Rayman 2: The Greater Escape

Rayman 2: The Greater Escape (or Rayman 2: The Great Escape HD) is a 3D action-adventure platformer video game published by Ubisoft and developed by their Milan studio, which originally worked on the Game Boy Color port of Rayman and Rayman 2 Forever. It is a expanded, high-definition remake of the same-named game, which was originally developed by Ubisoft themselves and released in 1999, including everything from it's every previous port, especially the Dreamcast version (which Michel Ancel, the series' creator himself considered as it's definitive version) and Rayman Revolution. It is released worldwide on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Microsoft Windows (on Retail and Steam forms) and Nintendo Switch in February 18th, 2023. Rayman Arena: Ultimate Multiplayer was released in September the same year as a stand-alone game with assets from the remake.

Main Story
The destruction of the world's core, caused by Admiral Razorbeard, captain of the Robo-Pirates, greatly weakens and disables Rayman's powers, which leads to his subsequent capture and imprisonment aboard the Buccaneer, a prison ship. Globox, an old friend of Rayman, is also captured and put in the same cell as Rayman aboard the Buccaneer. Globox gives Rayman a Silver Lum, which was given to him by Ly the Fairy earlier (whom Rayman has had a crush on), which temporarily restores some of his powers. Both escape 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 encyclopedia", who serves as Rayman's meta 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. Traversing deeper into the forest, Rayman frees a group of Teensies— small creatures with magical abilities— who were locked in a cage. After bickering amongst themselves about who among them is their king, they inform Rayman of Ly's location in a stronghold within the Fairy Glade.

They allow Rayman access to the Hall of Doors for the cost of some Yellow Lums. Once collected, the Grand Minimus (King Teensie) creates a network of portals that connect the Hall of Doors, which Rayman uses in order to access various areas throughout the Glade of Dreams. Eventually, Rayman finds Ly being held captive in a force field within the Fairy Glade. After being freed, Rayman tells Ly of his separation with Globox and his loss of powers. Due to the destruction of the Heart of the World, Ly is unable to restore Rayman's powers. However, she tells Rayman of the ancient masks, through which Polokus, the spirit of the world, must be awakened in order to defeat the Robo-Pirates. The masks are hidden in secret sanctuaries consisting of the six elements; water, ice, earth, fire, lightning and air. Ly informs Rayman that his only hope is to find the masks, defeat their guardians and awaken Polokus.

Concerned by Rayman's progress, Admiral Razorbeard dispatches several warships to pursue and kill him along with his main, Henchbot, Henchman 1000 to capture him. Rayman approaches the entrance to the Sanctuary of Water, the location in which the first of the six masks is contained. He defeats its guardian, Axel, in combat and collects the first mask, which teleports him to the realm where Polokus rests eternally. Speaking to Rayman through his dreams, Polokus congratulates him on his find, and urges him to collect the five remaining masks. Rayman travels to the Menhir Hills, where he learns to tame and ride equine-like walking shells. Rayman acquaintances himself with Clark, a friendly giant, who has become terminally ill after accidentally swallowing a Robo-Pirate.

He asks Rayman to retrieve the Elixir of Life from the Cave of Bad Dreams, a realm which can only be accessed if the occupant is asleep. Rayman asks a witch doctor to hypnotise him, which transports him to the Cave of Bad Dreams. Once there, Jano, the guardian of the dream world, offers Rayman the choice of eternal wealth instead of taking the elixir. If the player accepts Jano's offer, a humorous ending will play, which depicts an overweight Rayman stranded on a small island, surrounded by treasure. Declining the offer will grant Rayman the elixir, which he uses to cure Clark.

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 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 led by Henchman 1000. A group of warships ambush Rayman in a mountainous precipice and almost kill him, however, he ultimately escapes.

Rayman arrives at The Sanctuary of Rock, and obtains a new power from Ly which gives him the ability to fly. However the guardian of the sanctuary, Foutch, wounds Rayman which causes him to lose his ability of flight temporarily. After defeating him and obtaining the third mask, Polokus teleports Rayman to the Iron Mountains, which houses a vast network of mines. Rayman encounters Uglette, wife of Globox, who is in despair after informing Rayman that dozens of her children are being used for labour in the mines, and Globox has once again been captured and sent to the Buccaneer.

