franchise, THEN WHY DID YOU REMAKE THE 2D GAME?!

They are just trying to justify why they took the safest, easiest route possible. They are completely missing the point of what made those original games special.

[Hunchman801]

Wait, what? Are they seriously arguing that Origins didn't need to be the priority because its story was slightly better, but Legends did because the menu screen was bad? You do not need a massive AAA budget and 3 years of development just to fix a level select screen...

The narration in Origins is so bad that I prefer Legends' complete lack of a story anyway.

[danyq94]

Looking at this map brought back a distant memory.
Back in the days of the Ubisoft forums, there were sections for each franchise, remember?
On the Italian Ubisoft forums, there were active moderators who, at the time, used to run quizzes for the users. Some questions and answers were very “personal,” on the verge of headcanon, like Ed being Rayman’s cousin or, and this is the most important one, Rayman’s planet being named Ubisoft.

Now I want to point out the map of the Glade of Dreams: it’s shaped like the current Ubisoft logo.
Could it be a coincidence? Since the game is co-produced by Ubisoft Milan, I like to think that it’s not a mere coincidence.

[Haruka]

It had to be Rayman leaks to encourage me to watch for the first time a full State of Play stream.

But I begin to talk about out my first impressions concerning what was both shown in the reveal trailer and other things other people showed online. So here we go...

First, I don't understand that why of all the five core games, Legends was chosen for a remake. The most recent entry that's already a solid and pretty game. I can only think about executive persistence. Although my opinion is suspicious, I still think that Rayman 2 would be the best candidate for a modern remaster as long the original art direction was fully respected (if it was to be UbiArtified, I dispense the idea).

I have mixed feelings about some artistic choices, namely for character design. I'm not much of a fan of seeing Polokus, Globox and Teensies with teeth, especially for the first two cases. Is it really necessary this many goofy-looking teeth? Even Origins and Legends didn't need it (I'm not counting Globox's damage animation). I can understand they're trying to give some emphasis to facial expressions but I don't like much.

Other strange decisions I can point out are seeing a realistic Betilla in the key art and Rayman's eyes be separated. When I saw Betilla in the leaked artwork, at first I thought it was AI. She contrasts a lot with the goofy cartoon approach for almost everyone (I believe only Barbara actually looks fine so far). Rayman's new design feels like a downgrade when compared to the model created for the Sparks of Hope DLC (in which I have yet to play someday).

I know that the gameplay footage is subjected to changes to the final build but I hope they change the 2D Teensies layout because it feels bland with the overstylized, also a downgrade from the pretty and cute faces from the 2D counterpart. I also agree with Droolie concerning the background detail: they're beautiful for certain (I still miss the original trilogy's aeshtetic tho) but too much visual information might end up distracting. I also hope they cut down on the number of times Rayman speaks in normal gameplay, it gives me some Rayman M/Arena flashbacks with his "Cowabunga!".

Now for positive things I can remark from what I've seen/watched so far:

Having a return of voice acting was something I wasn't expecting. Even less having David Gasman and Billy West returning to voice both Rayman and Murfy (Murphy? They don't seem to decide how his name is supposed to be spelled). I'm equally relieved Globox is not being voiced by Leguizamo, thank goodness.

Having more cutscenes, a new villain and new levels/segments are an opportunity to enrich more the game as the original one was quite flat story-wise. Not that I'm expecting a complex narrative like Rayman 2 but you get my drift. People that had the opportunity to playtest assured that it's more than just a 3D skin to the original entry, lets hope this is true in the end. In short, the game treatment could be close to what it was done for Oddworld: New 'N' Tasty but with new gameplay elements (the dragon rides briefly reminded me of Rayman 3's Murfy flight and recently discovered R3 prototype footage!).

Grant Kirkhope confirming in his Instagram that he was invited to compose music for Retold is also neat, I believe it will work well with the atmosphere of the "new" game.

I was surprised with the pre-order skins too, especially the Hoodmonger Globox, the Classic Betilla Barbara and the Heavy Metal Fist Rayman. Cool to see the classic Rayman skin be playable but again, where's R2's style?

Having Origins Enhanced also included and for 39,99€ only is an excellent deal, difficult to refuse. What I'm most pleased about this new release is the confirmation that the PSVita's Collectible Relics weren't forgotten (although I still hate the final mosaic and still headcanon that's a Teensie folklore story).

Also, for the first time since the original N64 and European PC releases of Rayman 2, we have a new Glade of Dreams print that includes locations from all the 5 core games ! I guess this means the R2 map isn't canon anymore? I like how it resembles now a spiral. Accordingly to a NintendoLife interview, a series reboot might be on the table, quoting what was said by Loic Gougnon concerning why out of all games, Legends was chosen for a remake:

"I think people will expect us to remake older games, if they don't have all the context. The context was that we wanted to be the foundation for the future [of the franchise]. We felt that the most complete package of Rayman, in terms of characters, in terms of world diversity, was Legends. We agreed early on that if we had to build a world map, then we would take some elements from [Rayman] 2 and 3, but the main package — the tree in the middle, the main continents, the main tribes —would have Rayman Legends at the centre.

"So that's where it led us naturally, not just to make a game, but to think about the future, to use it as a foundation."

For now that's all I have to comment but on a closing note I'm glad it was announced both for Nintendo Switch 2 and PC as well. The latter will mean it will be much easier to plan a walkthrough recording, although I have both a capture card and a Nintendo Switch 2 system if it was ending to be a console-exclusive launch. I'm definitely interested in the Launch edition anyway for my physical game library. I believe this Autumn will be a busy season for my resurrected YouTube channel...

