Think I reviewed all the classic Rayman games? Here's a couple of stand-out original handheld games!
Mascot platformers you ask? Check out the following reviews!
Aero the Acro-Bat - 2 / Astal / Bonk - 2 / BUG! - Too! / Clockwork Knight - 2
Crash Bandicoot 1 / Croc / Earthworm Jim 1 / Felix the Cat / Greendog
Rayman - 2: The Great Escape - 3: Hoodlum Havoc - The Animated Series - Rabbids Go Home
Crash Bandicoot 1 / Croc / Earthworm Jim 1 / Felix the Cat / Greendog
Rayman - 2: The Great Escape - 3: Hoodlum Havoc - The Animated Series - Rabbids Go Home
Over the years there's been several Rayman games on handheld systems.
Mostly adaptations of the main series to all sorts of spinoffs. Most notably for portable consoles like the Game Boy Color and Advance, the Nintendo DS, the PSP as well as mobile phones and smartphones.
With the older game consoles, back when the games had to be simpler enough to both run on the hardware and due to the size of cartridges, they couldn't simply port the main games and often resorted to produce original much simpler games only loosely based on said main Rayman games.
With these portable episodes having to be simple enough for the handheld consoles, it forced Ubisoft to try something else and let these spinoffs do their own thing rather than acting as simple ports.
Following a couple of much simpler Game Boy Color titles, a few more straightforward adaptations finally arrived. Like the 2001 Rayman Advance for the GBA, a port of the original PC version as much possibly unedited, Game Boy Advance screen limitations aside. There also was a Rayman DS, a 2005 Nintendo DS remake of Rayman 2: The Great Escape almost exactly like the Nintendo 64 version of the original game (using the same low-quality MIDI music from this N64 version). And there's also been another further port of Rayman 2 since then the 2011 Rayman 3D for Nintendo 3DS, while adding the use of a 3D mode, this time more directly based on the best received version of Rayman 2, the Dreamcast port.
In these following reviews, I'm not gonna review these above directs ports. I'm just going to look at the original portable Rayman games. Those episodes that were unique to Nintendo's portable consoles.
Title: Rayman aka Rayman 1 or Rayman (GBC) From Ubisoft Milan/Ubisoft Entertainment
On Nintendo Game Boy Color
Type Sidescroller Platformer
Year 2000
The idea behind this very first portable game was to stick as close to possible to a direct port of the original Rayman 1 for the Game Boy Color in 2000. But since that idea was simply not possible at the time due to the Game Boy Color's limitations this first handheld Rayman game ended up as a much shorter simplified take on Rayman 1.
The gameplay plays generally the same as the original game, with simplified physics and controls. But the graphics really take a hit as the limitation in colors used in the screen forced most of the backgrounds to be entirely ditched for a plain black background.
As such the levels and the level design only retain a loose connection to the original game, only keeping the same recognizable overall themes.
Besides Rayman of course, the only other returning character from Rayman 1 is the original main final boss, Mr Dark. All the other characters such as Betilla the Fairy, the Magician, Tarayzan, the Musician and even all those other bosses such as the giant Moskito, Mr Sax, the Space Mama, etc. are noticeably absent from this game.
The story follows most of the same general plot from the original game, although clearly simplified down. Most of the plot is told in the introduction cutscene where we see Rayman being called upon by these "fairies, beings known as the Tings. How this evil Mr Dark has captured all the Electoons in cages, and the world is about to turn to chaos. Rayman has to free them to save the universe as we know it! It's much more simplified, despite cutscene screens popping up every now and then every few stages (in simple illustrations with no dialogues).
The game then follows the same general structure. The goal is to collect these Tings around while facing all kinds of villains on your path, and save the captured Electoons! Rayman will also collect all of his powers one by one like in most Rayman games.
Despite it being an adaptation of Rayman 1, most of the art (except Rayman's sprite itself) was based on Rayman's appearance in the second game.
There's no save feature, but passwords instead. You can find all these bonus stages around (much easier than in the original Rayman). Only once the game's completed, a map feature allows to select any stages like in the original game.
