Overall 9.3 Graphics 9 Sound 7.5 Addictive 9 Story 6 Depth 6 Difficulty 7.5
8.3
Back to Rayman's glory days OrdannonsX
I got into the gaming scene just when the Sony PlayStation got big. I’m a 90s kid, and I was there when the SNES was dominating the market, but somehow I had completely missed the generation of the SNES, and also the SEGA Saturn. No, back in my day, it was all PlayStation for me. Together with games like Rayman, the system nearly took over my entire childhood. I managed to pick this game up at a retail store not too long ago, let’s get into it and see how much this little gem from 1995 holds up.
First thing I saw when the game loaded (well, after the copyright screen and language
selection, that is) was a very crisp cartoonish introduction video of a wizard-like character explaining what has happened to the world of Rayman. Soothing flute music starts to play, as the guy tells you about the lush world, filled with joy and creatures who live together in peace and harmony. Then, an evil wizard, appropriately named ‘Mr. Dark’, captured the Electoons and kidnapped all the fairies, stealing he world’s magic. It’s up to the hero Rayman to defeat this villain, and restore peace to the world.
Let’s get this outta the way first – Rayman looks amazing. The artwork is beautiful, with gorgeously rendered, varied environments. There’s something to be said about 2D graphics, they generally age so much better than 3D polygons that a lot of PlayStation games have. If I have to nitpick a little, in my opinion Rayman’s movement animations are lacking a little in terms of frames, but it isn’t much worth mentioning. In terms of presentation, everything looks incredible, even by today’s standards.
The music is lovely. The levels in Rayman are divided into several different ‘areas’, such as Dream Forest, Band Land, etc. All these areas have their own main theme music, which all fit the levels’ themes nicely, and help give the levels their own personal feel and atmosphere. Aside from the areas’ main themes, there’s also the standard action- and tension-oriented tunes. You’ll be hearing awesome electric guitar riffs, to loud riveting drum beats, indicating imminent danger. The first time I heard the tense, rhythmic drum beats while being chased by Mr. Stone in Blue Mountains… The music is often cleverly placed, and makes for some moments you won’t forget anytime soon.
Something Rayman is quite notorious for, is it’s difficulty. It’s a children’s game but believe me, it’s tough-as-nails, making it enjoyable for grown-ups to pick up and play as well. You start the game with three Lives and five Continues, and even though you’re able to pick up plenty of 1-Ups by either finding pickups or collecting 100 toons, there is no way to increase your Continues. Throughout the game, you’ve got five times. Better make ’em count. What’s more, the enemies are relentless, and when you defeat them, they respawn almost as soon as you leave the screen. Finally, the only time you can drop out of a level, is at the very start of it the first stage, at the rewind signs. When you progress to another stage of a level, you won’t come across another one so once you start a level, again, make it count. This means for each level, you have to prepare. Don’t worry though, grinding for lives is pretty easy. You can always revisit early levels to get toons, and raise your Live count and once you beat a level, you can proceed through the game with all the stuff you’ve collected so you can begin the next level with all the power-ups you had at the end of the last level.
Throughout the game, you’ll unlock various powers such as swinging from rings, using your hair as a helicopter to hover for a while, etc. These make it worthwhile to revisit early levels, as a lot of them have areas which are inaccessible to you until you unlock a specific power. This really helps adding to the replayability of Rayman.
Verdict
Does Rayman hold up since 1995? Yes. Yes, it does. The artwork looks amazing, the game plays away nicely, and it’s tough, but not unforgiving. It’s one of the older games on the PlayStation, but still one of the system’s best.
Pros:
- Challenging, but certainly beatable
- Gorgeous presentation and varied level design
- Lots of replayability
Cons:
- A way to drop out of a level whenever you wanted to would’ve been nice
Graphics 9 Sound 7 Addictive 8 Story 6 Depth 7 Difficulty 8
Review Rating: 5/5
Submitted: 04-29-15
Review Replies: 3
9
Rayman CANVgamer
Man, times have changed since the last time I played "Rayman"; oh how I remember swaying back and forth to the beat, with my feet tapping on the floor. It's amazing now that I think about it, the one game that started it all; had become something bigger and more advanced over the years... sure, the newer game versions are fun and all; but believe me, if you want the real deal, then play the very first Rayman game ever.
This game is almost too good for words, and I have probably played it at least ten to thirty times over my lifespan of twenty years. One thing is certain, the moment that I got this game; I knew I was hooked. This game just brings so much creativity and silliness that it will leave you more and more amazed with each area you visit.
Graphics - 9/10
With amazing backgrounds resembling anything from jungle trees to even clouds with eyes, there is so much to see throughout this game. You have characters that look like they've been born on some other planet, you have bugs that just bug the heck out of you, and you even have music that is soothing to your ears, but deadly to your body. With all the strange and wondrous creations that Rayman has to offer, how could someone NOT enjoy this game? This game is especially adored and loved by children of the retro generation, and even for many of the adults; you just cannot help but have a smile on your face while playing the exciting adventures of Rayman.
Sound - 8/10
With a unique and rather outrageous soundtrack, you will have a wide range of ambient audio... from anything like Jazz to even music like Techno and Trance. Most of the audio composed on this game is designed to help you enjoy the level, and to get a wide feeling of it; with various sounds that make you feel like you're reading a comic book. Anything ranging from "BOINGS!" and "ZINGS!" to "BOOMS!" and "POPS!". A wide range of audio to keep the gamer listening, and you might just end up turning up your volume; it may not be "realistic", but it sure is more creative than anything I've seen today.
Addictiveness - 10/10
Oh man, let me tell you about how freaking attached I am to this game. Let's just say, I actually spend a WHOLE day (from sunrise to sunset) playing this NON-stop. I couldn't even keep my eyes off the screen, it was just so fascinating that everything else but this video game was no longer in existence. I wasn't hungry, I wasn't thirsty, and I sure didn't need to get up and use the bathroom. (Although after I was done, I was EXHAUSTED!) The level of randomness this game provides is sure to make you curious about where everything this, heck; you may even want to look around to see what other enemies there are.
Story - 8/10
With a simple, but elaborate story; Rayman will face the odds against the evil Mr. Dark (or whatever his name was, doesn't matter; Rayman was the only cool one anyways), a cruel and unbound being designed to bring terror to all the land. With Rayman having to avoid being exploded by needles or even attacked by flying audio notes, there is a wide range of problems ahead of you; but every second is worth it.
Depth - 5/10
To be honest, this game honestly didn't allow you a whole lot to do; besides completely goof around and enjoy the scenery. But nonetheless, this game was something that I just couldn't put down. With a wide variety of enemies, a bigger variety of areas, and an ever bigger variety of silliness; this game will keep you laughing and smiling as you progress from level to level.
Difficulty - 7/10
For many, this game is extremely easy; and then for some, this game is way too difficult to even bother with. But for me, it's about 50/50 I'd say; first off, you do have so much to watch out for... nearly everything is trying to hurt Rayman. But, on the other hand; you also have so much to achieve, and if I am correct... Rayman receives powers to help him along his way, such as a stronger punch or even a running dash attack. (Or maybe that was in second Rayman game).
Well either way, all I can say is; this game really made me feel uplifted and helped me smile more often than before. If it wasn't for this game, I probably wouldn't have even made my very first friend many years ago. So honestly, give it a shot; I am sure you will be amazed and all the challenges you encounter and all the things you just might unlock.
Graphics 9 Sound 8 Addictive 10 Story 6 Depth 5 Difficulty 7
Review Rating: 4.1/5
Submitted: 06-20-13
Review Replies: 1
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