Ubisoft’s classic platforming hero gets a history-packed re-release featuring multiple versions, lost content, and modern accessibility features.
Rayman, the character from the old platform game, is back in the spotlight. Rayman 30th Anniversary Edition was officially shown off at the most recent Sony State of Play event, and it came out almost right away in digital form.
The collection can now be bought digitally for $20 on modern devices like the Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 5. Fans, on the other hand, will have to wait longer. The anniversary versions will be sent out in physical form on June 26 and will cost $29.99.
Although some fans may be disappointed that the collection isn’t available digitally right away, it does have a lot of content to celebrate 30 years of the series.
At its core, the anniversary edition is both a playable museum and a new version of the original Rayman game that has been updated for current times. Players can look through developer interviews, old artwork, and behind-the-scenes items that show how the franchise was made. Fans of the game for a long time and people who are interested in gaming history will both enjoy this “history” part because it gives a rare look into how one of the game’s most memorable characters was created.
The collection also has several playable versions of the original game from various systems, letting gamers see how Rayman changed over time and with different hardware. There are versions for the Atari Jaguar, MS-DOS, Game Boy Color, and Game Boy Advance, as well as what many people believe to be the best version for the PlayStation because of how well it sounds and looks.
Along with these releases, the package includes prototypes from early development builds during the Super Nintendo era and “Lost Levels” made by the original design team that have never been released before.
With these changes, the release goes from being a simple remaster to a compilation with a focus on preservation. In addition to old material, the anniversary edition adds features that improve the quality of life for modern players.
Some add-ons that can be used to improve the game are unlimited lives, maximum health, unlimited continues, and the ability to quickly unlock levels or powers. With these accessibility choices, people who have never played the game before can enjoy it without the punishing difficulty that was common in platform games in the 1990s.
The original Rayman is still a classic 2D action-platformer that is based on exact movement, exploration, and leveling up your skills. As players progress, they gain new skills that let them go back to earlier stages and access places they couldn’t get to before. This progression loop makes the game more replayable without fully adopting a Metroidvania structure.
The game’s core features stay true to the original plan. Rayman can jump off of ledges, punch, power up strikes, crawl through small spaces, and solve platforming puzzles that get harder and harder. Modern viewers may need some time to get used to the character’s famously “floaty” movement, but it’s not too hard to learn once players get the hang of the controls.
One of the best new features in the collection is the restart button, which lets players fix mistakes right away and in real time. Some people may like the original challenge better, but this choice makes hard parts, like boss fights, much easier for more casual players to handle.
The way the game is played shows how bright and creative early platform games were. The game’s pace is kept interesting by switching between standard side-scrolling challenges, auto-scrolling sections, and boss fights.
Flying stages and environmental dangers add more variety and show off the creative level design that made the first game stand out in the 1990s, when there were a lot of platform games on the market.
Rayman is known as a fun adventure, and the happy art direction and music support this. The bright surroundings, silly enemies, and fun animations make for a nostalgic experience that doesn’t look old.
For people who like old-school platform games like Donkey Kong Country and Super Mario World, the anniversary version has a gameplay loop that feels like it came from the best days of 2D graphics. It might not become as famous as those games, but its beauty and creativity are still clear.
When you switch between versions, you can see how Rayman changed to work with different devices. For example, the Game Boy Advance version has zoomed-in graphics and simpler sound than the PlayStation version. For people who grew up playing games on their handhelds, these differences may bring back memories, even if the computer version is overall better and clearer.
In the end, Rayman 30th Anniversary Edition seems to be made for a lot of different types of people. True fans will probably enjoy the large amount of historical content and alternate versions, while beginners can enjoy the original adventure with the help of modern tools.
At $20, the digital version is a great deal for all the content that comes with it.
Still, some players, especially those who have a lot of games they want to play, may decide to wait for future deals. As a Ubisoft release, the price is likely to go down over time.
The anniversary collection is an easy way to get into the Rayman series for people who want to revisit a formative era of platform games or find them for the first time. Even after thirty years, the hero without limbs’ first experience is still full of color, difficulty, and something that can’t be mistaken for anything else.
