some people: stealth missions suck! most people: under water levels suck even more! Rayman legends: lol i have a world that mixes stealth and under water mechanics everybody: Best World
TO be fair since Super Mario Galaxy I've seen both DK and Rayman adopted the "spin" type of underwater control which greatly benefits the water levels and their experience
Corrected it :) (thx btw) and I played it on the PS4 and it's one of the best games I've ever played, still waiting for a sequel but the devs are currently working on Beyond Good and Evil 2. I really hope they go back to making another Rayman game after they're done with BG&E 2.
Rayman Legends + Origins are two of my favorite games of the last gen. Still holding out hope that Ubisoft will get over its open world fetish and make another proper Rayman game soon.
FerrisK96 the origins levels have been greatly simplified though. I'd say legends is technically better, but origins is the game that turned me from a casual gamer when I was little to someone completely invested in the community and amazed with how games are made and the culture around them. Origins has a special place in my heart for this.
Rayman Origins and Legends are two of my favorite platformers, hands down. But also, two of my favorite games. No other game has kept me so consistently entertained, and never frustrated. Playing with my Brother and Sister, every time we died we only found ourselves laughing and being more entertained than if we rushed through the levels. In fact, more often than not we were sabotaging one another just for the heck of it.
at 4:42 just as a side note, that enemy was seen a lot in the first game, Rayman Origins so players that had played both games (like myself) knew about the fly enemy and were able to beat that stage on there first try. I thought it was a fun Easter egg, but I can see how that would have been annoying to a first time player.
Come on man, the first time I got to that part in the level I knew they were enemies, aside from the fact they're purple, they look nothing like lums, different size, completely different face.
Idk, I played Legends first and I don't remember having trouble with those enemies. Then again, I was dying a lot, so it may have just not stood out to me lol
I don't think Super Meat Boy is all that analogous. In Mario or Rayman or Donkey Kong Country, the levels are long enough to deeply explore one or multiple mechanics, while Super Meat Boy levels are a single screen and usually test player competence on only one or two twists on world mechanics. With the huge difference in level length, an entire Super Meat Boy world is comparable to a single level in a more typical platformer, albeit with much more precision demanded and much more dying as a result. Compare to Celeste, which is basically the same as Super Meat Boy in structure except that the individual single screen challenges are linked together into one cohesive level.
The level design in Celeste and Super Meat Boy are pretty different as well. Celeste screens are always about going from one corner of the screen to another, which means most of the screens are very "linear". On the other hand, Meat Boy levels can end anywhere, which means they often loop around themselves, ask you to backtrack or explore different sections. I think The End is Nigh's design is a lot closer to Celeste's.
Rayman Legends is great. I never noticed that the same mechanics are mixed in throughout entire worlds, that's a really cool concept! Personally, I'll always remember the last part of Infiltration Station with the lasers. The way the fluid movement gels with the stunning animation makes weaving in and out of the lasers incredibly satisfying. I would always try and pull off sweet flips and dives just to make it that much cooler.
Funny thing is there is a achievement called "Splinter Ray" which you get by getting through Mansion of the Deep without triggering a Sentry's light or a sentry laser, it's stressful as hell but pretty fun
This was my fave world design-wise when I watched this game be played. Obviously some mechanics don't have the flexibility to last beyond one dedicated level, but it is important to make sure the mechanics that do have more potential have that potential utilised!
This game is really underrated: it looks good, it plays well and smooth and the music has some good moments. And yes, level design-wise, it is pretty impressive.
@@albevanhanoy most likely because Rayman games like legends let you go quicker in water levels unlike almost every other game out there and personaly I love that
In defense of new mechanics being thrown in on the music levels, the point of them is to make you focus and act based on the rhythm, so while you may not know specifically what to do, your actions are constrained. Think Warioware, which similarly throws nonsense at you that you can figure out quickly because your controls are so limited. I think the point is to force some of that discovery at a rapid pace, which requires new mechanics to be introduced. That's not to say that it's handled perfectly here, but I don't think the idea, itself, is bad.
Going off what was shown of the 3rd and 4th music stages amongst the footage here, the flies and swordfish were common enemies, that style of breakaway blocks were in the underwater stages and the concept of travelling along a flying snake-worm was a level gimmick at least once.
Nah, there's no defense of them suddenly throwing purple enemies you don't want to touch that look awfully close to purple collectibles you do want to touch in the middle/end of a very fast moving level that sends you back to the very beginning when you inevitably screw up and die to the purple enemy you'd never seen before because it looked like a collectible. I can't stress it enough: anyone trying to defend that bullshit can go suck a fat one.
Rayman games don't get enough attention, I love Rayman Legends to the point of owning it on 4 consoles due to how fun it is and it's so easy to just pick up and play. I hope Ubisoft are looking make a new game, Rayman is easily one of Ubisoft's best series.
