What Happened To Rayman?

What Happened to Rayman?

At the peak of platformer mascot popularity, Ubisoft’s “Rayman” stood out as one of the greats, while so many others fell by the wayside. Not only was “Rayman” a shining jewel in Ubisoft’s catalog, it was one of its first ever franchises, which helped the studio better establish its identity. Unfortunately, these days, Rayman is basically nowhere to be found, a fact that has been haunting a diehard fan base for years. Where did the series disappear to? Well, that’s what we’re here to tell you. Welcome to MojoPlays, and today we’re taking a look at what happened to “Rayman.”

“Rayman” is the brainchild of designer Michel Ancel, and its origins date back to before he even worked for Ubisoft. He first designed the character as a teenager in the 80s while learning to draw and code, and returned to those illustrations after becoming a game designer. Once he had been hired at Ubisoft, Ancel impressed higher-ups with a pitch for a new game, which went into development in 1992. Ancel drew from fairy tales of various regions, including Celtic and Chinese, as well as his childhood adventures, for the game’s worlds. He also got really into ray tracing for the character’s animations, hence the now iconic name, Rayman.

The first game was a huge undertaking for Ubisoft. More staff was hired, more money was put in, and a new development studio was founded called Ubi Pictures, now known as Ubisoft Montpellier. In trying to choose a console powerful enough, the team abandoned its Super Nintendo version in favor of the upcoming Atari Jaguar. Thankfully, given that console would be a fairly big failure, Ubisoft also made it a launch game for the first PlayStation. Released in 1995, “Rayman” received strong reviews and sales thanks to great animation, music, and a deceptively high difficulty. Ports to other platforms followed, and the PC version even received two expansions with more stages and a level editor. Naturally, with such success, a franchise was born.

Development on a sequel began not long after the release of the first, in early 1996. Ubisoft initially thought to make it another 2D side scroller. But 3D was making big waves, especially on the platforming scene with “Super Mario 64” and “Crash Bandicoot” releasing the same year “Rayman 2” began development. The switch to 3D was a smart one, with the bright, charming worlds being one of the many elements to shine through, and the N64 version requiring the Expansion Pak to fully do them justice. Gameplay was also expanded upon beautifully, proving “Rayman 2: The Great Escape” to be the successful follow-up Ubisoft wanted. It received some of the highest acclaim the series would ever see, prompting Ubisoft to double down on the IP in more ways than one.

First up, Ubisoft sought to expand Rayman’s resume. The studio produced an animated series in 1999, starring Billy West as the voice of Rayman. However, the show was canceled after only airing four episodes, with high production costs claimed as the cause of death. Also produced were games outside of the platforming genre. Rayman starred in an educational game, called “Rayman Brain Games” in North America. He was also deemed popular enough to get a party game in 2001’s “Rayman Arena.” The series even expanded to java and mobile games early on, with different, albeit simple spin-offs like “Rayman Golf.”


While Ubisoft was building up Rayman’s empire, what fans truly wanted was a new mainline game. And that came in 2003’s “Rayman 3: Hoodlum Havoc,” though Ancel himself was only a creative advisor. While the second game was ported to the PlayStation 2, the third was the first built with sixth generation consoles in mind. A bit sillier and lighter in tone, it was a fun romp through even more visually impressive worlds. It didn’t reach quite the same heights as its predecessor. But it was nonetheless another solid outing for the hero, and one that was a financial hit. It seemed as if things could only go up.

Of course, living in the present, we know that’s not true. Following the release of “Rayman 3,” fans waited for a fourth that would never come. Backbone Entertainment released a GBA entry, “Hoodlums’ Revenge,” in 2005. That same year, Ubisoft would begin production on “Rayman 4” with a smaller developer, Phoenix Interactive, as the Montpellier studio was then adapting Peter Jackson’s “King Kong.” Sadly, while the developer had big plans, the project lasted less than a year before it was canceled. Development had begun in 2005, which meant a new generation of consoles was right around the corner. Fearing that would harm sales and wanting to build something new, Ubisoft chose to scrap Phoenix’s work and start anew with the Montpellier team once “King Kong” was finished.

A second version of “Rayman 4” would enter development with the character’s original creators. It was intended to be another 3D action platformer, with newly created bunny characters invading Rayman’s world. However, after Ubisoft received dev kits for Nintendo’s upcoming Wii, the traditional platforming elements were scrapped, though the rabbits weren’t. Ubisoft chose to focus on different types of gameplay and uses for the Wiimote, leading the project to evolve into the mini-game-centric “Rayman Raving Rabbids,” released in 2006.