[Hunchman801]

Back in the days of the Ubisoft forums, there were sections for each franchise, remember?
On the Italian Ubisoft forums, there were active moderators who, at the time, used to run quizzes for the users. Some questions and answers were very “personal,” on the verge of headcanon, like Ed being Rayman’s cousin or, and this is the most important one, Rayman’s planet being named Ubisoft.

Was that on the old Groupee/Infopop forums? I didn't remember there was an Italian section.

Now I want to point out the map of the Glade of Dreams: it’s shaped like the current Ubisoft logo.
Could it be a coincidence? Since the game is co-produced by Ubisoft Milan, I like to think that it’s not a mere coincidence.

I think both happen to be designed as spirals, but for different reasons. It could be a nice touch, though!

Not that I'm expecting a complex narrative like Rayman 2 but you get my drift.

I actually find the story of Rayman 2 fairly simple and basic, but the atmosphere and the lore make the game feel much deeper.

[Rsandee]

I played Origins for like 1-2 hours back in the day over 10 years ago, and I've never really played any of the modern 2D UbiArt games ever again and I'm not about to start doing so.
Call me stubborn, or whatever else you prefer but I've never cared about the UbiArt games and I just want a mainline 3D Rayman game which is about Rayman and that's it.

[Hunchman801]

Given that they used Legends as a starting point for the reboot of the series, you can be sure that if we ever get a 3D Rayman 4, Barbara and other human characters will be in it.

[Haruka]

I actually find the story of Rayman 2 fairly simple and basic, but the atmosphere and the lore make the game feel much deeper.

That's true, but it's that atmosphere, art direction and lore that really made me become a Rayman fan. Everything woven together made the experience unforgettable for me.

[Hunchman801]

You and me both, Haruka.

By the way, I just added a poll to this topic. Feel free to cast your votes everyone!

[Haruka]

Voted. The most curious thing is that the actual presentation card for the franchise was Rayman 1, which was already stunning for my child me with the rich colour pallet and fluid animations. The soundtrack was other unforgettable detail (Peace to Rémi's soul), but the sequel was what really sold my soul!

[Xtof60]

Now that we have seen the actual footage, I have to say my feelings are still pretty mixed.

I originally said I was completely on board with them adding a real story to try and stitch this franchise's messy lore back together. But looking at how inconsistent this new map is with the previous games, I have already lost all hope for that. It is just classic Ubisoft doing massive retcons again, because they never seem to learn. Of course it doesn't add up with the others LOL.

I am also still standing by what I said about the character designs over the weekend. Seeing them in motion really did not help. Having a hyper-realistic fantasy elf Betilla standing next to a weirdly textured Globox just looks so disturbing. It really feels like they stripped away the quirky, cartoony identity for a generic mobile ad look. And Rayman having separated eyes is just completely wrong.

On the positive side, I do still think giving the game a real 3D hub world instead of just disconnected paintings is exactly what this game needed. The dragon rides also look pretty spectacular in action, even if the whole thing still gives me major Spyro vibes just like the new logo did.

At the end of the day, getting Retold plus the Origins Enhanced Edition for 40 bucks is an insane deal. Getting a definitive version of Origins with uncompressed graphics is what I have been most hyped about since the leaks started anyway. I will definitely be picking up the bundle, I just have absolutely zero faith in this new lore direction.

[Tribelle2026]

[Xtof60]

"Betilla": Boost your Lum reward to 42 Lums by watching an ad!!1

[Giant Chicken]

This "Betilla" looks like something you'd see on a slot machine

[RayGamer99]

This "Betilla" looks like something you'd see on a slot machine

"Betilla": Brave hero, the Glade of Dreams is in danger! To restore balance to our profit margins the world, you must get three Jackpots and win up to $2000!

[danyq94]

Was that on the old Groupee/Infopop forums? I didn't remember there was an Italian section.

Probably yes, the time was around 2007-2012. I remember the time of the leaks of Prince Of Persia 2008. Long time ago indeed.

Fake AI generated, huh?

[hoodlumsworld]

Okay, after watching through all those gameplay videos I just linked, I have some mixed feelings to unpack.

Purely from a visual standpoint, I will admit the game is undeniably gorgeous. The lighting, the depth of the backgrounds, the whole 2.5D style... it really does look like a high budget animated movie in motion. The 3D Toad King model looks absolutely incredible!

I am still not entirely sold on the character redesigns, though. Rayman having separate eyes is just going to take a lot of getting used to. And I am definitely sticking with my nickname "Generilla" for Betilla, because she still looks like a generic NPC from a cheap mobile fantasy MMO.

On the bright side, the structural changes are a massive win. Replacing that functional but boring tent hub with fully explorable 3D areas and actual story cutscenes gives the game the sense of a real journey that it desperately needed. The new 3D dragon rides also look like a blast and a really fun evolution of the classic mosquito levels!

Hearing David Gasman and Billy West fully voice the characters is honestly a dream come true, even if the forced catchphrases during gameplay are a bit much. I am also really glad Christophe Héral is back. The music in the videos sounds great, I just hope he balances out the ukuleles and kazoos with some of that classic atmospheric mystery the older games had.

I still firmly believe that spending a AAA budget to remake a 13 year old game we already know front to back is a completely baffling corporate decision, especially when Rayman 2 and 3 are sitting right there waiting for a remake. But seeing the devs pour their hearts into this, and getting the Origins Enhanced Edition bundled in for just 40 bucks, makes it a lot easier to swallow.

Let's just hope this "Retold" era is a massive success and gives the team the proving ground they need to finally make Rayman 4!