So happy that you decided to talk about Rayman Legends. It's tied for best 2d platformer of the last decade with Donkey Kong Country Tropical Freeze imho. Both are criminally underappreaciated.
I recently replayed the game, and the 8-bit version of Orchestral Chaos got me. It was mainly because I wanted to 100% the game, and there was ONE jump that if you didnt do with a really hard timing you wouldnt collect all the lums. It also doesnt help that you cant see where youre jumping from
Another thing I love about Rayman Origins and Legends is the clever world building that also comes with sticking a game mechanic for the longer parts of a world. It makes every place you visit feel all the more alive. Like there are actually creatures that inhabit these excotic landscapes, rather than just being a bunch of moving platforms with conveniently placed enemies on them.
The comment about the music levels is very valid, though I often found I was able to guess what I needed to do based on the musical track: percussive section coming up? Probably press attack a bunch.
It's so nice to see this game get more recognition. Rayman Legends is my favourite platformer, and one of my favourite games in general. The aesthetic, the music, the gameplay, the (music!!) levels. It's one of the very few games I 100%ed.
4:41 - Really appreciate you taking the time to call out a huge blunder like that one. That level was moving so fast that my first time through I just thought they were the purple collectibles. I was pretty pissed off when I touched one and died. That is some bad level/game design mixed in with an otherwise really well done game. I mean, this game is otherwise so good that you could tell me that it's not a Ubisoft game and I would immediately believe you. This game is too good, too pure, too varied to be a game by Ubisoft, a company that otherwise only craps out one game with different skins. Even The Crew, which was supposed to be a driving game, still managed to be the bog-standard Ubisoft open world game that they make for every franchise. Every franchise except Rayman, apparently. Although that's also probably the reason we haven't seen a Rayman game since Rayman Legends - Ubisoft doesn't know what to do if they can't make it a generic open world game.
Yes, I can't understand this obsession with making open world games, instead of an experience with good pacing and difficulty curve, you just spend most of the time aimlessly wandering around or chasing a marker on a mini-map instead of having fun. I'd much prefer being automatically taken to the next mission rather than having to spend 15 minutes driving through a city or running through a forest whenever I want to reach a fun place in the game. Not everyone has the time to spend 20 hours a day on video games and some of us'd rather just cut to the chase and get to the good stuff instead of having to collect 10 twigs and spend 10 minutes flipping through menus for crafting arrows before we can shoot things.
Personally my favorite level of this world is Mansion of the Deep. It's just... So cool! The gameplay mechanics are fun to play around with and explore but what really got me so hooked on it is the atmosphere. The fact that it really makes me feel like I'm in a spy movie, infiltrating a prestigious but suspicious mansion and then have to weave my way out of it without getting caught just makes me excited.
I love this game. Each world feels so unique, and it has some of my favorite controls of any game I've played. This and Shovel Knight are probably my two favorite platformers of all time, although it's kind of hard for me to pick.
seriously, you're amazing :D you do a really good job at explainning how the mechanics of games fits togheter and vice versa it's almost like a documentary on video games, and i love it, there's not enough channel like you around on youtube, one of the only channel i can think of is ahoy that is also really good, but missing content... long story short, new subscriber that admire your work, continue like that :D
I should probably note that several of the mechanics in the music levels are more fleshed out in Origins, like the swordfish in Gloo Gloo is in Angsty Abyss and the snake in Mariachi Madness is in Desert of Didgeridoos
My favourite is Olympus Maximus, I love the stages where you run from the dust bunnies and have to hit the purple swords. I just 100% all of the main worlds, and they’re all amazing, and get better throughout each one.
Thanks for doing a video for one of my favorite 2D platformers! It’s worth mentioning that part of the reason 20,000 Lums is so enjoyable are the swimming controls. Rayman moves like a fish as he swims, making it a joy. If you would have told me beforehand “the next world is underwater...and it’s stealth based” I would have rolled my eyes but the great design and controls make it a highlight.
I really want to say thanks for that video! I usually watch all of your videos and find them all very helpful, but that one especially! I am working at a 2D platformer for mobile devices myself right now, and because I love Rayman Legends, I want to take a lot of inspiration from that game. Watching you break down some of the games levels really helped me understand how the game works, and gave me even more motivation to keep working at my game.
Man, Rayman Legends is such an underrated game. It was acclaimed but felt like it went by w/out much fanfare. I would lovvvveee a new Rayman game...Legends is one of the best platformers ever imo.
I am in love with this channel. It is so nice to hear about all these smaller details to awesome games and even point them out in other games you play.