The music was strangely taken from Rayman 2 and not the first one for some reason. Well, most of what you can hear anyway. It's a much simpler take based on the original music of Éric Chevalier, here adapted into MIDI by Stefano Palmonari.
Overall: This first Rayman for the Game Boy is definitively a simplified 8-bit title.
It's a much shorter game, don't expect much from it. Only a few worlds/stages-long.
Despite not coming anywhere near as close as the excellent original Rayman 1, it's still somehow impressive. How much they tried to stay close to such a complex 32-bit era 2D-animated game.
I really thing they should have instead opted to create an all-original title instead of trying to match one of the best looking sidescrollers out there at the time.
I give this one a: 1.5 / 3 Score!
Title: Rayman 2 Forever also known as simply Rayman 2 or Rayman 2 GBC From Ubisoft Milan/Ubisoft
On Nintendo Game Boy Color
Type Sidescroller Platformer
Year 2001
The direct sequel to the above previous Rayman game. Using the same general sprites and engine as that first title.
Since the above game was based on the original Rayman 1, this Rayman 2 Forever is obviously taking much of its plot from Rayman 2. And actually, since the above title used the music from Rayman 2: The Great Escape, this Rayman 2 Forever basically re-uses the same music directly from the first GBC game!!
The story uses the same kind of similar still cutscenes, this time featuring the appearance of other characters beside Rayman like Globox and Ly the Fairy although in a much minor role compared to the actual Rayman 2.
The game looks and feels like the second part of the previous Rayman 1 game. It looks exactly the same plays exactly identically. The most notable differences are the Lums now taking the place and role of the Tings from the previous episode. The main goal being to collect all 800 of them! The cages this time are not actually hidden, and always found in plain sight in your main path in those levels. This time Teensies are trapped in those cages instead of the Electoons!
The bonus stages make a return and consist in time attacks where you have to save these Baby Globoxes.
Also, this time Rayman starts with all his powers right form the start, but there's an additional temporary "super-Heli" power-up for a few special stages.
Despite the stages being loosely based on those from Rayman 2, since the game is still using most of the same assets as the first GBC game they only have a loose visual connection to those original stages. The game same uses these black stills for background which make the levels look much simpler to what they're supposedly representing.
The game ditched the password feature for an actual save files this time!
For some reason the graphics are much less complicated in this sequel, but theres a reason for that. They had to cut every corner in order to fit this much bigger longer game. It's actually one of the biggest cartridges available for the system at the time, and even so the available space was quite limited for what they wanted to offer this time.
Overall: This Rayman 2 is a really mixed bag. On one hand it offers a ton of stage worth your time, but it simply looks like some additional levels to the previous game. And the level design is really all over the place this time.
Don't let the "Forever" in the title fool you, this Game Boy title has no connection to the complete release of the original Rayman game on the PC, despite being called Rayman 2 Forever this game does absolutely not feature the entire stages of Rayman 2. And it's a 2D game, unlike the original 3-dimensional Rayman 2!
My main problem with it is that it just feels kinda uninspired. Very uneven levels. Infernal-lava levels filled with annoying cobweb segments, really? It was supposed to be an adaptation of Rayman 2 and yet somehow offers the most un-Rayman-ysh settings possible.
I give this one a: 1 / 3 Score!
Title: Tonic Trouble From RFX Interactive/Ubisoft
On Nintendo Game Boy Color
Type Sidescroller Platformer/Action game
Year 2000
This Tonic Trouble was an adaptation of the 3D platformer by the same title. Unlike the other games on this page, it was outsourced by Ubisoft and developed by RFX Interactive. (Which is never a good sign, if you ask me.)
This Game Boy Color version is a rather drastic sidescrolling simplification of Tonic Trouble that goes for a much simpler action game approach compared to the exploration and "collect-a-thon" formula of the main console version. And it was only released in Europe for some reason.
