Rayman 2

[Embryonic Hoodbrain]

I have voted for Revolution. It was the first version I played, so all the other versions feel incomplete without the depth and story of Revolution.

Compared to the other versions, Revolution put a much greater emphesis on immersion. Rather than the Hall of Doors or the Isle of Doors where you were stuck to a fixed path in a small enclosed location, Revolution gave you a large hub world to explore, filled with new NPCs and other creatures. Because of this, the world seems seamless; you can tell how one area leads to the next and it makes the game seem a lot bigger. The Stone Circles also make it a lot more convienent than other hub worlds, as you can get to any level by hopping into a maximum of two portals.

Because of the hub world, there is room to place a lot more events. One such example is when Rayman first meets Clark. In the other versions, you first run into him in the Menhir Hills, and you know nothing about him, other than his strength. Because of this, it feels like a chore to have to go to the Cave of Bad Dreams to receive the life potion, and it feels odd that you first see him exactly when he is needed (to break through the walls). In Revolution, most players will first meet Clark near the first stone circle, where he saves Rayman from a multitude of Robo-Pirates. This gives the player insight into his kind, brave and not-so-clever personality, and the player will symphesise with him later in the Menhir Hills.

Another strong point of Revolution is the fact that there is always a reason you are going to certain worlds. In the other versions, you simply completed one world, then went to the next (taking the one trip back to the Cave of Bad Dreams). In Revolution, there was a reason for going to these worlds. For the Bayou, it was to free Bzzit, for the Tomb of the Ancients it was to help Clark. This helps the player understand why they are going through each level, making the journey feel more worthwhile, while also allowing them to emphisise with the characters and better involve themselves in the story.

Revolution also made a few other changes, such as moving the location of certain lums. This allowed for much more replayablilty, as 100% of lums could often not be collected in the first playthough of each level. Collection of lums also feels more worthwhile in Revolution, as you can use them to enhance your power from the magic well. After you have obtained all the powers, you could also purchase minigames which could be played competitively with others, allowing for a good multiplayer experience. There were also single-player challenges which could be unlocked by breaking cages, which upon completion rewarded the player with more health. The extra bosses and enemies surved to make the game more difficult, longer, and more complete than the original, and patched up a few issues as well (splitting the Iron Mountains and the Pirate Mines was definately a good idea).

All that said, there are downsides to Revolution, such as poor framerate, the voice acting (I hate Murfy so much), excessive loading and saving screens, mixing and matching levels, and the fact that it was shamed by a mass-murderer .

I loved the massive amount of save screens, and Rayman had good voice-acting, and the frame-rate was alright, do wish it had been 60fps. Other than that, I agree with everything you've said.

[PluMGMK]

You speak about depth of the game. Having grown up with the PC version, I actually liked being able to use my imagination to fill that in. So much of my childhood was taken up by imagining extra side-stories, extra areas that might exist. It might sound strange, but the lack of information almost made me fall more in love with the universe, and with the game itself.
That said, had I played Revolution and had much more of that laid out for me, I probably could've used my brain for something more productive.

[Rayfist]

Well, that doesn't really make sense. Realistically, if they release one per year and continue to make profit, the quality will only increase, as the budget and staff does concordantly. Remember too that the Assissin's Creed development team is freaking massive, so realistically, they are able to make a quality game in one half or one third the time most teams would be able to. Not that that means they'll all be of substantial quality (I thought AC Revelations and III were pretty bad), but a poor game is a result of poor direction, not of a conceptually short development time if no one's feeling too strained.

Yep, certainly worded that wrong on my part. I feel it's moreso becoming like CoD, you know, sure improvements are being added making each yearly installment a tad bit better, but theres barely any new things. Yeah I know- it's the same series, of course it's going to look the same, but that's not exactly what I mean.

Sure, we can get quality AC titles yearly, but I feel that if we waited even longer we could get even BIGGER quality (matching the incredibility of AC2.)

Metal Gear Solid V isn't even out yet- but we know that it's likely going to be amazing, if Konami pumped out yearly MGS titles regardless of how much are working there I still think the titles would decrease in quality. And the fact that we're getting 2 AC games already announced really makes me feel like Ubi is just going for quantity over quality.

[Adsolution]

I'd love to see something AC:II-grade again too, but it's hard to say what'll be good. After all, II was released only two years after the first.

I'm actually a very big (fat) fan of open-world games, specifically Grand Theft Auto V and Fallout 3, and I also like the first few Assassin's Creed games. Far Cry 3 had something off, and lacked depth for me personally. It was mostly just me slogging through a very bland open-world, doing very repetitive things, to the beat of a decent story that totally lost it halfway in. The only redeeming factor was the co-op, and even that was uninspired. Keep in mind this is only indicative of my experience, and in no way the definitive experience of the game.