I would like to add something to the feeling of mastery. As a chronic gamer, I have that feeling in almost every game. However, for my girlfriend and 15 yo sister, who really bad at games in general, the game made them feel they are good at it because they can keep up to my pace most of time, even in chase sequence level. When I watch this video, I start to notice how those mechanic introduced over time. Personally, I would say this is the best game I have ever played, because it helps my two important person to enjoy the feeling of mastery.
Has anyone ever told you how -good- *great* you are at what you do? You are certainly one of the most undeservedly underrated creators on UA-cam. Keep up your work!
My favourite platformer :) Glad to see it getting some love. Also, very excited to hear that tidbit at the end that the level designer is working on the Ori sequel.
Can I just say: the music picks are wonderful. Especially when you used Mariachi Madness's remake of Eye of the Tiger- also used in Rocky, during the training sequence. While you talk about how the game has been training you. Beautiful!
I don't write a lot of comments under your videos, but they're amazing, informative and perfectly capture important aspects of games that we take for granted, but are masterful achievements in game design. Keep up the good work.
How can one not absolutely love Rayman? Such a good game. I really don't play many games, but yeah, Rayman has been made so well. Last Mario I played was on the Nintendo 3DS and it was super good too. I don't know what it is about those games, but the feeling that you got twice your money's worth from a game is amazing.
One of the guys who worked on this is working on The will of the wisps? Excuse me, I’ll just go ahead and buy 10 million copies of the game just to be safe.
"Because if you don't do the necessary prep-work, the player wouldn't have the skills to deal with these mechanics when put under pressure." This applies to almost everything in life.
I feel like I've been a backer forever, and I gotta say, I missed this. There was so much Nintendo that it feels nice to be back to games in general. And just something about this video feels reminiscent of some of the older videos. Good stuff, Mark.
I'm currently playing Rayman Legends on the Switch. I have played my share of 2D platformers since the NES era and this title belongs to the very top. Especially the music levels are some of the best levels ever created.
Celeste also does a similar thing, but its worlds are kinda same things as levels so its hard to say if its more like Mario or Reyman in that department.
Absolutely one of the most (pleasantly) surprising games to come out at the start of a new console generation. It's unbelievable how big Rayman Legends is, and how good it tends to be throughout. Nice change of pace to talk about this style of design. Look forward to whatever random tidbit you decide to cover next (as always ;P )~
I love your videos Mark! They are such a huge help to me as a reviewer. They've really helped me refine my talking points when I discuss what does and doesn't work in games. Thanks for the quality content.
Why can't we get more games with this beautiful hand-drawn style? Imagine Sonic, Mega Man, Super Mario like this. Instead it's usually a cheap 2.5D that looks like it belongs on a phone.
4:39 I don't die to that enemy because I don't know how to handle it, I die to it because it was too small and you're moving too fast to see it's there in the first place.
This is a great video. I remember VIEWTIFUL JOE went the other way, and added a bunch of difficult and complicated mechanics as soon as the game started, creating a rough start, but also assuring that everyone playing the 2nd/3rd level would already be skilled. That's a good game too, but I do recall being turned off from it in my first few play attempts.
I pretty much adore everything about "20,000 Lums Under the Sea" and the world is definitely a high point for me in an already fantastic game. I particularly loved the juxtaposition of Rayman's goofy playable characters sneaking through a undersea high-tech dieselpunk base while cinematic-ally satisfying spy thriller music oozed through our speakers.
JUst played through this game on the switch and loved it. 20,000 Lums was easily my favorite world to play through. Love to hear all these thoughts put so clearly
These videos are always so well put together and thoughtful. Love it. Some constructive positive feedback: one of my favorite moments in this video was when you showed an example in Rayman Legends where it was actually a bit of bad design to really contrast your point. I believe you have done this before, but it really helped drive home the concept of what good design is. Sometimes it's nice to see cases of mistakes or bad design to really understand the importance of good design. Thanks for making these!
Both this game and Origins are masterpieces of level design, art and creativity. It’s a shame how after nearly a decade of this game’s release we only got Rabbids stuff.
Rayman games have alway's introduced unique and refreshing ideas. Ubisoft's most underrated franchise. It deserves so much better. I can't wait for a new game soon.
Haven't played this game since I first bought it but maybe I need to crack this one open again. One of the most beautifully designed platformers I've ever played.
I'm a huge fan of Rayman Legends despite it being my first Rayman game, grinding the challenges to rank 13 on Wii U when I stopped playing and i'm currently rank 8 on the Switch. The main story got me hooked into pushing the game to its limits, so thanks for bringing light onto Rayman Legends!