The game follows the same basic storyline. Ed drops a soda can on this little planet similar to Earth... which causes all sorts of mutations. Next thing you know, Ed has to clean up his own mess, face all these dangerous mutated vegetables and defeat this evil mutant Viking trying to conquer the world.
Unlike the above Rayman games, this looks like a much proper-lookng GBC game. It uses several colors to liven up the mood (no more depressing black backgrounds!) and all these sprites look much bigger and nicer on screen. But it all also looks surprisingly cheap. For a sidescroller, the game has a very unusual straight perspective and Ed is somehow standing really weird on the side. Like unusually straight and seen sideways (you only really see one of his eyes at all times, which is pretty strange for some reason...). And the animations look fairly amateurish.
But it's kinda okay in my book.
Overall: A fairly interesting 3D platformer gets turned in a pretty forgettable portable sidescrolling platformer...
It's decent, but pretty basic.
Only Worth A Look to fans of the genre.
I give this one a: 1.5 / 3 Score!
Title: Rayman 3 aka Rayman 3 GBA From Ludi Factory/Ubisoft
On Nintendo Game Boy Advance
Type Sidescroller Platformer
Year 2003
Here's s a very different sort of adaptation, compared to the previous games.
While the above tried to mimic as much as possible the main console games, this episode does it own thing. Despite the title, this game shares very little with Rayman 3, the plot here mostly revolving around elements of the story of Rayman 2. Acting almost as a direct continuation of Rayman 2's story, like an "interquel" in between the second and third game. The game actually uses several elements from all Rayman episodes by that point, from Rayman 1, Rayman 2 and Rayman 3!
The reason for that is that this game supposedly started as a "Rayman 2" game for the Game Boy Advance and the "Rayman 3" elements were only added late in its development to tie into the release of the console version of Rayman 3. Notice the lack of the "Hoodlum Havoc" subtitle unlike the main game, since those Hoodlums are only present for a few couple of stages at some later points of the game.
The story appears to be set between the events of Rayman 2 and 3 (or as an alternate direct sequel to Rayman 2 at the very least). The story begins with Globox swallowing a Dark Lum (much like he does so in Rayman 3 by swallowing the evil Dark Lum André in the main Rayman 3 game). Rayman goes looking for a way to help Globox... but Globox ends up running away instead! And Rayman has to catch up to him! Meanwhile, Rayman 2's villain Razorbeard is back! He has heard about this accident and decided to find and capture Globox in order to extract this Dark Lum to use it to make himself much more powerful to destroy Rayman once and for all! The characters seem to have no knowledge of these Black Lums at this point. (Which helps the "interquel" theory in my eyes.).
The gameplay is pretty similar to Rayman 1 and Rayman 2. The goald is to collect all these 1000 Lums and find about 50 hidden cages this time. The enemies are these Robo-Pirates again. The game is split over these 4 different HUB worlds where you're able to select which level to do next. Each level needs a set number of Lums to be opened. Which is very nice since the idea offers some exploration. And you can find the Teensies around once more to help Rayman. Rayman can obtain new powers given by Ly the Fairy to reach new areas in these stages, which also adds some nice replay value.
There's a few types of stages this time. Most are played like your usual classic sidescrolling platformers. But the game also makes use of some unique Game Boy Advance features, such as the use of the "pseudo" 3-dimensional mode 7 (made famous on the SNES). There are some 3D water-ski racing stages, trying to recapture those memorable chase scenes from the 3D Rayman games, and also a few kart racing stages aboard these bumber karts where you have to collect as much Lums as possible in time to do 3 laps around a track. Those later ones can be kinda difficult some times. There's also some bonus stages that requires you to collect enough given Lums to open these in the HUBs, these offer some of the most challenging stages in the game. And finally there's also Ly's challenges, vertical-stages where you have to progress from bottom to top inside these huge long levels. And boss levels of course, which are always fun.
If anything, the move from GBC to GBA forced Ubisoft to create all new art since they couldn't resort to using the same graphics one more time. The game simply looks great, like a modern slightly-cartoonier Rayman 1. The game uses all-new gorgeous looking sprites!
