Rayman: 30th Anniversary Edition Review: A Fun, Yet Ultimately Pointless Collection

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The Rayman series, like many of Ubisoft’s older games, has faced an uncertain future recently. Although Rayman Legends received great reviews and fans have been eager for a new game, the main series hasn’t had a new installment since 2013. Instead, Ubisoft has mostly released spin-offs, often featuring the Rabbids, and some haven’t even included Rayman at all.

After recent changes in leadership and company direction at Ubisoft, it looks like they’re revitalizing some of their classic series, starting with Rayman: 30th Anniversary Edition. This collection brings together different versions of the original Rayman game and is a clear sign of respect for the series’ dedicated fans and Ubisoft’s own history.

Putting together collections like this is challenging. It’s clear the creators have a deep affection for the source material, and this release delivers a lot of content – including five different versions of the game and a rare SNES prototype. It also features brand new interviews with the people who made the franchise what it is.

Ultimately, this collection offers five versions of the same game, and each one feels less impressive than the last. It’s especially frustrating because the original Rayman wasn’t the most exciting of his games to begin with – the later 3D Rayman titles were much more creative and engaging. While the game is enjoyable, the 30th anniversary celebration loses its appeal pretty quickly, so it’s best to approach it with realistic expectations.

A Ray of Hope

Rayman: 30th Anniversary Edition brings together the original Rayman game in five different versions: PlayStation 1, Atari Jaguar, MS-DOS, Game Boy Color, and Game Boy Advance. While having all these versions sounds appealing, the collection isn’t quite as enjoyable to play as you might expect.

While the games look a little different depending on which system you play them on, they’re mostly the same experience. I’ve always thought the original MS-DOS version was the best, but it’s great to have so many versions available together. It’s a shame some fun versions aren’t included, like the Sega Saturn release, which was a really good one. It’s not a major issue, but it would have been a nice addition.

Each new release of these games unfortunately has noticeably worse graphics and overall quality. Trying to display the original Game Boy Color or Game Boy Advance games on modern HD TVs (1080p or 4K) doesn’t look good, and no amount of visual adjustments can really fix that. However, they do look much better when played in handheld mode on the Switch, which helps to offset some of those problems.

This collection includes Rayman for the PS1, Atari Jaguar, MS-DOS, Game Boy Color, and Game Boy Advance. While it looks appealing, the gameplay doesn’t quite live up to expectations.

It’s great that this collection stays true to the original games and doesn’t try to modernize them. Seeing these games presented as they originally were is a real plus. The biggest drawback is that the games are quite similar to each other, and adding more titles could have solved that problem.

When I first heard about this release, many people probably thought it would include the original three Rayman games. Instead, you essentially get one great platformer repeated five times. While that can get tiring quickly, the important thing is that this classic game is now saved for future players.

Beyond the full game, this release features a charming, early SNES prototype. It’s a simple one-room demo, but that’s precisely the kind of historical preservation we’d love to see more often. While complete games are fantastic, discovering these older, unfinished versions is a real highlight, and I hope future collections include similar content.

Talking Heads and a Curated Museum

Rayman: 30th Anniversary Edition looks fantastic. The menus are smooth and load quickly, and the game responds instantly to your commands. When you pause, a helpful menu lets you customize the visuals with different backgrounds, a retro screen filter, and display options. While a perfect retro filter is still hard to find in games, it’s great that these options are included.

Rayman: 30th Anniversary Edition treats each game like a museum exhibit, offering interesting background information. This presentation makes each game feel special, although the gameplay itself might not always hold up. It’s clear the creators have a lot of affection and respect for the Rayman series, which is welcome considering how often the franchise has been overlooked in the past.

Beyond just the games, Rayman: 30th Anniversary Edition features fresh video interviews with the people who made them. While these interviews don’t reveal a lot of completely new details, fans of Rayman will still enjoy watching them.

Thankfully, people still really care about this game series, especially since Rayman hasn’t gotten the attention he deserves for a long time.

This collection is a bit difficult to evaluate. It’s hard to fully recommend, especially since the original Rayman game, Rayman Forever, is available on GOG. Plus, you can often find a bundle with that game and even better Rayman titles for a low price. However, if you’ve never experienced the original Rayman or are a dedicated fan, it might be worth considering.

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For twenty dollars, it’s not a bad price, but it feels a little expensive considering it’s essentially the same game played five times. As a Rayman fan, I enjoyed it, but there are definitely better games in the series. If you’re new to the game, though, it’s absolutely worth checking out.

I’m still not sure who this collection is meant for. It’s hard to justify the twenty-dollar price tag when it includes interviews and multiple versions of the same game. I especially wouldn’t suggest a new fan start with one of the less impressive Rayman titles. Ultimately, I can’t really recommend this – there are better Rayman games available, and you can find better bundles elsewhere.

Closing Comments

Rayman: 30th Anniversary Edition collects five versions of the original Ubisoft platformer, and it’s beautifully presented – almost like a museum showcasing the game’s history. However, the different versions aren’t very distinct from each other, and Rayman 2 and 3 could have used more updates. While it’s a fantastic tribute to the very first Rayman, it doesn’t include his more exciting later adventures.

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2026-02-19 01:10