Rayman 2: The Great Escape

I think that there are only 3 series of platformers where there are legitimately no bad main series games: Mario, Kirby and Rayman. However, where Mario and Kirby keep things the same every single time these days, Rayman has done something different almost every single time (even Legends had a faster pace than Origins). It pays off! Mario envies it's creativity in level design, Sonic is jealous of it's perfect controls, Mega Man resents it's colourful and vibrant aesthetics. Part of the reason for this is because they rarely make new games (he's had 5 new main series games in 22 years), it keeps things creative and fresh. If you were to compare Rayman 2 to its rivals in the year of release (Donkey Kong 64, Sonic Adventure), it easily beats them. Don't just buy this one. Buy them all! NOW!

Rayman 2 is a great 3D platformer that has a lot going for it. The movements feel smooth and effortless. It really feels easy to communicate the moves that you want to perform to the character and make him execute them exactly the way you want them done. Controlling Rayman is a genuine pleasure. The level design is quite good, and unlike most games of the genre, the emphasis isn't on exploration but rather on progression in more linear pathways, which has the happy consequence of making the game seem faster paced. The game isn't completely linear in itself since a lot of levels still have a tangled layout with intersecting paths, but you are mostly guided through the paths one after the other anyway. Not to say that there is no exploration at all, there is still stuff to collect in every level and it is sometimes well hidden. Unfortunately, these two aspects, linearity and collecting items, have an adverse consequence: some collectibles can only be picked up once, you have a single chance during your one way trip through the level. Indeed, you often can't go back on your tracks to explore as the levels are designed to make you go forward. If you want to complete the game at 100%, you'll most likely have to redo some of the levels a few times. The combats are a chore. They're dull, repetitive and easy. It mostly consists of spamming or charging the single attack that Rayman has and moving around a bit to avoid projectiles. The enemies are not very varied either. I only wanted one thing during the fights, that they end so that I could go back to the great part of the game which is the platforming itself. The game looks fantastic, the world is fanciful, colorful and beautifully designed. The characters are goofy and fun, their voices especially are very amusing. The soundtrack however is forgettable. I really liked Rayman 2, it has weaknesses, but fortunately it is excellent at the most important aspect of a 3D platformer: the platforming.

I loved this game back when it first came out. I loved it again when it was remastered for the Playstation 2. I even loved the Nintendo DS version. 3D-Platforming games don't get much better than this, from presentation to controls, this surely is a masterpiece. The amount of variety and the far above average length of the game is extraordinary. This is easily the best Rayman game to date, I still don't get why they had to mix the formula up with Rayman 3, and don't get me started on those Rabbids... Ubisoft, take notice and give us another experience like Rayman 2 - The Great Escape.

This game has got to be one of the best platformers ever made

I can't help but be blinded by nostalgia when writing this review, as I myself grew up with this game more than any other. I do not know which my first game ever to play was, but this is certaintly one of the first, and I'm so glad that it was. The Positives - Amazing soundtrack. favourite songs are ''The Woods of Light'' & ''Entering the Pirate Ship'' - The atmosphere is impecable, but that might be nostalgia talking. - For its time, the graphics were very good, and today, still, they get the job done, utilizing every polygon to its fullest The Negatives - Unchallenging gameplay. Most enemies are very easily killed. My child self probably wouldn't want it any other way, though. - Difficulty spike toward the end. the last boss took me so many god damn tries. I died four times as much during the last fight compared to the whole rest of the game. Although I love the direction the francise is taking with Origins and Legends, this game really does hold a dear place in my heart and I can't help but hope that someday we might get another 3D Rayman game.