Rayman 3 also features a couple of multiplayer functions, the multi can be played up to four players. By either sharing one cartridge and linking it to one other console, or up to four by using a multi-cable link with each player having his own copy of the game. These range from riding rocketships to a tag mode. The game also offers the ability to use the Game Boy Advance/GameCube link cable, turning the GBA into another kind of controller once the system linked to the GameCube version. This link unlock a few additional couple of minigames where one player controls Rayman and the other Globox. It was a pretty unique if limited feature (and kinda a precursor to what Nintendo developed nowadays with the Wii U in a way).
Overall: It's a fairly good game! Recommended if you're looking for a good platformer on the system!
This Rayman 3 might originally started as a Rayman 2 game, but forcing it to tie-in with Rayman 3 only helped it! Neither one or the other game, it works as a unique prequel of sorts.
The use of the mode 7 is a great idea and a pretty original way to make this stand out from yet another standalone sidescroller Rayman title.
Note that this game was also ported to the Nokia N-GAGE. The N-GAGE version was developed by Gameloft but it's actually heavily based on the GBA game (they only had to do a few minor adjustments like adapting the game to the much smaller screen, a few effects were removed and not all the entire levels remained.
I give this one a: 2 / 3 Score!
Title: Rayman: Hoodlums' Revenge From Digital Eclipse/Backbone Entertainment/Ubisoft
On Nintendo Game Boy Advance
Type Isometric Platformer
Year 2005
The first and only Rayman game in the franchise to be played from an isometric perspective!
Hoodlums' Revenge is a sequel to Rayman 3 actually, a way to finally bring the plot of Rayman 3 to the GBA this time, much closer to it and actually featuring the same characters and enemies this time. Making it almost act like an epilogue of sort or a direct follow-up to Rayman 3: Hoodlum Havoc, much like the previous GBA game acted as a continuation of sort to Rayman 2.
The story appears to be taking place shortly after the events of Rayman 3. Globox is having a nightmare, remembering having swallowed the Black Lum André in the previous adventure. When Rayman woke up, he saw Globox was missing so he went looking for him. Murfy tells him the Hoodlums are back! Globox is slowly being taken over by André, going through these mood swings, acting more aggressive and even almost insulting Rayman! The Black Lums are trying to bring back the memorable Rayman 3 boss character Reflux. In fact, André's trying to turn Globox into a clone of this Reflux! That explains why Globox is acting more mean spirited, André's transforming him into Reflux by having him drink this Plum Juice. The objective is to save the Teensies once more while trying to prevent and put a stop to the return of this more powerful Reflux, and help Globox revert to his original form!
The gameplay is pretty strange on a first look, but it's actually pretty solid for an isometric title. Rayman has the same basic controls and powers as in most Rayman games. Only the perspective makes some of the platforming a bit more difficult (and the small shadow doesn't really help).
Aside from the usual Lums, there's also several types of gems to collect, along the cages to break free.
Rayman: Hoodlums' Revenge also allows to directly play as Globox several times, which brings a nice change of pace. Globox has a different type of gameplay. He cannot fight and can't even be seen by the Hoodlums, since Globox is afraid of them and will start running away from them automatically.. When the game gets really interesting is when it gives the ability to both play Rayman and Globox in the same later levels. There's some great puzzles to solve to progress, making you switch back and forth between both characters and the different tasks they can perform.
It really brings some of the most fun and memorable sequences in this game.
The game is fairly long actually and even difficult at some points. But most of the trouble never comes from the enemies and boss fights which are fairly easy. The most difficult aspect are some of the more precise platforming segments.
Otherwise the game looks pretty good graphically, they made these great-looking 2D sprites that almost look like 3D models.
Overall: This "Rayman 3bis" was a great idea, and it even looks great, but the execution leaves a lot to be desired.
It's Worth a Look if you're a fan of Rayman, but the game's riffled with annoying traits. The isometric imprecise gameplay can be really tricky to control. The very simple boss fights don't really offer any challenge.
