Rayman

Updated on Sep 29, 2024

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Genres Platform Platform of origin Atari Jaguar Genre Platform game		Creators Michel Ancel Spin-offs Raving Rabbids

First release Rayman1 September 1995 Latest release Rayman Adventures3 December 2015 Designers Michel Ancel, Vincent Gréco, Alexandra Steible Developers Ubisoft, Gameloft, Feral Interactive, Ubisoft Paris Publishers Ubisoft, Nokia, Gameloft, Feral Interactive, Sony Interactive Entertainment, Traveller's Tales, Sony Imagesoft Games Rayman Legends, Rayman Origins, Rayman Raving Rabbids, Rayman Raving Rabbids 2, Rayman Kart

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Rayman is a platform video game series created by Michel Ancel and owned by Ubisoft. The original Rayman was a 2D sprite-based platformer similar to those of the 16-bit era. The series centers on a limbless humanoid named Rayman. Rayman 2: The Great Escape moved the series into 3D, and added more variety to the gameplay with new actions such as being pulled through a marsh by a snake, riding a rocket, and the ability to temporarily swim in water. Rayman 3: Hoodlum Havoc kept the same core platforming of Rayman 2, but added timed power ups and had a bigger emphasis on combat. The handheld entries in the series have remained similar to the sprite-based original in gameplay in that they are mostly 2D; Rayman DS and Rayman 3D are the only exceptions to this, as both are ports of Rayman 2.

Rayman Raving Rabbids, which was at first planned to be a traditional platformer, turned into a mini-game collection late in development after the developers were able to try out the Wii Remote and Nunchuck. Early trailers for the game and early information portray it having a darker atmosphere than is typical of a Rayman game, and show Rayman riding animals including a giant spider. Rayman could alter his appearance, and his dancing style with it, and dance to entrance the Rabbids. Ultimately this idea was scrapped, and replaced with motion-based mini-games similar to those in WarioWare: Smooth Moves. Rayman Raving Rabbids was also released on the Xbox 360, PlayStation 2, Nintendo DS, and PC despite being made around the motion-sensing Wii controller, and simply replaced physical actions with traditional button presses and stick movements. Rayman M features Rayman characters racing on foot through platformer-like stages and battling in a separate arena mode. There has also been a Rayman educational game, Rayman Junior, which focused less on gameplay and more on learning.

At the end of May 2010, as a result of rumors that Rayman creator Michel Ancel was leaving Ubisoft and the Beyond Good & Evil 2 project, fellow game designer and close colleague Nicolas Choukroun posted on Ancel's unofficial Facebook page stating that Ancel had instead moved into another studio to work on a new Rayman game. The game was revealed as Rayman Origins at Ubisoft's E3 2010 conference.

The games in the main series have fairly distinct settings (sometimes described as different realms, etc. within Rayman's home world) and plots. Nonetheless, besides the titular hero, several characters (Globox, Murfy, Ly) and themes (freeing magical beings from cages, collecting magical energy, etc.) do appear with some regularity. As of April 2014, the main series had sold over 25 million units worldwide, while Raving Rabbids series had sold 14 million.

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Protagonists

Rayman is the main protagonist and titular character of the series. He has no arms, legs, or neck, though he has hands, feet, and a head that are able to move independently from his body. Rayman is able to launch long range punches at his enemies, and in some games, eject lums from his gloves. He has the ability to use his hair to glide and float by spinning it at a rapid speed. He is typically found wearing white gloves, a red neckerchief on a purple shirt and a white ring on the chest, (which was replaced with a red and purple hoodie in the later franchises), and he wears yellow trainers. He is voiced by David Gasman and Steve Perkinson in the video games and by Billy West in the animated series, sounding very similar to Futurama character Philip J. Fry, who was also voiced by West. He was awarded the Best New Character award of 1995 by Electronic Gaming Monthly.

Globox is a gentle, sensitive frog-like glute, who acts as Rayman's sidekick. He is very cowardly, fleeing at the sight of any enemies, leaving Rayman alone to fight them. Globox's magic power is the ability to create a small cloud that rains over fire and machinery after performing a rain dance. He is shown to be allergic to plum juice, which has alcoholic effects on him. In Rayman 3, he is voiced by John Leguizamo, who also voiced Sid in the Ice Age series.

Barbara is a young and funny barbarian Lady who becomes Rayman's travel companion. She is hot-headed and adventurous with a kind heart. She uses her axe and hat to fight against her enemies.

Betilla the Fairy is a fairy who helps Rayman throughout the first game by granting him several powers. Mister Dark kidnaps her to stop this, but she is rescued once Rayman chases Mister Dark off. She appeared in the first game and later in Rayman Origins, where it is revealed she was the one who created Rayman (in the original trailer for the game).

Ly the Fairy is a fairy made by the godlike Polokus to help Rayman. She appears as a weak and serious character, but despite this, she's potentially dangerous if she has to be, though is an energetic, loving and playful character and hardly loses her patience. She likes activity and experimenting with magic. She is voiced by Kim Michelle Broderick.

Murfy serves as a guide to Rayman. He has a really hasty nature unable to deal with failure. He appears bored with his job and can't be bothered with trivial details. His race is depicted as mischievous and described as "cultivated hedonists". He is voiced by Billy West.