Rayman hijacks a warship and rescues all of Globox's children from the mines along with saving Globox himself, who was about to be boarded to the Buccaneer. As Uglette and the children leave, one of the children passes Rayman the final Silver lum, claiming that they found it in the mines and a map to the other two Masks, in the Sanctuary of Ice and Sanctuary of Electricity, which is where most of the Robo-Pirates are created.

Once completed with collecting both masks Rayman departs to see Polokus, who congratulates him on his work and uses the power of all six Masks to awaken himself. Polokus tells Rayman that he can destroy all Robo-Pirates in the Glade of Dreams, but he has no power in the air. Polokus then creates a portal which leads Rayman to the airborne Buccaneer, in which he must defeat Admiral Razorbeard and save Globox, who is once captured again in the Sanctuary of Electricity due to his rain dance causing issues.

On board the Buccaneer, a general visits Razorbeard, who presents him to the Grolgoth, a large powered exo-skeleton which makes the user invulnerable to damage. Razorbeard purchases it, and plans for his final confrontation with Rayman. Soon after, Rayman infiltrates the Buccaneer, and finds both Razorbeard (housed inside the Grolgoth) and Globox in the Crow's Nest of the ship. During combat, Razorbeard accidentally collapses the floor, plunging both him and Rayman into a lava-filled furnace. During the descent, Ly telepathically saves Rayman from his fall and creates him a sentient flying shell, which he uses to knock the Grolgoth into the lava. Razorbeard escapes the ship in a small shuttlecraft, and initiates the self-destruct, which destroys the Buccaneer with Rayman still inside. Later, at Rayman's apparent funeral, all gather for a memorial service. They could only recover Rayman's left shoe, however, the shoe suddenly appears to react to an oncoming presence, as a limping, one-footed Rayman emerges nearby, much to the joy of everyone present as Baby Globoxes hug him.

After this, the cast were having a party in Globox's Village to celebrate their victory over the Robo-Pirates, except Rayman and Ly the Fairy, who are both seen relaxing together on a destroyed warship as fireworks explode in the dark sky with credits rolling by (alongside a triumphant remix of the main theme, which was heard as a leitmotif earlier throughout the game, playing in the background), ending the main story with a dedication to Gilbert Gottfried.

If a player completes the game with 100%, a post-credit sequence will show up, revealing that a few Robo-Pirates have survived and joined Razorbeard as he escaped in his shuttlecraft, vowing to have revenge on Rayman with a corrupted Dark Lum he has found at some point. However, the Dark Lum managed to escape and turned into Dark Rayman upon flying back to the Glade of Dreams, leading to the events of Rayman Arena: Ultimate Multiplayer.

DLC Prequel Story
In the beginning, it was feared that Nightmares would spread and take over the world after The First Bad Dream incident occured upon Jano's creation, and the disappearance of a previous hero (who's story is later revealed and explored in Rayman 4: Darkness Returns). In order to circumvent this, the Nymphs created Rayman to stop these Nightmares when the time came, even though he lacked the limbs, as a result of the Nymphs losing a sack of Lums when they were distracted by a group of Zombie Chickens. Because of this, Rayman fell down into the ocean and was found by frog fishermen one stormy night who decided to raise him as he had no one to go to, quickly meeting Globox, whom he quickly became friends with and lived together throughout childhood.

In his adult years, Rayman lives with Rayette away from Globox's Village. After a run in Mini Villi, a colony of tiny blonde hair creatures, inhabited his original hair and changed it's color, allowing him to glide. This leads to Rayette kicking him out as he forges a new path in his own life, where he saves a village of Teensies from an horde of enemies. Not before long, the events of Rayman 1 take place where Mr. Dark steals the Great Protoon, leading to the Magician contacting Rayman to retrieve the Great Protoon back and save Electoons spread around the valley, while also trying to find the disappeared Betilla the Fairy, oldest of the Nymphs and his creator/mother.

After he rescues all of the Electoons, Rayman faces Mr. Dark, who attacks with various disorienting spells. Rayman arrives in a hall, where Mr. Dark traps him with walls of fire. At the last moment, Electoons retrieve Rayman's ability to punch after Mr. Dark disables it. Upon the defeat of Mr. Dark, Rayman rescues Betilla and recovers the Great Protoon, thus restoring balance to his world. Rayman then takes a vacation with friends and a few former enemies.