While it's pretty decent and lovely to look at, it's a really bad entry in the series.
I give this one a: 1.5 / 3 Score!
Title: Rayman Raving Rabbids aka Raving Rabbids GBA From Visual Impact Productions/Ubisoft
On Nintendo Game Boy Advance
Type Sidescroller Platformer
Year 2006
This one is fairly unique compared to the other titles, since it appears to be based on a scrapped game.. but it was able to make it on Nintendo's Game Boy Advance somehow!
The story of this Rayman Raving Rabbids was actually taken from Ubisoft Montpellier's cancelled Rayman 4 platformer which evolved into the Wii party game Rayman Raving Rabbids. This GBA title actually seems to take entirely from that game's scrapped environments, art style, direction and gameplay elements.
It should be no surprise that Raving Rabbids was originally meant to be the next major platforming adventure entry in the Rayman series... but what we got in 2006 instead was a compilation of mini-games!
Unlike its Wii counterpart, this GBA port retained most of its story, about how this species of "rabbit creatures", the Rabbids, which existed in Rayman's world since a long time finally decided to take over the world. They used to docile but they constantly chased and bullied by others. One day they completely disappeared without any clue to the reason for it... and now they have returned! And they're completely crazy and they will take their revenge on the entire world by invading the whole planet with the Rabbid army!!
All the main Rayman characters are back as well, like Globox and Murfy who both make a cameo to help Rayman escape and defeat the Rabbids. Also making a return is a lovely redesigned Ly the Fairy with a brand new look to offer Rayman a couple of new powers through the game.
This marks the only game in the whole Rabbids series in which the true reason behind their destructive nature is ever really touched upon, another remaining concept from the original Rayman 4 platformer. How they used to be once peaceful creatures often bullied by other creatures that have gone bad and are now trying to take over the world, much like the Robo-Pirate Army and the Hoodlums from the previous games.
As such, this Raving Rabbids is a classic sidesceollers unlike the rest of the Rabbids games. A classic sidescroller platformer adventure, with a gameplay basically exactly like most 2D Rayman games, unlike the usual later Rabbids minigame-based party games.
The game opens with Rayman wakening up in jail cell (in a way kind of reminiscent of the original Prince of Persia game if you ask me), unarmed and looking for a way to escape and get his weapon (hand) back. Through the game Rayman has to face all sorts of Rabbids, unlike later games here coming in all kinds of size and shape, and having to defeat all these different main Rabbid "generals" that use "Antitoon" robots. The objective being to reach the Rabbids' mothership, this giant creepy one-eyed mechanical Rabbid.
While most powers return for a few select areas or to unlock, some additional abilities come in the form of costumes like a "gangsta" costume, a "punk" one, a "grandma" look, a "rocker" and a "funky" costume as well. Ly will grant Rayman some new powers in the form of these interchangeable costumes with abilities that mimic some of Rayman's old power-ups like stomping on the ground for example.
Visually the game is pretty similar to the above GBA version of Rayman 3, although slightly simplified. The levels are also much shorter, the HUB stages were replaced by a world map this time.
Despite most game being played as a classic sidescroller, there are a few 3D kart racing stages (which use once more Nintendo's mode 7 as well). A couple of them are time-based as well. Each world is about 4 level-long. The idea is to collect several yellow Lums (1550 this time!) and about 60 hidden cages to locate.
Overall: This is the Rayman Raving Rabbids the world deserved! A much better take on the idea of the game the other consoles finally received.
Don't misunderstand me, the partygames are great and all that, the Rabbids were so memorable they basically ended taking over Rayman's game, his presence being shortened to basically extended cameos in this Rabbids sub-series.
But this Game Boy Advance Rayman Raving Rabbids title is the only way we will ever be able to experience the real Rayman 4.
The game is fairly long, fun and truly enjoyable. The art, the colors and the music are great. And the story actually makes sense and is fun here, with plenty of humor to boot. Highly Recommended to any fan of the Rayman franchise, old time fans of the classic first sidescroller episode or people just wanting to see what Rayman 4/the platformer Rayman Raving Rabbids could have been.