I feel like those enemies in mariachi madness would be fair if they were a different colour, like red. But because they are purple, most people playing it for the forst time would think that they are lums
From the ost of the game to the beautiful scenery and smooth movement this game is amazing no wonder it got 9.5 from IGN. Amazing game ,dissapointed to see that Ubisoft gave up on Rayman I guess
I just love that feeling of mastery when you get to the "final challenge" of a game, so to speak. That racking up of skills that have been drilled into your core, that now you can perform without thinking. That's how I felt when I got to the last level of Cook Serve Delicious 2's Chef4Hire Mode, Executive Decision 14. I knew how to prepare all the foods quickly and efficiently already. I knew the recipes by heart. I could totally finish this with a gold medal. And eventually I did! Maybe not even four or five tries before acing it. That felt so good.
The thing I loved most about Rayman Legends was that you can play almost every level at your own pace, meaning you can either take a slow approach to finish the level and collecting everything or you can just run through it with almost never having to stop. I especially loved the music and chasing stages. The only problem I had with the music stages was, that there were checkpoints so each time I died, I needed to reset the level completely, because I wanted to hear the music and feel the flow flawelessly :D It's one of the best 2D jump'n'run created within the last couple of years in my oppinion :D
some people: stealth missions suck!
most people: under water levels suck even more!
Rayman legends: lol i have a world that mixes stealth and under water mechanics
everybody: Best World
I wouldn't say it's the best world tbh.. It's really hard to make a ranking of worlds in a game where every level is consistently good.
the only game were underwater levels are fun is in rayman
the mario pengiun power-up is also quite fun
@@manuman5319 Toad Story was kind of boring, but other than that, yes, the game was consisntely fun. :3
TO be fair since Super Mario Galaxy I've seen both DK and Rayman adopted the "spin" type of underwater control which greatly benefits the water levels and their experience
Rayman Legends is a platforming masterpiece.
*is a platforming masterpiece (I especially love the Coop on the WiiU Version, my second favorite Platformer in recent history after Tropical Freeze)
Corrected it :) (thx btw) and I played it on the PS4 and it's one of the best games I've ever played, still waiting for a sequel but the devs are currently working on Beyond Good and Evil 2. I really hope they go back to making another Rayman game after they're done with BG&E 2.
Michel Ancel said he wants to visit Rayman after BG&E 2
Origins is better.
Legends is way too easy.
One of the best I have ever played. Easily.
Rayman Legends + Origins are two of my favorite games of the last gen. Still holding out hope that Ubisoft will get over its open world fetish and make another proper Rayman game soon.
Same man, Those two Rayman games are just amazing! =}
Hyenaedon
Michel Ancel said he wants to do a fourth Rayman!
Nucleor Gaming i heard, im excited for that =}
They've made a Rayman leg ends definitive version
I got it. RAYWORLD! With towers, loot, side-missions, and microtransactions. You like that?
Every time I get reminded of the music levels from Rayman Legends, I wish there was a whole game on that mechanic
Besaccha geometry dash
I heard that Rhythm thief was built on that kind of mechanic but I don't know much more about the game
There kind of is. HarmoKnight, one of Game Freak's lesser known non-Pokemon experiments.
Yes, but they feel a lot special this way in Rayman Legends. It's so freacking cool
being here 4 years later, Hi-Fi Rush is a thing (the whole idea is doing EVERYTHING in rhythm)
I need a new Rayman game so bad!!
Michel Ancel said he wanted to create a new 3d Rayman, but he's currently doing other projects
Rayman Adventures is pretty good and unintrusive with its microtransactions. I can recommend it.
We need rayman 4
CoolHilcieni
Michel Ancel said that he's going to bring Rayman back for his "fourth adventure" after Beyond Good and Evil 2
Nucleor Gaming yes
This game... And its soundtrack! Truly a marvelous piece of work.
I'd say Rayman Legends is one of the best 2D platformers of all-time.
Along with Origins.
Martti it is the best in my opinion
Well, most of Origins is actually unlockable content in Rayman Legends. So "along with Origins" is pretty much on point :D
FerrisK96 the origins levels have been greatly simplified though.
I'd say legends is technically better, but origins is the game that turned me from a casual gamer when I was little to someone completely invested in the community and amazed with how games are made and the culture around them. Origins has a special place in my heart for this.
Alongside Tropical Freeze.
Rayman Origins and Legends are two of my favorite platformers, hands down. But also, two of my favorite games. No other game has kept me so consistently entertained, and never frustrated. Playing with my Brother and Sister, every time we died we only found ourselves laughing and being more entertained than if we rushed through the levels. In fact, more often than not we were sabotaging one another just for the heck of it.
I never realized the music level was supposed to be going back to the surface to the inflatable island! Man, they thought of everything
gloo gloo gloogloogloo gloo gloo gloogloogloo gloo gloo gloogloogloo
As a spanish speaker I loved how badly you said "Fiesta de los muertos". Huge fan of both this game and your channel, keep it up man.
Haha yeah. I haven't played the game, but for a minute I thought the developers might have made a typo.