Gameplay
Like the original, Rayman 2 is a 3D Platformer which is played from a third-person perspective and the player has control over the camera, though in some situations this control is limited to only certain angles. At several points in the game, the player loses control during cut scenes, which typically show dialogue between characters.

By collecting lums (small bodies, or shards of magical energy), the player can unlock more information about the game world and its back story, which can be read by standing still and pressing a specific button for some time or can be allowed to purchase extra upgrades. Some back story is also obtained through (optional) instructions from Murfy, a "flying encyclopaedia" who provides explanations on all kinds of gameplay elements. Along the way players will fight Robo-Pirates, solve puzzles and collect lums. Collecting enough Lums gains the player access to new parts of the world. Part of the Lums are hidden in small cages, in which other freedom fighters or Teensies are imprisoned, and can be obtained by breaking the cages.

Rayman starts the game with minimal abilities, and he can gain more abilities as the game progresses. The main weapon available in the game is Rayman's signature telescopic fist, Eventually, his fist will become more powerful. Rayman can also enter a strafing stance, which allows him to easily aim orbs & punches whilst avoiding enemy attacks. He later gains the ability to swing over large gaps using Purple Lums and sprint for a short amount of time. Rayman is also able to use his helicopter hair to slow his descent while jumping, with some segments later in the game allowing him to fly with his hair. There are also various items Rayman can use throughout the game, such as explosive barrels he can throw, giant plums he can ride on to carry him across dangerous surfaces, and rockets he must ride on to access new areas.

In addition to the main, story-based level sequence, there are also several levels in which the player can gain bonuses in a time trial and extra minigames. Additionally, by collecting all lums and breaking all cages in a level, the player unlocks a bonus level in which one of Globox's children races against a robot pirate. When the player controlling a Baby Globox wins the race, Rayman gains either health or a power-up.