I give this one a: 3 / 3 Score!
Title: Rayman Raving Rabbids From Ubisoft Casablanca/Ubisoft
On Nintendo DS
Type Sidescroller 2.5 Platformer
Year 2007
Despite the similar title, this is not exactly the same game as neither the Wii partygame, nor the Game Boy Advance sidescroller based on the scrapped Rayman 4 above. Instead it's a fairly distinct patchwork that appears to take as much from one and the other title.
It was developed by Ubisoft Casablanca (mostly known for their work on the "super-deformed" Prince of Persia: The Fallen King and DS Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands) and released only an entire year later (actually along the release of Rayman Raving Rabbids 2 on the Wii!!).
Unlike both previous Raving Rabbids titles, this game uses 3D graphics but is still a sidescroller as well. The game seems to be running on a modified Rayman 2 engine, using several elements and assets from the DS version of Rayman 2 (from Rayman's 3D model to most sounds, animations, graphics and even aspects of the menus!!).
The story seemingly takes a lot more from the console version of Raving Rabbid this time, which sees Rayman a taking nap in the forest, as usual, when suddenly Rabbids invade the whole planet! Rayman's able to escape, but now he has to take all these challenges in a Colosseum. Only, unlike the main Raving Rabbids game where he is has to participate in all kinds of mini-games, here the goal is to simply collect 100 trophies through the usual platform stages. Untily finally facing this Rabbid Droid once all challenges are taken and the final door's opened.
The game offers a selection of a few stages at first through a classic map. The levels have to be played through more times than once, each stage containing a few alternate paths leading to different challenges. Like forced replay value, if you will. You can only access some parts with certain later abilities you need to obtain first.
So that means there's a lot of backtracking this time. Rayman will obtain about 7 different abilities, some you will get with these strange silly costumes taken directly from the console version. Every now and then once a set of stages is complete you will get a few disguised "rhythm" minigames only controlled via the DS stylus, which help you learn how to master the special powers. It feels kinda gimmicky and annoying after a while. Where Rayman is seen running automatically and you have to simply guide him using the special powers of each costume. It can get a bit tricky but it's fun at first.
This time Rayman can also throw the Yellow Lums collected, which are much stronger than the regular fist attack.
Like the Game Boy Advance version, the costumes offer entirely different sets of power-ups to move through different obstacles. But they're also completely different, which is also distracting.
There's a few forced minigames based on the main console game.
The final objective of the game is to collect different mechanical pieces in each world in order to build up this "Rayman Gear", a giant flying Rayman robot to face the final boss. Every time you get a new part you have to do a little shoot 'em up-like stage, which is perhaps the less interesting aspect of the whole game.
The music can be bit annoying, it's the same kind of cheesy parodies of cult classic songs and overplayed beat from the main game... with a much lower sound quality from the main game.
Overall: This Rayman Raving Rabbids DS is actually quite not that bad.
The graphics are very reminiscent of the Nintendo DS Prince of Persia game which I loved, in fact it was made by the exact same team behind those PoP titles.
The game is very simple, very easy. Clearly aimed at children.
Since it was based around Rayman 2's 3D engine, a lot of the gameplay feels restricted and simplified in order to make it play like a traditional sidescroller platformer, far from the much more pleasant and perfect original Rayman 1.
There's only a couple of bosses that poses any challenge, and you unlock those really late in game. My only complaint is that you don't even get to play that last final boss as Rayman (but inside a mecha!)!
I give this one a: 2 / 3 Score!
Title: Rabbids Go Home also known as Rabbids Go Home (DS) From Ubisoft Casablanca/Ubisoft
On Nintendo DS
Type Puzzle game
Year 2009
It might not be technically a "Rayman game", but I really wanted to cover this title here since I also had Tonic Trouble above.
Also developed by Ubisoft Casablanca, this Rabbids Go Home (DS) takes the same general premise and concept of the Wii game by the same title and does a completely different thing with the same idea. It's actually a puzzle game, close to classic arcade-puzzles games like Lemmings or ChuChu Rocket!.