You can tell he’s trying though, which is what counts! Nevertheless I got a good chuckle as well. (Also lums is pronounced looms, like in illuminate)
I rewind the video when I heard that, is very curious 🙊
"Fiesta de las mertas"
More like "Fiesta de Día de los Muertos"
I'm Tex-Mex
at 4:42 just as a side note, that enemy was seen a lot in the first game, Rayman Origins so players that had played both games (like myself) knew about the fly enemy and were able to beat that stage on there first try. I thought it was a fun Easter egg, but I can see how that would have been annoying to a first time player.
I remember dying there the first time thinking "what the heck are those!?! They look like lums!?!"
Come on man, the first time I got to that part in the level I knew they were enemies, aside from the fact they're purple, they look nothing like lums, different size, completely different face.
"JUST SHOOT THE FLY"
Thats what my brain said when I first saw them...
I knew the flys because I played some of the back to origins levels before getting to the music level with the flys but I rly cant wait to buy origins
Idk, I played Legends first and I don't remember having trouble with those enemies. Then again, I was dying a lot, so it may have just not stood out to me lol
Thank you for the Rayman Legends love. This game really doesn't get enough credit for how great it was.
Rayman Legends had really cool and smart puzzles. I really liked the Amazing Maze level.
Me too, i thought it was super fun and engaging.
Super Meat Boy is probably the most obvious example of this design philosophy. Glad to see a game that's not talked about as much get some attention.
I don't think Super Meat Boy is all that analogous.
In Mario or Rayman or Donkey Kong Country, the levels are long enough to deeply explore one or multiple mechanics, while Super Meat Boy levels are a single screen and usually test player competence on only one or two twists on world mechanics. With the huge difference in level length, an entire Super Meat Boy world is comparable to a single level in a more typical platformer, albeit with much more precision demanded and much more dying as a result.
Compare to Celeste, which is basically the same as Super Meat Boy in structure except that the individual single screen challenges are linked together into one cohesive level.
The level design in Celeste and Super Meat Boy are pretty different as well. Celeste screens are always about going from one corner of the screen to another, which means most of the screens are very "linear". On the other hand, Meat Boy levels can end anywhere, which means they often loop around themselves, ask you to backtrack or explore different sections. I think The End is Nigh's design is a lot closer to Celeste's.
Rayman Legends is great. I never noticed that the same mechanics are mixed in throughout entire worlds, that's a really cool concept! Personally, I'll always remember the last part of Infiltration Station with the lasers. The way the fluid movement gels with the stunning animation makes weaving in and out of the lasers incredibly satisfying. I would always try and pull off sweet flips and dives just to make it that much cooler.
A Madman’s Creation is one of the most badass osts I’ve ever heard for a boss and it’s a crime it’s not regarded higher
These videos always end up with me wanting to go and purchase the game in question to try for myself. My wallet hates you, but I love your stuff Mark.
You're not doing anything wrong with Rayman Legends, tho. It's amazing.
Hey if it makes you purchase something as amazing as Rayman Legends then it can't be that bad can it? :D
TheCanadianWifier
This is a game you should definitely try.
My wallet would hate him, but I don't think it has enough substance to feel emotion. D:
bought it for 5 bucks tho
Funny thing is there is a achievement called "Splinter Ray" which you get by getting through Mansion of the Deep without triggering a Sentry's light or a sentry laser, it's stressful as hell but pretty fun
This was my fave world design-wise when I watched this game be played. Obviously some mechanics don't have the flexibility to last beyond one dedicated level, but it is important to make sure the mechanics that do have more potential have that potential utilised!
This game is really underrated: it looks good, it plays well and smooth and the music has some good moments. And yes, level design-wise, it is pretty impressive.
20000 Lums Under the Sea is pretty much Moody Clouds and Sea of Sependipity from Rayman Origins on crack. No wonder why I loved that world so much.
Only a Rayman game can have enjoyable water levels.
@@albevanhanoy most likely because Rayman games like legends let you go quicker in water levels unlike almost every other game out there and personaly I love that
@@albevanhanoy
Tropical Freeze, the old dkc, Ratchet and Clank, and the galaxy games have fun water levels too.
I don't hear enough about Rayman Legends! Happy to see it showcased on GMTK!
In defense of new mechanics being thrown in on the music levels, the point of them is to make you focus and act based on the rhythm, so while you may not know specifically what to do, your actions are constrained. Think Warioware, which similarly throws nonsense at you that you can figure out quickly because your controls are so limited. I think the point is to force some of that discovery at a rapid pace, which requires new mechanics to be introduced.
That's not to say that it's handled perfectly here, but I don't think the idea, itself, is bad.
Actually I think the music sections utilize enemies & obstacle that where used in Rayman Origins, so veteran players have a bit of an easier time
Were they? You could be right, it's been a while since I played Origins.