The Teensies are a race of small Cyan skin colored creatures with elongated noses and beady black eyes. They exist in many forms and most of them have magical powers. Their purpose is to unveil all the roads in the world. They are led by Grand Minimus, who acts as caretaker of the Heart of the World; the Grand Minimus is the greatest little king of them all.

Bzzit is the son of a large mosquito named Moskito who Rayman befriends in the first game. He helps Rayman out by giving him a ride during various flying sections.

Tarayzan, the Musician and Joe are three friends of Rayman's who find themselves in different predicaments thanks to Mister Dark's doing and each give Rayman a temporary power in return for his help. Tarayzan gives Rayman a magic seed, the Musician provides him with a super helicopter power, and Joe lends him a firefly.

Bubble Dreamer (a.k.a. Polokus) is the creator of Rayman's world, who appears in Rayman 2: The Great Escape, Rayman Origins and Rayman Legends. He dreams up creatures that then come into existence.

Antagonists

Mr. Dark is Rayman's first enemy and the main villain in Rayman. Little is known about him, except that he is an incredibly talented yet evil sorcerer. After stealing the Great Protoon and imprisoning all the Electoons, Mr. Dark hides away in his lair, at the Candy Chateau, high above the Cave Of Skops. Once Rayman meets him, Mr. Dark shape shifts into fused versions of his main Henchmen and flees after he is defeated. Ever since fleeing the scene, he has not reappeared fully. His minions are:

Moskito, a giant mosquito and the boss of the Dream Forest. He is also the father of Bzzit, one of Rayman's allies.

Mister Sax, a giant saxophone and the boss of the Band Land.

Mister Stone, a stone behemoth and the boss of the Blue Mountains.

Space Mama, an overweight stage actress and the boss of Picture City.

Mister Skops, a giant scorpion and the boss of the Caves of Skops.

Admiral Razorbeard is Rayman's second enemy, the main villain in Rayman 2 and the Game Boy Advance version of Rayman 3. He commands a force of Robo-Pirates and ships that plague Rayman's world. He rules from a gigantic ship, known as the Buccaneer. Razorbeard is infamous for his attacks that have reduced over 100 peaceful planets to cosmic dust, making him a vicious and cruel mass murderer. His personality is mainly similar to a power-hungry dictator, a cruel and sadistic villain. Razorbeard is also extremely frustrated and he has a short fuse, as he throws minor temper tantrums whenever one of his henchmen comes to tell him bad news. Like Mr. Dark, Razorbeard fights Rayman at the game's climax, and after being beaten by Rayman, he flees the scene. In Rayman 2, he is voiced by Ken Starcevic.

André is a maniacal dark lum and the main villain in Rayman 3 and Rayman: Hoodlum's Revenge. Globox has a strange fondness for him. At the beginning of the game, Globox accidentally swallows him, and the Teensies tell Rayman to take Globox to a doctor to get him out. After visiting three different doctors, Andre finds Reflux and makes a deal with him: that if he steals King Gumsi's sceptre, he will give him the opportunity to kill Rayman. At the end of the game, Reflux is defeated and Rayman turns Andre back into a red lum. Shortly we learned in the past he turns into a dark lum when scared by Rayman's hand's shadow puppet. He is voiced by Ken Starcevic.

Reflux is a Knaaren, a race of invincible, ruthless warriors who cannot stand sunlight, who gives up his invincibility while stealing the scepter from the Leptys. He is voiced by Ziggy Marley.

The Magician is a Teensy and the main villain in Rayman Origins and its sequel Rayman Legends. An obsessive admirer of Mr. Dark, he initially poses as an ally to Rayman and his friends, recruiting them for the collection of lums, which he presumably uses as a power source for his mechanical base in the Moody Clouds, from which he plans to take over the Glade of Dreams. When the heroes make their way into the base at the game's climax, the Magician reveals his true identity as the base's mastermind, before dropping them into a pit and forcing them to battle mechanical incarnations of previous enemies (in a similar manner to the battle against Mr. Dark's henchmen at the climax of the original Rayman). When the heroes manage to escape and make their way back to the Magician, he attempts to flee aboard an airship, but they give chase on the back of Moskito, eventually causing him to crash into the base's core. The ensuing explosion supposedly kills the Magician and destroys the base, while the heroes survive and fall back to the Glade of Dreams unharmed. However, he proves to have survived the explosion from Rayman Origins and has multiplied into 5 villainous dark teensies. Using their superior minds, they took control to an extent of the nightmares. As Rayman and friends grow closer to the last dark teensie, the nightmares grow more uncontrollable and at Olympus Maximus they turn into a ravaging horde and betray the last dark teensie. After the final boss, The Darkness, is beaten, the last one is sent to the moon.

The Livid Dead are a race of elderly skeletons who reside in an underworld known as The Land of the Livid Dead. In Rayman Origins, they are annoyed by Rayman and his friends' loud snoring, so they declare war on the surface world, sending it into chaos. They return in the sequel and are harmless.

The Nightmares of Polokus are the central villains of the Rayman games. As of Rayman Legends, they are defeated.

Hades Hand is the final boss of Rayman Legends. It is the most powerful of all Nightmares.

Reception

Since his debut in 1995 on the Atari Jaguar, Rayman has become a popular and recognizable video game character over the past decade, along with his trademark lack of limbs and helicopter power, having appeared in several titles up for many platforms until the present day. Since the first game's release in 1995, the Rayman games have become highly successful and popular with many fans.

References

Rayman Wikipedia

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