Made to coincide with the Wii relese, but allowed to try something completely different and just only loosely tie in Rabbids Go Home. It's completely different from the console platformer. With elements of strategy-puzzle like those recent Mario Vs Donkey Kong games.
The game follows the same general storyline about the Rabbids trying to get back home/to space/to the Moon, told here via fairly unique-looking old school "puppet-style"cutscenes, giving the game already from the start a fairly unique and different vibe from the other version.
The idea is still to have the Rabbids running with a shopping trolley collecting as many items and stuff as possible to build this huge giant pile in the junkyard in order to reach the moon... but instead of directly controlling them and being a platformer, you have to solve several screens worth of puzzle. Only able to indirectly interact by the select few actions you can have items perform in the stages. A new set of items to play with each round.
You first place whatever you got in the screen, using whatever action those will do and then you let the action play out as many times as you want (but it's always best to do so in as little tries/moves as possible). You don't need to use every item. Once the Rabbid pushing the cart reach the toilet, as long as collect at least one item each time it's okay. But it's best to aim for the all collectibles you can in every stage.
Those stages are spread through five different area, the same from the main game: a building site, the city, a theme park, Las Vegas and finally the dump. Each are covers about three different sub-zones and each of those are about ten levels and a bonus level based on your timing reflexes. Those are played back at the "moon pile" where you try to catch items on the fly, such as toilet paper rolls and sports helmets, by tracing lines via the stylus. A fun way to break away from the rest of the usual puzzles. Though later segments will add a ton of bombs to juggle with, which can be a bit more stressful than the actual puzzle stages.
The game features several elements from the main Rabbids Go Home such as innocent bystanders, annoying dogs and even the Verminator foes which will here sabotage your puzzle solving. They will try to block your actions and you then need to click items to unlock them back.
There's all kinds of items to play and interact with from simple scissors that can cut through ropes, safes that weigh things down, bowling balls to destroy walls or boxes, balloons to rise above with helium until they explode, color-coded washing machines to teleport the Rabbids around the screen, TVs to distract tje walking Rabbids when you want them to stop, boomboxes to dance around (and often destroy the ground below), dogs to chase the Rabbids and many more...
Finally there's also a separate challenge mode, and even a level editor as well!
Overall: This version of Rabbids Go Home actually surprised me quite a well!
It's a pretty long decent game, some of the later levels can get pretty tricky, testing your brain like no other Rabbid game out there!
The game features a unique art direction that make it stand apart, the same storyline as the Wii version, albeit with a different gameplay mechanic. Hours worth of game!!
It's fairly unique and certainly not your typical Rabbids game! A really nice change for the series. Still charming, colorful and unique. Great puzzles. Perhaps a bit too difficult and challenging for its intended target audience, children. Some of the later levels will make you really think outside the box once you've gotten used to a certain few items. The games keep throwing new gameplay elements and features your way, which keep things challenging.
Also, on the DSi the game allowed the use of the camera to let you use customized photos as insert art in the game.
I give this one a: 2.5 / 3 Score!
And that's it for these handheld Rayman titles!
Note that there's also an infamous hack called Rayman IV ("Rayman: Der Sonneschein auf der Reise" in Germany), an unlicensed Russian hack using assets from all kind of game (the rom's available online if you're interested).
There's been a few other exclusive portable Rayman games I haven't talked about here, nameley a few interest phone games. Most of the games for older phone models have been based on the Game Boy titles, but there were a few exlusive titles like Rayman Bowling. Such as the 2007 portable phone title Rayman Kart, a kart racing spinoff developed by Gameloft.
And let's not forget the pretty excellent 2012 and 2013 smartphone titles Rayman Jungle Run and Rayman Fiesta Run, based on Rayman Origins and using assets from that game, based on the treasure chase stages. Both pretty good modern runner games, fun and gorgeous.
The games running on the more modern hardware have usually been direct ports of the main Rayman videogames.
That's all for this time's Quickies!
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