Great, I am as well. I just guess we got something different out of it.

[Bradandez]

I actually prefer the Isle of Doors to be honest since it's one of the only games that has a 3D world map taht I've seen. But having a HUB is way better to have in a 3D platformer.

[Rayfist]

The Isle of Doors I can't say I'm a big fan of, it's a small island with everything a bit clunked up onto it. Still a cool map but Hall of Doors all the way.

And yeah I agree, some games fail to do a 3D Hub world correctly, but Revolution did it well.

[Bradandez]

I can't see what's so nice about the Hall of Doors. Not trying to be an ass, but the Isle was so effin' cool with all the little details and stuff. I thought it was awesome!

[OCG]

Voted for DC version.

[Bradandez]

Whoo! DC Master Version FTW! Whoo!

[Shrooblord]

Really? I liked the other versions better because of the possible outcomes, you could go multiple directions and I actually felt like I was being challenged, sure it isn't hard now, but when I was a young 'un, the lava flowing drove me fucking nuts.

We share that sentiment. x)

it's mediocre sections such as when you are required to navigate a clunky pirate ship.

Are you kidding? Being able to fly a Warship was my first fanboi experience ever years before I even knew what the meaning of 'fan' was.

I'd say as an Army the pirates were much more dangerous then the Hoodlums.

The Robos broke the Heart of the World circumstantially by the amount of chaos they created on the world. The Hoodlums erected shoddy girdered contraptions with tarps and housed themselves in tents. Yes, the Hoodlums were just starting up and who knows what they could have done if they had had more time inbetween spawning and being ass-whooped, but the Pirates win this one.

Another strong point of Revolution is the fact that there is always a reason you are going to certain worlds.

I see the points you make, though I must say that going somewhere and then finding out why you're there has a lot of charm to it too - it feels more like you're exploring and finding things along the way and less like you're running around cleaning up after the mess the Pirates made (not that Rev makes me feel like that, but you get the point).

I can't see what's so nice about the Hall of Doors. Not trying to be an ass, but the Isle was so effin' cool with all the little details and stuff. I thought it was awesome!

The Isle of Doors had neat little details around each level because it would seem void without them. The Hall of Doors is this magical, strange place filled with ancient forests and whispers of the events that are about to take place (the holograms). It's a far more surreal ( ) experience that the Isle is. Also, the Isle immediately gives away how many levels there will be. There's no surprise left. The Hall suddenly continues on after the Sanctuary of Stone and Fire and when you pass into the dark void after the Iron Mountains, there's a split second of not knowing how long you'll continue on after. Furthermore, I've seen island level selects a multitude of times before. I think it may have been a Crash game that had one once, or maybe it was something more Rachet and Clanky... I don't recall, but I do know the the Hall of Doors is unique and incredibly atmospheric. The Isle simply is not.

[Master]

In regard to your Crash note, it was Crash 1 which has the Island set-up.

[OCG]

In regard to your Crash note, it was Crash 1 which has the Island set-up.

Main reason why I prefer The Isle of Doors

[Master]

Meh, I was more fond of the warp rooms, in honesty. Though I'd also like Twinsanity's spin on the formula with the more free-roaming element see another more refined shot.

[Hoozang]

Was not ported for people with large thumbs in mind.
Maybe it's just matter of size of display?

Maybe, just maybe.
low quality ftw

[rolesfamily]

The Tennsie circles are much better IMO.

[Embryonic Hoodbrain]

Twinsanity takes the cake here as the best hub world mentioned here. Only problem is entertaining the final area, and how you can't return until you defeat the final boss, even if you're entering after finishing the game.

[rolesfamily]

I can't even remember how you get around in that game..

[Shrooblord]

... but we were talking about Rayman 2 level hubs Hoodbrain xD
DC, PC or PS2?

[Razorbeard]

I just remembered that I actually have and played through the 3DS version, which has the Isle, if memory serves.
Having experienced both, I can say I prefer the Hall because it feels a bit more open and inviting than the Isle, which to me just seems a bit cluttered and strange.
Yeah, the Isle gives you a better view of how exactly everything is connected, but everything just flows better with the Hall. Plus, the Hall is more straightforward and just looks cleaner.

[Embryonic Hoodbrain]

... but we were talking about Rayman 2 level hubs Hoodbrain xD
DC, PC or PS2?

I haven't played any other version besides Revolution, but I'd say the Hall of Doors is probably the coolest, though I love the PS2 hub world.