It's true I was late to the party but still it's difficult to believe it's been just under two years since Rayman made his spectacular come back in 2011's masterful platformer Rayman: Origins. The title was an awesome return to form for the limbless wonder after a prolonged spell of absence during which time the Raving Rabbids were left driving the historic franchise forward in less than traditional style.
Although Origins received a critically positive reception upon its release sales figures sadly didn't match up with the games high quality - not that it stopped the eye catching tightly controlled adventure being ported to just about every system on the market. Thankfully less than desirable sales hasn't dissuaded publisher and developer Ubisoft from creating a sequel - Rayman: Legends, which has the unenviable job of following in the footsteps of its absolutely charming predecessor, a task that was never going to be a walk in the park.
Legends, initially developed as a WiiU exclusive, was frustratingly delayed by six months earlier this year when it was revealed it would be ported to rivals PlayStation 3, Xbox360 and PC via steam following disappointing WiiU hardware sales as a result more time was required to complete the transition. Though sad for WiiU fanatics the news is great for other systems owners who now have absolutely no reason not to play this brilliant game, which I'm happy to report is not only a worthy sequel but also surpasses the original in every aspect.
Naturally Legends shares the same basic foundations as it's forbearer but, Ubisoft has wisely chosen not to simply copy and paste it success, instead iterating on almost every facet of Origins resulting in a experience that trumps its predecessor in every way whilst very clearly remaining part of the same series. The quirky yet spectacularly beautiful art style, spades of humour and fast paced challenging addictive gameplay all make their return making Legends feel right at home with the look and feel that Origins pioneered. All whilst implementing new mechanics, most notably Rayman's old pal Murfy's environment altering abilities, that develop enough individuality to make Legends feel fresh.
A Feast For The Eyes
Like Origins Legends is set in the magical realm known as the glade of dreams. Ruled by the bearded benevolent bubble dreamer the plane of existence is home to a race of peaceful creatures known as the Teensies as well as series protagonist Rayman and his froggy friend Glowbox. As per the usual conventions disaster befalls the glade as the evil nightmares invade kidnapping all of the Teensies they encounter restraining them in steel cages or comically tying them to wooden poles. As expected the heroes are spurred into action as they embark upon a quest which weaves their travels through various inspiring locales in order to rescue the Teensies from their malevolent captors.
Unsurprisingly considering its heritage the glade of dreams in Legends is jaw droppingly gorgeous, being quick is integral to many sections of the adventure but the world is so time stoppingly pretty you can't help but slow down to take it all in. It's phenomenal to think that once again Ubisoft have successfully created an awe inspiring world full of captivating environments and intelligent level design that makes Rayman Legends one of the most visually memorable titles in recent history. Initially I was concerned that the player character models on the upgraded Ubi-art engine losing their lustrous hand drawn art style would negatively impact Legends aesthetic value - I was dead wrong.
Terrifying... But You're Still So Pretty!
The environments and scenery retain their captivating 2D glory whilst the new 3D player character models are faithful to their 2D counter parts and don't look even remotely out of place on the 2D plane. The new huge 3D modelled large scale bosses look incredibly impressive comfortably fitting into Rayman's aesthetic. Animations are sublime too for players, Teensies, bosses and enemies alike - everything looks like a fantastical cartoon - watch enemies eyes pop out their skulls as they wince from a slap to the chops. Rayman's world perfectly realises and captures such goofy antics with a satisfying near constant regularity. All of the antics are accompanied by Legends simply stellar soundtrack which excitedly bounds alongside the action.
The locales of the glade remain as diverse and exciting to explore as ever featuring a tantalising plethora of expertly crafted levels with widely varying inspiration and design. Refreshingly they're no platforming tropes to be found, they're no obligatory ice or fire worlds lurking behind closed doors. Instead players are treated to bizarre settings like a Mexican day of the dead festival themed land constructed entirely from food inhabited by skeletal mariachi band members. Mechanics are put to unique use with regularity too, for example sidekick Murfy might need to eat cake to clear a path in the world of food, whilst being utilized to cut down traps in a medieval land helping to further each world's unique characteristics. The willingness to be creative when constructing such silly mash up's makes progression a joy as you'll never know what mad cap experience is waiting to jump out around the next corner- whatever it is it's sure to crack a smile from even the sternest lips. Each world ends with an indescribably cheer inducing flourish too - which I won't spoil.
Like Origins the stages are tackled in a traditionally Rayman manner, players run, jump, swim and slap their way through adversity to claim victory. All of these actions control exceptionally, everything is incredibly tight resulting in precise movement that is incredibly satisfying to learn, play and master. Throughout all my time with Legends I cannot think of a single instance where movement controls were to blame for my demise. Rayman's answer to coins - lums - also make their welcome return. Like Origins collecting enough number of lums in a level awards players in game trophies, further to this a running total is now kept throughout the entirety of player progress, achieving certain mile stones unlocks new player skins. Additionally collecting enough lums in a level rewards scratch cards which have chance to award players yet more goodies.