Going off what was shown of the 3rd and 4th music stages amongst the footage here, the flies and swordfish were common enemies, that style of breakaway blocks were in the underwater stages and the concept of travelling along a flying snake-worm was a level gimmick at least once.
Nah, there's no defense of them suddenly throwing purple enemies you don't want to touch that look awfully close to purple collectibles you do want to touch in the middle/end of a very fast moving level that sends you back to the very beginning when you inevitably screw up and die to the purple enemy you'd never seen before because it looked like a collectible.
I can't stress it enough: anyone trying to defend that bullshit can go suck a fat one.
mjc0961 k
Rayman games don't get enough attention, I love Rayman Legends to the point of owning it on 4 consoles due to how fun it is and it's so easy to just pick up and play. I hope Ubisoft are looking make a new game, Rayman is easily one of Ubisoft's best series.
I know, I can't believe they haven't made any proper sequel to it.
Good to see Rayman for a change!
My biggest take-away from these Raymans was their ability to induce flow in very high-intensity sections. Thanks for laying out how that is done!
So happy that you decided to talk about Rayman Legends. It's tied for best 2d platformer of the last decade with Donkey Kong Country Tropical Freeze imho. Both are criminally underappreaciated.
Personally never had a problem with the musical levels. They were always the easiest imo; which I think was intentional.
fragr33f Yeah, people who had trouble with them must have been playing the game on mute. The music tells you what to do.
A Olson exactly
Well, Gloo Gloo and Dragon Slayer were kinda tricky for me.
@@DoomooDguy yeah those 2 are probably the more "oh god oh fucc" music levels imo
I recently replayed the game, and the 8-bit version of Orchestral Chaos got me. It was mainly because I wanted to 100% the game, and there was ONE jump that if you didnt do with a really hard timing you wouldnt collect all the lums. It also doesnt help that you cant see where youre jumping from
Another thing I love about Rayman Origins and Legends is the clever world building that also comes with sticking a game mechanic for the longer parts of a world. It makes every place you visit feel all the more alive. Like there are actually creatures that inhabit these excotic landscapes, rather than just being a bunch of moving platforms with conveniently placed enemies on them.
4:40 I specifically remember thinking they were collectible lums in my peripheral and was beyond pissed when they turned out to be a new enemy type.
INSTA LIKE to talk about one game of the Rayman franchise, one of the reasons why I study to become a game designer
The comment about the music levels is very valid, though I often found I was able to guess what I needed to do based on the musical track: percussive section coming up? Probably press attack a bunch.
It's so nice to see this game get more recognition.
Rayman Legends is my favourite platformer, and one of my favourite games in general. The aesthetic, the music, the gameplay, the (music!!) levels. It's one of the very few games I 100%ed.
Rayman is SO underrated! Thank you for showing some love to this game!!!
I bet “There’s Always A Bigger Fish” is Qui-Gon Jin’s favourite level.
It’s mine
4:41 - Really appreciate you taking the time to call out a huge blunder like that one. That level was moving so fast that my first time through I just thought they were the purple collectibles. I was pretty pissed off when I touched one and died. That is some bad level/game design mixed in with an otherwise really well done game. I mean, this game is otherwise so good that you could tell me that it's not a Ubisoft game and I would immediately believe you. This game is too good, too pure, too varied to be a game by Ubisoft, a company that otherwise only craps out one game with different skins. Even The Crew, which was supposed to be a driving game, still managed to be the bog-standard Ubisoft open world game that they make for every franchise. Every franchise except Rayman, apparently. Although that's also probably the reason we haven't seen a Rayman game since Rayman Legends - Ubisoft doesn't know what to do if they can't make it a generic open world game.
Yes, I can't understand this obsession with making open world games, instead of an experience with good pacing and difficulty curve, you just spend most of the time aimlessly wandering around or chasing a marker on a mini-map instead of having fun. I'd much prefer being automatically taken to the next mission rather than having to spend 15 minutes driving through a city or running through a forest whenever I want to reach a fun place in the game. Not everyone has the time to spend 20 hours a day on video games and some of us'd rather just cut to the chase and get to the good stuff instead of having to collect 10 twigs and spend 10 minutes flipping through menus for crafting arrows before we can shoot things.
Boy did i love this game,the artstyle,gameplay and music just felt too good
I absolutely love Rayman Legends, and 20,000 Lums was always one of my favourite game worlds of all time.
Personally my favorite level of this world is Mansion of the Deep. It's just... So cool! The gameplay mechanics are fun to play around with and explore but what really got me so hooked on it is the atmosphere. The fact that it really makes me feel like I'm in a spy movie, infiltrating a prestigious but suspicious mansion and then have to weave my way out of it without getting caught just makes me excited.
