After 3 Hours, Rayman Legends Retold Could Be 2026's Surprise Best Remake
Overview & Key Takeaways
Rayman Legends Retold brings back a classic with new visuals and extra content to make Mario sweat.
For a hero who is missing his arms and legs (but, somehow, not his feet or hands), Rayman sure gets around. In Rayman Legends Retold, the upcoming platformer from Ubisoft, players have the opportunity to join him on his grandest adventure to date, a rollicking remake of 2013’s Rayman Legends, which until now was the best way to see Rayman and all his friends doing what they do best.
Rayman Legends was truly something special. It followed closely after Rayman Origins, a 2D platformer that successfully revitalized Ubisoft’s dormant franchise in 2011. Both games sported a hand-drawn art style that impressed me at the time, resembling a living cartoon in the best of ways. Other titles of the era eventually fell into the mire that consumes games built to chase technical specifications, but those classic Rayman titles still catch the eye thanks to their impeccable art direction.
Rayman Legends Retold is a stellar remake
Rayman Legends Retold uses that classic media as inspiration, but it reworks the visuals to take advantage of 3D models. As I sat down to demo several hours with the upcoming remake, there was a curmudgeonly part of me that wanted to resist the changes to a package I already loved. The whimsy of the original release (which is still available to enjoy on a wide variety of older platforms) went down so easily more than a decade ago that I didn’t see much need for an update. Ubisoft might easily have sanded off a few rough edges and had another gorgeous masterpiece on its hands. But that’s not the direction the team took. And honestly? I have no complaints so far.
The stages as presented in Rayman Legends Retold feel alive in ways the originals simply didn’t. They’re packed full of beautiful scenery, with lots of light and shadow playing across detailed textures that provide a more convincing illusion of depth, even though you’re still playing around with classic 2D platformer mechanics.
In one realm, a jungle setting features crumbling ruins in the background, with well-trodden paths between ferns that stretch into a mist-shrouded background. In another, Rayman leaps along ledges built from giant bits of food: frankfurters, waffles dripping syrup, and even giant layers of cake. A massive cheese grater provides the backdrop; its many holes provide a glimpse at grinding gears and mountains of spoiling waste. Every new stage seems to have been redesigned with an eye toward crafting a world worth cherishing, not simply enduring. Against my personal expectations, the presentation is a big step forward for a beloved franchise that still keeps one hand firmly on its roots, like Super Mario Bros. Wonder did a few years back. It’s difficult to appreciate the impact just by viewing static screenshots. Seeing it all in motion, with a controller in your hand, is another matter entirely.
For the original Rayman Legends release, Ubisoft included a generous selection of stages from Rayman Origins before it. That package boasted a mountain of platforming action as a result, and was a tremendous value. This time around, those older stages have been pulled from the main adventure. They are instead presented as Rayman Origins: Enhanced Edition, a separate title players get with their purchase. During my demo of the game, I spent only a few minutes running through some stages from that bundle. I still enjoyed them. But after playing a good variety of the “retold” content, the experience wasn’t as exciting. I’d been spoiled.
Image: Ubisoft
Image: Ubisoft
Image: Ubisoft
Image: Ubisoft
Image: Ubisoft
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Image: Ubisoft
Image: Ubisoft
Image: Ubisoft
Image: Ubisoft
Image: Ubisoft
Don’t assume Rayman Legends Retold stops with just the impressive visual overhaul, though; the game features an entire new realm, with a darker vibe that functions as a grim counterpoint to the lush, vibrant worlds Rayman explores during much of his adventure. I played through a few new levels, finding that I had to proceed more cautiously to survive architecture designed to make me fight for survival in cramped corridors lined by tombstones, purple haze, and twisting spiked vines. I doubt I would have enjoyed playing through them alongside someone who is new to platformers, simply because the precision required means there’s nothing simple about them. But they were a nice way to test myself after vanquishing the other content.
That’s one thing I’ve always enjoyed about both Rayman Legends and Rayman Origins: they give you options and reward you no matter how you choose to engage. The standard stages are there to enjoy, alone or with friends. You can rush through them with an eye on survival and have plenty of fun along the way. Or, if you prefer, you can take your time to explore every nook and cranny. There are tiny blue buddies waiting for you to free them from cages. You’ll sometimes have to navigate areas more quickly or follow a riskier route to find them. More often, you’ll need to seek out hidden chambers with miniature gauntlets that test your platforming prowess.
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Besides the standard platforming stages, Rayman Legends Retold also features other lively events to keep monotony at bay. In one stage, I hopped onto the back of a flying dragon and rode it through a lively village, pelting swaying enemy towers with my mount’s fiery breath. In others, I raced along ledges to the beat of the background music, jumping and punching my own little symphony on the way to the end. There’s just no telling what the next stage will introduce. That was always true, but everything hits a bit harder now with some additional twists worked in.
Long-time fans know that the Rayman universe is the closest thing Ubisoft has – or needs – to the Super Mario franchise. Rayman Legends Retold is an imaginative platformer offering vibrant worlds, engaging platforming sequences, and endearing personality that oozes from every beautiful crack in its wacky world. If you haven’t played a Rayman game before, or if it has been a few years since your last exposure, or even if you’re just looking for something fun you can enjoy with family members of all ages, Rayman Legends Retold is the game to watch for later this year.
Rayman Legends Retold will be released on Dec. 3 for Nintendo Switch 2, PlayStation 5, Windows PC, and Xbox Series X.
