Rayman 2 The Great Escape Game
The destruction of the world's core greatly weakens and disables Rayman's powers, which leads to his subsequent capture and imprisonment aboard the Buccaneer, a prison ship. Globox, a friend of Rayman, is also captured and put in the same cell as Rayman aboard the Buccaneer. Globox gives Rayman a Silver Lum given to him by Ly the fairy, which temporarily restores some of his powers. Rayman escapes the prison ship through a chute, however during the escape he once again separates from Globox. After falling from the ship, Rayman eventually finds himself in the Woods of Light. Rayman decides that his best chance is to find Ly, and begins his search through the forest. He comes across Murfy, a "flying encyclopaedia", who serves as Rayman's guide throughout the game, as well as three of Globox's children. Rayman sadly informs them of his separation with Globox, much to their dismay. The children inform Rayman that Ly has been captured by Robo-Pirates and has been taken deeper into the forest.
Rayman 2 The Great Escape Game
Afterwards, Rayman reunites with Globox, who was captured by Robo-Pirates and brought to a remote detention facility. Globox reveals that he received another Silver Lum, which greatly enhances Rayman's offensive capabilities. After destroying a warship with his new powers, Rayman travels to Whale Bay, where he frees a benevolent whale, Carmen, who has been imprisoned by the pirates in order to use her blubber to oil the engines of their ships. Carmen informs Rayman of the second mask's location, which is situated in the Sanctuary of Stone and Fire. Its guardian, Umber, is an inanimate statue which Rayman uses to control in order to walk across lava and obtain the second mask. Once obtained and given to Polokus, Razorbeard becomes infuriated with Rayman's success and orders numerous fleets of warships to kill him. A group of warships ambush Rayman in a mountainous precipice and almost kill him, however he ultimately escapes.
Rayman has finally made the transition into a fully 3D realm, and although not as well known as Link or Mario, Rayman 2 proves that you don't have to have a hugely popular character to make a great 3D platform game. Evil mechanical pirates led by the maniacal Razorbeard are enslaving the population of Rayman's world. It's up to our jointless hero to collect four magical masks that, once united, will awaken a sleeping god who will help Rayman defeat the pirates. Along his quest he'll pick up lums, which are magical fragments of the stars. He'll also free creatures enslaved by the evil pirates and run into a host of friends who will help him achieve his goal.
Rayman 2 really immerses you in the world of Rayman. The game offers stunning graphics, incredible sound, and tons of opportunity to interact with other characters. Almost immediately you'll run into Globox, an old friend who helps you escape from the pirate ship. From there, you'll encounter a cute fairy, a collective of tiny magical beings, a muscle-headed giant, an imprisoned whale, a polite water snake, and a few other surprising characters. They'll help you along the way by opening new routes, pulling you across chasms, giving you new powers, or even volunteering information.
The graphics are simply astonishing. Taking full advantage of the Expansion Pak, the enhanced visuals in Rayman 2 are some of the best I've ever seen on the N64. There's absolutely no pop-up, and the game flows smoothly from one part of a level to the next. You won't be truly impressed until you stand atop a ledge and switch to a first-person view, in which you'll be able to look down on the entire level without any hint of fog. Rayman himself looks great, and the character design is wonderful. The robo-pirates have just the right combination of menacing and doltish, Ly, your fairy friend, looks positively elfish, and Jano, the Keeper of the Cave of Bad Dreams, looks like he belongs in a nightmare.I was most impressed with the raw amount of creativity in Rayman 2. Most platform games give you tons of ledge jumping and room exploring, with little deviation. Rayman 2, however, is packed full of different modes and minigames. From waterskiing, to swimming alongside a whale, to riding a rocket-powered horse, to flying a flaming powder keg, Rayman 2 is full of gameplay surprises. Indeed, there's plenty of platforming in Rayman 2, but the frequent use of different gameplay elements keeps the game fresh and exciting. Also, the game is very good at surprising you. While there are not a lot of objects in the game, there are several ways to use each. A powder keg can be tossed at bad guys, thrown at doors, used to break open cages, and even lit to create a rocket. This system always keeps you wondering what, exactly, you're going to do with an item you run in to.
Even though Rayman 2 doesn't feature real speech, the sound in the game is some of the best I've heard on any video game in a long time. While each level has its own distinctive tune running in the background, certain scenarios will cause the music to change tempo, or even switch to a different track altogether, giving the game a truly interactive sound system. And if that weren't good enough, the music is actually really good. But that's not all the sound department has to offer. The sound effects in this game are great too. Detailed down to your footsteps, you'll hear every snoring pirate, every plink of your shoes hitting hollow metal pipes, every swinging cage, and everything else you'd expect if you were actually Rayman. I tried playing the game without any sound, but only got about two minutes into it before I had to turn it back on - it's that essential to the game.
Admiral Razorbeard and his gang of robot pirates have enslaved all the creatures in Rayman's world, including the peaceful Teensies and the Lums, which give life to the earth. Rayman has been captured by the pirates as well and is lamenting his troubles in his prison cell, when he meets his good friend, Globox. Globox has smuggled in a silver Lum, given to him by the great fairy, Ly. With the power of the silver Lum, Rayman is able to once more shoot his fists. With his power restored, the pair escape the flying prison ship and embark on another adventure to save the entire world!
At the very start of the game, they rushed into the Glade of Dreams and destroy the Heart of the World to weaken its citizens. Rayman himself is imprisoned and has to escape from the pirates and then begins finding and rescuing all his other friends. During his journey, he meets Robo-Pirates that try to stop him and Rayman has to destroy them. At the end, Rayman fights Razorbeard in Buccaneer and eventually destroy the ship. Razorbeard himself escapes in a flying saucer, but the rest of Robo-Pirates were probably destroyed with the ship.
Corbin: I have been doing all sorts of game-design related stuff since around 2012, and have always been inspired by Crash and Rayman with each game I'd prototype. Eventually I decided I wanted to just make a Rayman game, so I actually worked on a few before doing Rayman 2 HD. Rayman 2 HD team has the best, most dedicated, and overall greatest people you could ever want on a team. Each of them are the best at what they do.