I love this game. Each world feels so unique, and it has some of my favorite controls of any game I've played. This and Shovel Knight are probably my two favorite platformers of all time, although it's kind of hard for me to pick.
seriously, you're amazing :D
you do a really good job at explainning how the mechanics of games fits togheter and vice versa
it's almost like a documentary on video games, and i love it, there's not enough channel like you
around on youtube, one of the only channel i can think of is ahoy that is also really good, but
missing content...
long story short, new subscriber that admire your work, continue like that :D
Just noticed the Super Metroid reference at 6:19, didn't even realize it when I played this!
Still playing Rayman Challenges... they are awesome.
I should probably note that several of the mechanics in the music levels are more fleshed out in Origins, like the swordfish in Gloo Gloo is in Angsty Abyss and the snake in Mariachi Madness is in Desert of Didgeridoos
My favourite is Olympus Maximus, I love the stages where you run from the dust bunnies and have to hit the purple swords. I just 100% all of the main worlds, and they’re all amazing, and get better throughout each one.
Thanks for doing a video for one of my favorite 2D platformers! It’s worth mentioning that part of the reason 20,000 Lums is so enjoyable are the swimming controls. Rayman moves like a fish as he swims, making it a joy. If you would have told me beforehand “the next world is underwater...and it’s stealth based” I would have rolled my eyes but the great design and controls make it a highlight.
I really want to say thanks for that video! I usually watch all of your videos and find them all very helpful, but that one especially! I am working at a 2D platformer for mobile devices myself right now, and because I love Rayman Legends, I want to take a lot of inspiration from that game. Watching you break down some of the games levels really helped me understand how the game works, and gave me even more motivation to keep working at my game.
Man, Rayman Legends is such an underrated game. It was acclaimed but felt like it went by w/out much fanfare. I would lovvvveee a new Rayman game...Legends is one of the best platformers ever imo.
Like Tropical Freeze, this is a criminally underrated game
I am in love with this channel. It is so nice to hear about all these smaller details to awesome games and even point them out in other games you play.
One of the most enjoyable games i've ever played.
I cant understand why Ubisoft closed the studio
Um...
They did _what?_
@@waynetastic1746 a few years ago.
Cant believe it either
I would like to add something to the feeling of mastery. As a chronic gamer, I have that feeling in almost every game. However, for my girlfriend and 15 yo sister, who really bad at games in general, the game made them feel they are good at it because they can keep up to my pace most of time, even in chase sequence level. When I watch this video, I start to notice how those mechanic introduced over time. Personally, I would say this is the best game I have ever played, because it helps my two important person to enjoy the feeling of mastery.
Has anyone ever told you how -good- *great* you are at what you do? You are certainly one of the most undeservedly underrated creators on UA-cam. Keep up your work!
Dude, this channel is so good its ridiculous. Whatever you're eating, dont stop.
My favourite platformer :) Glad to see it getting some love. Also, very excited to hear that tidbit at the end that the level designer is working on the Ori sequel.
In the music level, Mariachi Madness, it teaches you that you can stall in the air with a midair attack.
Can I just say: the music picks are wonderful. Especially when you used Mariachi Madness's remake of Eye of the Tiger- also used in Rocky, during the training sequence. While you talk about how the game has been training you. Beautiful!
I don't write a lot of comments under your videos, but they're amazing, informative and perfectly capture important aspects of games that we take for granted, but are masterful achievements in game design. Keep up the good work.
Rayman Legends is honestly the best platformer I've ever played, its so wonderfully creative and inspired.
Recently i got addicted to this game, and you just make a video about it, amazing XD
How can one not absolutely love Rayman? Such a good game. I really don't play many games, but yeah, Rayman has been made so well. Last Mario I played was on the Nintendo 3DS and it was super good too. I don't know what it is about those games, but the feeling that you got twice your money's worth from a game is amazing.
One of the guys who worked on this is working on The will of the wisps? Excuse me, I’ll just go ahead and buy 10 million copies of the game just to be safe.
"Because if you don't do the necessary prep-work, the player wouldn't have the skills to deal with these mechanics when put under pressure."
This applies to almost everything in life.
Raymon legends was my first raymon game and its a blast and just gorgeous
It feels like you enjoy doing this videos, thanks a lot for creating them as it is super enyoable to watch them
I feel like I've been a backer forever, and I gotta say, I missed this. There was so much Nintendo that it feels nice to be back to games in general. And just something about this video feels reminiscent of some of the older videos.
Good stuff, Mark.
Oh, hi Mark
I'm currently playing Rayman Legends on the Switch. I have played my share of 2D platformers since the NES era and this title belongs to the very top. Especially the music levels are some of the best levels ever created.
Videos like this are why I love watching Game Maker's Toolkit. So cool!
Celeste also does a similar thing, but its worlds are kinda same things as levels so its hard to say if its more like Mario or Reyman in that department.
