Rayman DS Review

Before anything else Ill get one thing straight. This game is a port. The original game, titled Rayman 2: The Great Escape was a N64 game. Cutting straight to the chase, the game hasnt changed much since those days. The main difference being the replacement of the Rayman 2 logo with the Rayman DS one. Of course this doesnt mean the game is bad. Mario 64 DS was a N64 port and we can honestly say Nintendo still managed to pull out a great game. But can Ubisofts mascot live up to the platforming standard of Mario? Lets see shall we?

Graphics
The graphics are reminiscent of the N64 version with no real obvious aesthetic changes. Although the game does look nice on your DS as it did on the N64. Raymans world has been created to be quite pleasing to the eye. Each environment has great attention to detail, such as running water and crabs scuttling along the beach. The N64 version was proclaimed highly for its graphical prowess and this is a trend that has thankfully carried over into the handheld version of the game.

Sound
The sound in the game is great. The themes to each level suit the environments, with bouncy happy tunes for the beautiful forests and odes of despair for the cave of bad dreams. Background sound effects such as birds, running water and even fellow creatures calling for help are all perfect additions to the atmosphere of the game, especially when there is an absence of music in some areas. All in all, its very good.

Gameplay
The game begins with all hope lost. The evil robo pirates have taken over Raymans world and enslaved its inhabitants. Rayman has been captured and is held aboard a pirate stronghold. With his powers gone it looks like the end for poor Rayman until his best friend Globox brings him a power restoring lum and they escape. Rayman then learns that the pirates have broken the primordial energy core, thus scattering the energy of the world into the form of 1000 gold lums. Obviously the duty falls upon you to collect the little shiners and repair the energy core as well as rescue the pirates captives. However the main objective of the game is to the collect the 4 ancient masks of the worlds god, Polokus in order to defeat the pirate king Razorbeard. Rayman explores the world using a hub known as the hall of doors, with different areas being divided into levels. These levels vary in structure but are usually in the form of 2 D, with most being fairly linear. Some though are full blown 3D environments that will take you an age to complete. This seems to take its toll on the camera at times, especially in combat, where it can become hard to get a clear view of who youre fighting. Especially when the game was obviously designed for a control stick. Touch screen control is also available with the option to centre and change the size of your touch area however you wish. Most levels are actually pretty long so the game will likely take you a while to complete and longer to perfect as finding all 50 gold lums in each level can prove to be difficult.
Well it is a platformer, so you can expect all the regular running, jumping, climbing and swimming action that has become the mould for every single platforming game ever made. Skills that are unique to the limbless rabbit include being able to shoot energy balls with his fists and rotate his ears like a helicopter to slow his descent. Fights are handled through the use of a targeting system that bears similarity to the one used in Zelda. Throughout his quest Rayman will gain new powers from mysterious silver lums giving him abilities such as being able to swing from purple lums and charging his fist. The game is not limited to regular platforming action though. Rayman can water-ski across a swamp using a snake and even ride rockets as if they were horses! Yes, horses, even right down to the sound effects. These sections, although proving to be slightly difficult at first become a welcome break from the monotony of platforming thus reducing boredom as a whole. Its not all perfect though, as the game does have a tendency to glitch occasionally, as does the camera. Of course its just little things though, and dont really have the greater potential to screw up your game. In most cases theyre just annoying or stupid rather, such as when Rayman sees fit to die in the middle of a cut scene when you have no control over him. In general Rayman DS is quite an enjoyable game gameplay wise, even with its glitches and control difficulties theres enough variation to keep you coming back for more.