Despite it not being a proper Rayman game, “Raving Rabbids” was a huge hit and received ports to multiple platforms soon after. Unfortunately, the insane little critters would soon outshine Rayman himself. From 2006 to 2013, the Rabbids got one game per year. And after the third one, 2008’s “TV Party,” Rayman ceased appearing in them, instead getting relegated back to mobile with 2009’s “Rayman Kart.” Ubisoft had seemingly found a new angle within the IP, merchandising the Rabbids to Hell and back through clothes, toys, and even a four-season long TV series.

Meanwhile, Rayman would eventually get his platforming debut on the Wii, with 2011’s “Rayman Origins.” Ubisoft Montpellier built a new engine, called UbiArt Framework, specializing in transitioning 2D animation to a video game format. And quite frankly, it was a stunning display. Although it had gone back to a sidescroller, its levels were bursting with life and color. And playing through them, whether alone or with friends, was as delightful as it was exciting. However, Rayman’s days of being a high seller without the Rabbids were seemingly behind him. Initial sales numbers for “Origins” were extremely low, though the game eventually became profitable enough to produce an even better sequel.

For 2013’s “Rayman Legends,” the Montpellier team perfected what was capable with the UbiArt engine. Visuals popped straight out the screen with life and wonder, every single level was a blast to play, and there was enough silly humor to keep you smiling ear to ear. A new gameplay addition came through the Wii U’s gamepad, allowing supportive character Murfy to interact with the environments of certain levels. It was actually intended to be a Wii U exclusive. But Nintendo’s successor wasn’t nearly as positively received as the Wii. Weak sales of Ubisoft’s launch title, “Zombi U,” caused the publisher to delay “Legends” for a multi-platform release.

Like its predecessor, “Legends” earned a ton of critical acclaim but was a slow seller. Sadly, it’s the last full game the character has starred in. And that’s due to a variety of factors. The obvious one being the Rabbids; they became extremely popular, extremely quickly, making them a more bankable option for Ubisoft. They even teamed up with Mario for a lighthearted take on tactics in 2017’s “Kingdom Battle.” While the game was initially met with immense backlash due to the oversaturation of the franchise, it would go on to receive strong reviews and outsell both “Origins” and “Legends.” Meanwhile, Rayman still starred in mobile games, the most recent being 2019’s “Rayman Mini.”

The other big contributing factor to Rayman’s prolonged hiatus is the current status of Ubisoft itself. In mid-2020, the studio was hit by numerous sexual misconduct allegations. And in the wake of all that, reports of Michel Ancel’s abusive management style surfaced. Rayman’s creator retired from the industry later that year, though denied the allegations and cited stress as the reason for retirement. Since then, the studio has experienced backlash not only from the accusations, but from multiple poorly received business decisions, including a huge focus on subscription models and a disastrous venture into NFTs. Recent years haven’t been financially viable for the publisher either, with multiple games underperforming, causing the cancellation of many others in the process. While well received, even the Rabbids’ second outing with Mario and co., 2022’s “Sparks of Hope,” was reportedly financially disappointing for Ubisoft. Which is a shame as its third DLC expansion, released in August 2023, featured Rayman’s first appearance in a console game in a decade. While the character also got a little love that year in Netflix’s “Captain Laserhawk: A Blood Dragon Remix,” Rayman’s gaming prospects don’t seem to be looking up.

Unfortunately, the wait for a new “Rayman” game may continue to stretch out even further. Ubisoft Montpellier, Rayman’s home, put out “Prince of Perisa: The Lost Crown” in early 2024 to incredibly strong reviews. But like many other Ubisoft releases in recent memory, it has so far underperformed in sales. The studio also still has “Beyond Good & Evil 2” to worry about, which has been sitting comfortably in development hell for quite some time. Of course, a new entry doesn’t have to be done by the same team. In 2023, Davide Soliani, creative director of both “Mario + Rabbids” games, expressed interest in tackling a “Rayman” game. But that’s really up to Ubisoft, which, as we’ve already discussed, has its hands full. The publisher is balancing a lot of plates while trying to restructure, and dealing with the fallout of multiple controversies. Rayman could be seen as a risk, since his days of being a high seller are long behind him. All the while, those who have spent money on Rayman, loving each zany adventure through every vibrant landscape, are simply left waiting.

But hey, let’s shine a light on the positive. What’s your favorite “Rayman” game? Share your fond memories in the comments, and be sure to subscribe to MojoPlays for more great videos every day!