Ubisoft’s plans for the 30th anniversary of Rayman seem to be hinting at a new game announcement in the near future.
It has been more than a decade since the last proper Rayman game – 2013’s excellent Rayman Legends – and aside from a cameo here and there (most notably in the Mario + Rabbids: Sparks Of Hope DLC), Ubisoft’s limbless mascot seems to have been mostly abandoned.
Last October, it was rumoured that this would change with a Rayman remake and though not explicitly confirmed, Ubisoft did quickly admit that it is planning something with the character, even bringing back original creator Michel Ancel as a consultant.
That project still seems to be underway, since Ubisoft is making a genuine effort to celebrate Rayman’s 30th anniversary, reviving the official X account with a special message from Ubisoft Montpellier that once again teases the future of the series.
The Rayman X account has been dormant since 2021 and yet this week it’s received a new profile picture and header image, featuring new artwork for the 30th anniversary.
While the anniversary itself was yesterday, on September 1, Ubisoft is promising to keep the celebrations going throughout the coming months, with plans to share ‘exclusive concept art, behind the scenes developer interviews, monthly giveaways, amazing fan creations, and much more.’
Ideally, this will culminate in at least a tease for the next game, although brand producer Loic Gounon is keen to downplay this in his celebration message.
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‘As we said in the past, a very talented team at Ubisoft Montpellier and Ubisoft Milan are currently working together on the future of Rayman,’ said Gounon, adding, ‘Don’t expect news from us too soon, but rest assured, Rayman is in good hands.’
Hopefully, that’s just him being coy and Ubisoft will have something to show by the end of the year. But considering the company won’t explicitly say it’s making a new game, only vaguely alluding to ‘the future’ of the series, it’s best not to assume anything.
Even if the rumours of a remake are true it’s never been clear which game exactly is being remade, since the original was a 2D sprite-based title and itwas only with 1999’s Rayman 2 that the series made the move into 3D.
Maybe Ubisoft will have some kind of re-release or small-scale remaster as part of the celebrations. A Nintendo Direct is meant to be happening next week, which would be a good place for a Rayman announcement.
However, judging by some reactions on Reddit, fan expectations are incredibly low, with a few people pointing out that video game anniversaries don’t often result in new game announcements.
‘Capcom made a poster for Devil May Cry’s 20th anniversary and updated the Devil May Cry socials and we got literally nothing from it other than a sale. Stuff like this doesn’t equate to a new announcement all the time,’ one Redditor wrote.
‘Everyone puts way too much stock in anniversaries anymore. Disappointing as it may be, they are not obligated to have some kind [of] substantial announcement of a new game or a remaster collection,’ says another.
At the very least, the new Rayman project is definitely in safe hands. Ubisoft Montpellier did a fantastic job with the Rayman Origins and Raymand Legends games, with some of its team also responsible for the excellent Prince Of Persia: The Lost Crown.
As for Ubisoft Milan, it was the lead developer on the two Mario + Rabbids strategy games, both of which were very good, even if director Davide Soliani has subsequently left the studios.
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