Awesome...
The largest change to gameplay is the aforementioned re-introduction of Murfy - Rayman's fairy friend from entries past. Murfy's role is to assist the heroes by altering obstacles so they may overcome them; his implementation varies dramatically between the WiiU and other versions due to the WiiU gamepad. In co-op on WiiU the player with the gamepad assumes the role of Murfy, when the other player(s) reach an obstacle the gamepad wielder uses the touch screen to slide these obstacles out of the way. In solo play the players control shifts to Murfy whilst an AI controls the hero like co-op obstacles must be moved using the touch screen, frustratingly though the AI isn't very bright and occasionally gets the hero killed in situations a human could easily handle. Murfy is also responsible for turning lums purple with a touch that makes each lum worth twice the value - again easy enough in co-op but this becomes difficult in solo play.
In the PS3, Xbox360 and PC versions no one directly controls Murfy, instead in levels that require his assistance his actions are mapped to a singular button press in both solo and co-operative play. In solo play this works far better than the WiiU's AI workaround. Upon approaching an interactive point Murfy will hover around the area alerting players to its presence, tapping the button will start the interaction, timing the button press becomes part of the challenge as players control both their hero and Murfy in tandem. In co-op play this becomes a little more intrusive as all participants have access to Murfy causing some fumbling conflict when everyone starts mashing the button together.
It's worth pointing out in neither solo or co-op did I even suspect this was a compromise for the PS3 and Xbox 360 versions - it felt rewarding and completely natural. The same applies for lum gathering, lums glow purple and are worth twice the value so long as they collected in correct order rewarding players will skill and finesse. For those who prioritise solo play I'd recommend the PS3 and Xbox360 versions as Murfy features in a sizeable proportion of the stages that become more of nuisance when playing on WiiU. For co-operative play the WiiU's gamepad controlled Murfy is an intuitive mechanic that outweighs the other versions simplicity at the cost of the solo experience.
Quirky...
The bulk of Rayman Legend's content is split into six brand new worlds consisting of roughly 9-10 story levels each. The progression follows a free form structure with plenty of opportunity to stray from the given path, rather than following the world map approach of its predecessor. Legends allows players to unlock levels by saving Teensies from captivity that are devilishly hidden in every stage. New content in later worlds regularly opens before earlier worlds are finished allowing progression to other levels should in the event of getting stuck. Legends in a friendly sort of way also labels each stages difficulty in skulls out of five to give players a head up before they start. As stages are cleared an extra level type begins appearing named "invasion". The vast majority of the games stages have an invasion mode that features a significantly altered version of the original level that challenges players to clear them within a set time limit to save yet more Teensies. It's happy break from the norm and some are fiendishly challenging but all of them are never frustrating.
If the vast amount of brand new story content wasn't enough Legends also features a mode aptly named "return to Origins". Within this mode the entirety of Origins has been slightly reworked to play nice with the new gameplay conventions making it a great chunk of content for both returning players and newcomers. All of the previously mentioned modes and stages can be tackled either solo or with up to four players in a fast paced manic co-operative multiplayer mode. The co-op feels very natural and unlike other games that attempt the same Rayman: Legends largely succeeds thanks to its lack of a lives system and overly generous checkpoints that make it a great for novices as well as advanced gamers.
Yes, Bosses Really Look This Good.
On top of all that there's also a set of four routinely alternating online leaderboard challenges, two that change weekly and two that change daily. They're normally a basic task like collect as many lums as you can in the given time or who can fall furthest down a pit without dying. At the end of their run players are given an estimated trophy level they'll earn for their score as well as a rundown of who've they beaten. It's a great competitive mode that gives players a good enough reason to return to the game without being an essential part of the experience. Sadly for fans of online co-op that option isn't available at all; co-op is restricted to local only.
If you couldn't tell already Rayman: Legends is a charming triumph of platforming goodness that bests its older sibling Rayman: Origins in every aspect. The wealth of content on offer is phenomenal; loaded with challenging invasion maps, plenty of story content and the entirety of a slightly re-worked Origins all included in the package. In either solo or co-operative play every level is a feast for the eyes and absolute blast to play - even if the WiiU Murfy sections make them something of a headache. Online leaderboards and rotating challenges give those haplessly addicted plenty of reason to keep coming back. Rayman Legends is absolutely worth every gamer's time and money - quite simply one of the most enthralling, complete and downright fun packages in the genre in recent memory. I cannot recommend it enough.
Dan Collett
http://www.Gamerree.com
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