Absolutely one of the most (pleasantly) surprising games to come out at the start of a new console generation. It's unbelievable how big Rayman Legends is, and how good it tends to be throughout.
Nice change of pace to talk about this style of design. Look forward to whatever random tidbit you decide to cover next (as always ;P )~
Still playing on Switch now, absolutely love it!
Rayman legends and DKCTR are still my top 2D platformers of all time, even with wonder out.
I love your videos Mark! They are such a huge help to me as a reviewer. They've really helped me refine my talking points when I discuss what does and doesn't work in games. Thanks for the quality content.
Why can't we get more games with this beautiful hand-drawn style? Imagine Sonic, Mega Man, Super Mario like this. Instead it's usually a cheap 2.5D that looks like it belongs on a phone.
4:39 I don't die to that enemy because I don't know how to handle it, I die to it because it was too small and you're moving too fast to see it's there in the first place.
This is a great video. I remember VIEWTIFUL JOE went the other way, and added a bunch of difficult and complicated mechanics as soon as the game started, creating a rough start, but also assuring that everyone playing the 2nd/3rd level would already be skilled. That's a good game too, but I do recall being turned off from it in my first few play attempts.
This game actually has enjoyable water levels
I pretty much adore everything about "20,000 Lums Under the Sea" and the world is definitely a high point for me in an already fantastic game. I particularly loved the juxtaposition of Rayman's goofy playable characters sneaking through a undersea high-tech dieselpunk base while cinematic-ally satisfying spy thriller music oozed through our speakers.
JUst played through this game on the switch and loved it. 20,000 Lums was easily my favorite world to play through. Love to hear all these thoughts put so clearly
Someone finally talking about this game I can’t find anything about this game series anymore
I would live for you to talk about the speed aspect of rayman as many mechanics could be intertwined to smash through levels at blistering speed
DRifted_NOS S They achieved the design goals of a Sonic game, better than any Sonic game ever did.
These videos are always so well put together and thoughtful. Love it. Some constructive positive feedback: one of my favorite moments in this video was when you showed an example in Rayman Legends where it was actually a bit of bad design to really contrast your point. I believe you have done this before, but it really helped drive home the concept of what good design is. Sometimes it's nice to see cases of mistakes or bad design to really understand the importance of good design. Thanks for making these!
God I love this channel. I got pages and pages of notes from your videos.
We're lucky to have people like you :)!
Both this game and Origins are masterpieces of level design, art and creativity. It’s a shame how after nearly a decade of this game’s release we only got Rabbids stuff.
The most underrated game of all time. It's truly a MASTERPIECE
Rayman games have alway's introduced unique and refreshing ideas. Ubisoft's most underrated franchise. It deserves so much better. I can't wait for a new game soon.
Very nice expansion on a previous topic! Glad to see you can keep a mechanic around for multiple videos! :P
This is why rayman Legends is one of my favorite games of all time
Haven't played this game since I first bought it but maybe I need to crack this one open again. One of the most beautifully designed platformers I've ever played.
Thank you tackling Rayman Legends. The series never gets attention
I'm a huge fan of Rayman Legends despite it being my first Rayman game, grinding the challenges to rank 13 on Wii U when I stopped playing and i'm currently rank 8 on the Switch. The main story got me hooked into pushing the game to its limits, so thanks for bringing light onto Rayman Legends!
I feel like those enemies in mariachi madness would be fair if they were a different colour, like red. But because they are purple, most people playing it for the forst time would think that they are lums
There’s always a bigger fish was always easily my favourite level it was just so intense and fun
From the ost of the game to the beautiful scenery and smooth movement this game is amazing no wonder it got 9.5 from IGN. Amazing game ,dissapointed to see that Ubisoft gave up on Rayman I guess
The music stages are so much fun! Ill go back to them three times in a row just cause i love the song and the fast paced action
Rayman Legends is my favourite non narrative game of the decade, it’s just so good
Convinced me to play, great vid, keep it up !
I just love that feeling of mastery when you get to the "final challenge" of a game, so to speak. That racking up of skills that have been drilled into your core, that now you can perform without thinking. That's how I felt when I got to the last level of Cook Serve Delicious 2's Chef4Hire Mode, Executive Decision 14. I knew how to prepare all the foods quickly and efficiently already. I knew the recipes by heart. I could totally finish this with a gold medal. And eventually I did! Maybe not even four or five tries before acing it. That felt so good.
The thing I loved most about Rayman Legends was that you can play almost every level at your own pace, meaning you can either take a slow approach to finish the level and collecting everything or you can just run through it with almost never having to stop.
I especially loved the music and chasing stages. The only problem I had with the music stages was, that there were checkpoints so each time I died, I needed to reset the level completely, because I wanted to hear the music and feel the flow flawelessly :D
It's one of the best 2D jump'n'run created within the last couple of years in my oppinion :D