Backlog Beatdown: Manning the Rays with Rayman Legends

Rayman: Legends was one of the first games I owned for the Nintendo Switch when I had it for Christmas last year and it is by far the game that I’ve played the most on it since. I’d been aware of the franchise since the ‘90s, but Legends is the most recent iteration of the platforming series with a surprising amount of longevity.

It looks chaotic but is really well paced.

Rayman: Legends is a puzzle-platformer, concerning the titular hero Rayman, his detached limbs and several of his friends as they battle across platforming level to free the Teensies from the nightmares and the Dark Teensies. It sounds mad and it absolutely is, but a fantasy-based game always benefits from breaking free from the Tolkien-esque western fantasy that is the staple of many current games. It’s been released on every major platform since the 7^th generation and is well worth a look on whatever system you own.

I describe the game as a puzzle-platformer but it’s remarkable how Rayman: Legends manages to, for the most part, keep those two aspects of it separate. You can get from one side of the level to the other, defeat enemies, handle some platforming sections and beat the game that way. Or you can take your time, explore the world, find all the secret entrances and solve the puzzles within if you want to complete as much of the game as you can. Certain of the platforming sections have their own gimmicks that need to be used to beat the level; sometimes there are light puzzles and sometimes you get a long-ranged attack for the level, but by and large, it’s standard stuff. It works because the game handles so well. All your abilities are either available to you at the start of the game or are handed to you at certain levels – no levelling up, or better characters; if there is a problem, the solution is within the level and the abilities you have. The controls are fluid and responsive, and the level design is on point, allowing for some spectacular platforming and some challenging sections without becoming too difficult. The immediate aim is to get to the end of the level, but there are bonuses available for collect a certain number of Lums and rescuing all the Teensies. You need to do at least some of the latter to progress, but this shouldn’t stand in your way.

This invasion level took me a long time...

The game mixes things up mechanically by adding some variation to the level parameters. The most obvious of these are the invasion levels, where you must complete certain sections of levels within a minute – and preferably forty seconds to rescue all the Teensies strapped to fireworks. These require a different frame of mind and some precision-platforming and can be frustrating – but the payoff for beating them is even more fun for that! Brilliantly, there are a set of “music” levels, where Rayman becomes a rhythm game – you control the game as normal, but the level and music are designed in such a way that your jumps and attacks must be in time with the music in order to progress. It wouldn’t work if that was the whole game, but they are a lot of fun when you play them!

There's all sorts of post-game content -
if you want to unlock it.

The graphics are gorgeous; cartoony art styles age very well and the backgrounds are beautiful. The soundtrack is good as well, notwithstanding the slightly irritating squeaky voices on certain tracks. Every Rayman game I’ve played has looked and sounded well, and without any obligation to put an iteration of the game out every year, it’s given itself enough time to find its feet and come up with a style of gameplay that really works well for this generation of gaming. The Nintendo Switch is the perfect system for a game like this – you can pick it up for half an hour, do a few levels and put it down again.

I don’t know how many people would see Rayman: Legends through to the end, but anybody should be able to pick up this game and have some fun with it. It’s a charming game in a gaming world that needs its colour and wit – without it or it’s player base taking themselves too seriously.

Final Score: 4/5: Great game.