Features/Changes

 * There's new prologue and epilogue sequences, showing us how the Robo-Pirates came to the Glade of Dreams from Space and how Rayman was captured at the beginning of the game while Ly's voice is heard, like in this video. The epilogue sequence is also expanded and even teases the relationship between Rayman and Ly in a scene similar to original concept artwork, which is further explored in future games/media such as Rayman 4: Darkness Returns and it's cartoon show (aiming for older fans and closer to source material unlike previous shows).
 * If a player completes the game with 100%, a post-credit sequence will appear and they'll also get an 16:9 version of the original game's Dreamcast port.
 * The PlayStation 5 port supports both the DualSense controller's features, haptic feedback (while running, attacking enemies, collecting Lums, feeling your helicopter hair while gliding, flying up through air/wind currents, the magic orb while charging it via Accumulation skill, etc.) and adaptive triggers (accelerating/boosting while riding on shells, aiming your telescopic fist while strafing like in Rayman 3: Hoodlum Havoc, the Baby Globox running in a bonus stage, etc.).
 * Rayman's design is similar to that of Rayman 3 and later games.
 * Various trophies and achievements for the PlayStation, Xbox and Steam versions.
 * Upgraded and modernized graphics with an art direction similar to that of original concept artwork, those made by a concept artist Giacomo Boni and slight Origins/Legends vibes on it.
 * The remake runs at 60fps and at 1080p on the PS4 & Xbox One with a higher performance/resolution, and ray tracing available for the Next-Gen & PC ports.
 * Additionally, the Nintendo Switch version runs at 30fps and 720p (Docked) & 480p (Handheld).
 * Instead of being a collectible, Lums Radar can be used via the options screen, allowing Rayman to track the nearest Lum close to his position, like Sparx in Spyro Reignited Trilogy.
 * The point system from Rayman 3 returns, which players can use as a currency to the multiple shops in the game.
 * Returning from Revolution, each stage is split into multiple segments and will save inbetween segments does
 * Unlike Revolution, the game will automatically save without stopping gameplay.
 * The ability to choose between an original (which is remastered, like Bandai Namco did for Klonoa Phantasy Reverie Series and Pac-Man World Re-Pac) or a new orchestral soundtrack via options menu like in Spyro Reignited Trilogy and Crash Team Racing: Nitro-Fueled.
 * Expansive, albeit polished versions of the open-world maps from Rayman Revolution (only without Lums to collect and have seamless transition in each section of the Open World).
 * However, if the player doesn't like this from the game, they can choose the option to allow a world map system from the Nintendo 64 version.
 * A better, more intelligent camera system that can be freely controlled with a right stick, except in certain situations.
 * Characters are more expressive, especially in cutscenes (which are also changed).
 * Cutscenes are able to be skipped and can be rewatched
 * More Dialogue options/choices are available with Characters
 * A new, slightly more engaging, accessible and competent combat system, which has both Rayman's telescopic fist (similarly like in Rayman 3: Hoodlum Havoc) and his magic orbs, which is weaker than his fist but faster to use.
 * Most of the voice cast from previous games such as David Gasman (Rayman), John Leguizamo (Globox), Billy West (Murfy) and Ken Starcevic (Razorbeard & Jano) reprise their roles for the remake, with new voice actors for some of the cast as well, such as:
 * Grey DeLisle as Ly the Fairy
 * Mark Hamill as Polokus
 * Dee Bradley Baker, Rob Paulsen & Tom Kenny voicing various Teensies
 * Tom Kenny also voices Sssam the Snake.
 * John DiMaggio as Clark the Giant and Ninjaws
 * Tress MacNeille as Razorwife and Uglette
 * David Kaye as Henchman 1000
 * Scott Menville as Spyglass Pirate
 * Kevin Michael Richardson, Fred Tatasciore, Gilbert Gottfried and John DiMaggio as Temple Gurdians
 * More languages (albeit subtitled for this time other than Japanese and as well as other languages that would have the remastered audio and some of their dialogues changed such as Tomokazu Seki as Rayman himself, Koichi Hashimoto as Razorbeard and Koichi Yamadera as Globox, featuring Hiroshi Fujioka himself as the Narrator) besides those in the original game like English and Raymanese (original language) are added too.
 * The other languages that aren't dubbed (aside with French, German, Italian and Spanish; albeit in remastered and somehow reworked form), will also be used for subtitles too, including new ones such as Bisaya and Tagalog/Filipino.
 * All kinds of exclusive stuff from other ports such as The Knowledge of the World, bonus areas like Globox Village, ability upgrades, mini-games/challenges, Ninjaws as a boss in The Sanctuary of Stone and Fire, bringing back interesting scrapped elements, etc. are included.
 * The People of Prhys will debut in the remake after having been previously scrapped from the original game as a new Hub World after the player has collected the first mask, with Tily (who first debuted in Rayman M) appearing as one of them, giving Rayman side missions in various stages/levels (or open-world maps if the player chooses them) where he visited earlier, rewarding him with points for the shop and a temporary Power Fist power-up for the duration of one level.
 * Like in the PlayStation version, the Guardian bosses are given personalities (which are explored in depth) and speaking roles along with new designs
 * There are now 6 Masks of Polokus instead of 4 and all have gameplay properties. Rayman can put them on and use their powers in both combat and platforming. However, they have a meter which will be depleted once he uses them and will only come back once he collected a Pink Lum, which will restore some power to it.
 * Fire allows the player to burn items and throw fireballs towards enemies, leading them to burn to a crisp faster than using fist-to-fist combat.
 * Water allows the player to breath underwater for longer and throw bubbles to enemies which will, trap them. It also allows Rayman to perform the Rain Dance, which will grow plants and control the weather.
 * Air will make a mini-tornado that shrinks down enemies and special platforms to access them, like the Vortex power-up from Rayman 3: Hoodlum Havoc. Rayman can also Spin Jump, which makes him invincible and glide a lot slower for a bit, but will completely deplete the meter.
 * Earth will allow the player to carry heavy objects faster and can bring giant rocks from the ground to throw them at targets.
 * Ice allows the player to freeze enemies and water, which makes Rayman capable of walking on them.
 * Lightning allows the player to use electrical powers and a lightning grapple hook which will stun enemies when grabbing them, similarly to the Lockjaw power-up from Rayman 3: Hoodlum Havoc and Cole McGrath from the inFamous games.
 * Instead of Globox's kid giving Rayman another mask, he will obtain a Silver Lum which allows him to fly for a short amount of time, similarly to the Throttle Copter power-up from Rayman 3: Hoodlum Havoc, as well as being able to sprint.
 * Whenever Rayman obtains a mask after the stage, a cutscene will play which shows Razorbeard and his several antics, including Razorwife and a new character, Henchman 1000 (who originally debuted in Rayman M). These were included to lighten up the tone of the game slightly.
 * Henchman 1000 also appears as a new recurring boss which gets progressively harder throughout the game. He acts as Razorbeard's assistant and second-in-command (much to Spyglass Pirate's dismay), who is programmed to serve him no matter what, even though he secretly dislikes him.
 * More Lums, cages, segments in previous stages, new levels (such as Sanctuary of Electricity, Ice and Air, Treetop City, The Frozen Cavern and the Sky Harbor), as well as new enemies/bosses are added.
 * The total Lum count is now 1500 instead of 1000.
 * Some unlockable outfits throughout the Rayman series, along with those from other Ubisoft games such as Altair/Ezio, Jacob Frye, Aiden Pearce, Marcus Holloway, Sam Fisher, Domingo "Ding" Chavez, Tonic Trouble's Ed and the Prince of Persia are included. Similarly, the same can be said with unlockable Ubisoft crossover music as well (especially if the player either got old save bonuses of any other Ubisoft game on any of their consoles for both of these things via using a Ubisoft Connect account).
 * Some of these costumes are among pre-order bonuses, later being released as downloadable content.
 * The DLC content released after the game was released on stores are:
 * A texture/model pack, that changes everything back to their classic polygonal appearances in the original 1999 game, with some characters like Razorwife and Henchman 1000 having those from Rayman M/Arena.
 * A new story campaign that re-tells the events of an original 1995 game in a 3D-platformer fashion, combining various origin stories Rayman had throughout the series, at the beginning when he washed ashore and was discovered by fishermen while sleeping after he was created by the Nymphs, new elements and more bosses (with old ones getting new attacks/strategies) like in a fan remake, Rayman Redemption.
 * For the Nintendo Switch version, there would be Amiibo support that includes Nintendo-based outfits for Rayman, cosplaying himself as Mario (like in Rayman Legends), Kirby and Link.
 * A New Game Plus mode that allows players to keep all Silver Lum upgrades, Masks (even though cutscenes involving Rayman gaining them do stay), Shop upgrades and Lums, while allowing players to recollect Lums they missed and also increasing the difficulty.

