Prince of Persia: TLCs Dev Team Disbanding May Have a Silver Lining

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Prince of Persia: TLCs Dev Team Disbanding May Have a Silver Lining

As a seasoned gamer with decades of gaming under my belt, I can confidently say that the news about Ubisoft Montpellier working on a new Rayman game is music to my ears! After the stellar work they did on Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown, it’s clear they have what it takes to breathe new life into another beloved franchise.

2024 marked a grand return for the seldom-active Prince of Persia series by Ubisoft, but the journey hasn’t been entirely smooth sailing for the company. The latest addition to the franchise, Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown, has garnered critical acclaim this year, however, its sales figures have apparently fallen short of expectations. This apparent commercial underperformance seems to have affected the development team at Ubisoft Montpellier, leading to reports that the studio has been disbanded by Ubisoft.

It’s disappointing to learn that the talented team responsible for such an amazing game is planning to dismantle. However, there’s a glimmer of hope: this talented crew will be reassigned to work on various projects within Ubisoft. Among these new ventures, one particularly exciting project involves the resurrection of an old Ubisoft franchise that many have been eagerly awaiting – Rayman.

The Prince of Persia Team Is Heading To A New Franchise

Ubisoft Montpellier Is Set To Bring Back Rayman

According to reports, it appears that the Prince of Persia team is set to focus on several projects, with one of them being a remake within the Rayman series. Ubisoft has confirmed this news, mentioning that Ubisoft Montpellier will collaborate with Ubisoft Milan in developing this project. The publisher emphasized that the game is currently in its initial stages, but this revelation marks the closest gamers have come to learning about a potential new Rayman game in quite some time.

Initially a major character in Ubisoft’s lineup, the fame of Rayman began to diminish following the explosive popularity of his 2006 game, Rayman Raving Rabbids. This surge in popularity resulted in the Rabbids getting their own standalone series, overshadowing Rayman. Despite two more remarkable games, Rayman Origins (2011) and Rayman Legends (2013), the perceived lower sales numbers placed the series on hiatus for a decade. Since then, Rayman has been confined to smaller appearances, with his most significant role being in a DLC for 2022’s Mario + Rabbids: Sparks of Hope.

Rayman Has Long Been Deserving Of A Comeback

There’s little doubt that Rayman is worthy of another appearance. Not just because he once symbolized Ubisoft as their mascot, but also due to the exceptional platformer games, both 2D and 3D, that the Rayman series has produced. It remains one of Ubisoft’s most reliable and top-quality franchises. It’s astonishing that a game like Rayman Legends, released in 2013, hasn’t had a sequel, and there couldn’t be a more opportune moment than now to rectify that situation.

Reviving a game similar to Rayman might offer a refreshing twist in Ubisoft’s usual style of game development. As a publisher, Ubisoft has received its fair share of criticism for consistently producing AAA open-world games that follow a predictable formula, making it exciting when they deviate from this norm. It seems like a breath of fresh air when Ubisoft tries something new, and introducing an old character like Rayman could be the change they need.

Bringing back a game like
Rayman
could provide fresh flavor from Ubisoft’s typical approach.

The Prince of Persia Team Is Perfect For A Rayman Revival

Ubisoft is boosting the success of the Rayman franchise by merging the development teams from Ubisoft Montpellier and Ubisoft Milan. Both teams have proven expertise with this series, as Ubisoft Montpellier has been the main developer for the franchise, while Ubisoft Milan created the popular Mario + Rabbids duology, where Rayman was a key character in the most recent installment. This collaboration is crucial for the Rayman series to make an impressive return, and if Ubisoft Montpellier can infuse some of the magic from The Lost Crown into this new game, players might be treated to the best Rayman game ever made.

Once more, it’s worth noting that the current Rayman project is still in its infancy and Ubisoft might not unveil it for quite some time. Nonetheless, this announcement is exciting as it marks Ubisoft’s return to the series, and we’re thrilled that the team at Ubisoft Montpellier continues to develop new Rayman games. Although it seems this project may not be the sequel to The Lost Crown as initially speculated, perhaps the revival of the Rayman franchise will encourage Ubisoft to explore fresh avenues in its game development.

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2024-10-25 16:34