Rayman Origins Review by: supernerd117 - 9.6/10

I bought Rayman Origins about a year ago after reading the reviews.  I was quite impressed with the praise heaped upon this game, which averaged an 88 or 89 on Metacritic at the time.  Upon booting up the game, I was practically thrust into the first level, with no story in the game outside a single cutscene.  This didn't matter much, though.  The gameplay was fantastic.

Gameplay:

There is so much done well here it would astound even Mario.  Gameplay consists of traveling throughout the levels collecting yellow lums (in order to boost up a meter at the end of the level, which adds up to 2 pink smiley faces to your count and a medal if you do well enough) and freeing these pink smiley dudes from cages.  Several mechanics are implemented near flawlessly throughout the levels, including the ability to punch, glide, shrink, swim, and walk on walls.  It just feels right bouncing off a wall to land on a jump pad, only to have to glide across a gap, narrowly making it to the wall to pull yourself up.  However, there is nothing particularly difficult about the game, unless you're going for 100%, then the difficulty ramps up a bit, since you need to collect a lot of lums.  However, there are a ton of checkpoints throughout the levels, so nothing ever feels to punishing.

Graphics:

The graphics of this game wow.  As you control your 3D sprite through a 2 to 2.5D world, you might not help gawking at the lush scenery in the background and the foreground.  The developers really went out on a limb to make everything as immersive as possible.  It's really sad that you usually don't have time to admire the scenery, since you'll be dashing through each level in a mad grab to collect Lums.

Sound:

Each track wouldn't be particularly impressive if you listened to it on CD, but here in the game, each track helps to convey an attitude of lightheartedness.  My favorite track is the track that plays when you read the mosquitos in the game, which features a mash-up of mosquito sounds and other stuff.

Addictiveness/Depth:

As I stated earlier, there's a ton to come back to, with the option to replay levels to gain more lums and set a record or try to pass a time trial, as well.  Extra characters are unlock the more pink smiley guys you save.  Also, a bonus world is unlocked by collecting 10 red teeth from levels that involve chasing a treasure chest.  There is so much to come back to here.

Story:

This practically doesn't exist.  Rayman's friends are trapped in cages, so you have to save them.  That's pretty much it.

Overall:

I would definitely recommend this to pretty much anyone.  However, I personally had a problem with the way the women in the game were portrayed (with jiggling breasts and immodest outfits).  If you can look past this issue, you'll find a fun game with a ton of replayability.  If not, I'd suggest a Mario game for your trouble.

9.6