Development
A remake of Rayman 2: The Great Escape entered development in the middle of 2020 and was created to be a next-generation showcase of platformer games on next-gen hardware, following Activision's Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time and Sony's Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart. It was also made to help test the waters for new Rayman games, as a new mainline console game hadn't been released since 2013 and didn't know if Rayman would sell well, due to Ubisoft’s focus on more mature properties.

It was revealed to the public in a Ubisoft Forward event on September 2022 as a surprise announcement at the end, after a new gameplay/release date trailer of Beyond Good and Evil 2 and the reveal of Rayman's DLC expansion in Mario + Rabbids: Sparks of Hope. However, it was leaked earlier on the PlayStation Store the day earlier. It was also Michel Ancel's last Rayman game he developed and worked on before his retirement (even though he was credited as a director and producer, being also involved with the cartoon alongside Soliani). Additionally, Davide Soliani, creator of the Mario + Rabbids series, is the new director and producer of the series as of this game.

Remastered ports of Rayman 3 HD with cut content from the original 2003 version (such as Groove Armada's Madder returning and a brand new stage), the first three Rayman Raving Rabbids games (with changes like Baby Globoxes' models changed to those from the Rayman 2 remake and real-time story cutscenes in the first installment, Rayman having his own voice in RRR2 and the ability to play without a Wii Balance Board in TV Party, plus online support with multiplayer/leaderboards for all three games) and Rabbids Go Home (albeit with altered controls and DualSense/trophy & achievement support, though Joy-Cons stay similarly like the Wii Remote and Nunchuk on Switch versions) for next-gen consoles were also revealed, alongside the original 1995 game and Origins being added on PlayStation Plus Premium as part of it's respective classic/PS3 line-ups, allowing newcomers to play through the whole franchise.

The game was dedicated to Gilbert Gottfried, who was known for his numerous roles in various films and television shows before he died from recurrent ventricular tachycardia in April 12th, 2022. He portrayed as Foutch, the guardian of The Sanctuary of Rock, thus making it one of his last roles.

Reception
Rayman 2: The Greater Escape received "generally favorable reviews" according to review aggregator Metacritic. Multiple aspects of the game were praised, such as the upgraded visuals, attention to detail, the new additions to the game and the faithfulness to the original game.