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Good, but the last levels get REALLY hard

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 3 / 3
Date: August 04, 2006
Author: Amazon User

As it said in the title, this game get harder every step. I have had it for about two years now, and I STILL have a couple of levels left. I think the hardest levels are traveling from world to world. (Even if you get the hang of it.) Also, if you are low on life and save, there is no way of going back to get life. So this will be a chellenge for all people. I hope the new one that is coming out, Rayman 4 Raving Rabbids, is a little bit easier. In all this game does get hard, it is good enough to keep you waiting for more.

Rayman 3 - A FAIR Review

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 0 / 0
Date: May 17, 2007
Author: Amazon User

I own Rayman 3, and enjoy it allot, but was disappointed to see so many negative reviews. One reviewer in particular sounded completely unreasonable. Since I have enjoyed the game immensely, and sensed the game was not getting a fair shake, I decided to write a FAIR review holding it to common standards.

From a game mechanics standpoint, the game starts off well. The PC version is a well behaved game that requires no patching (mercifully enough), and seems very stable, rarely ever crashing, and having very modest system specs. It has large, though linear levels. It has high production values, excellent sound, and voice acting, absolutely sublime graphics, and Rayman has been given new moves along with timed power-ups (the suits). People griping about controls truly must have been smoking something--the worst control issue I've encountered yet is occasional slowdown during diagonal runs, and even then, this is a very minor complaint appearing only occasionally, and only in analog mode while using a gamepad.

I will concede right off that the plot is not the best (I've felt from the start, that it needed a more engrossing story), and the camera and controls needed some polish, but I didn't feel these minor complaints were deal breakers by any means. While having a strategy guide is not a must for completing this game, it is important to making the most of it. The game manual does a downright bad job of explaining the scoring system, or giving you more than subtle clues as to how to play for maximum score. I never realized myself how much I was missing out on until I stumbled onto the guide for half price, picked it up, and began playing for 100% completion and as near to the maximum level scores as I could get.

For all those who lodged the "game isn't challenging enough" accusation, I'm gonna have to call you out again. You don't need a degree to be able to figure out that like any platformer, Rayman 3 is predictably focused on scoring, and if you're simply blazing your way through the game trying to get to the end while ignoring your score, this has allot to do with why you're missing so much of what the game has to offer. You could probably finish the game, and miss almost half of it (secret rooms, bonus games, Hoodlum training tapes, higher scores, etc) playing it this way. I found that after I began playing for maximum score, the game became much more challenging. Many people probably don't know that wearing any power suit doubles your scoring, as does being in "combo mode"--'why does it matter?' they might ask. Because again, if you're playing for score, this will challenge you to try again for a higher score. And you might find yourself surprised at how challenging getting these scores can be. There area also 2 types of collectible creatures scattered throughout the game which you collect to further augment your scoring, one of these, "Tribelles" (bufferfly-like creatures which have to be crept upon slowly to acquire) tend to be strategically placed so that getting them while wearing a power suit is difficult, but possible. For those shooting for record high scores, or just the extra challenge, sometimes it's even possible to acquire them with your suit on, AND in combo mode. The same can be said of picking up all the jewels in any given area with a suit on as you have to work quickly before the suit expires, and you will often have only barely enough time. You can even score a 10 point bonus by taking an enemy out with one shot (one fully loaded punch), and later in the game by converting black lums to red. This all plays into adding another dimension of challenge to acquiring a good score. As added incentive, there is a scoring table in the the front of the strategy guide to help you figure out what the maximum score is for a level and an area, and a high score hall of fame at the site where you can post your score and compare it to other players' high scores worldwide.

I didn't really expect the game to be too much like Rayman 2 (come on!--if they'd made it any more similar then you'd be saying it's just more of the same) in that Micheal Ancel (one of the franchises' co-creators) was not involved with this game beoyond designing the characters, and moreover, the development team wanted to avoid a "samey" sort of feel because Rayman 2 had already been re-made in Rayman 2 Revolution (essentially a PS2 director's cut of Rayman 2 with new features and refinements). But in my opinion, Rayman 3 is in some ways more true to it's roots than Rayman 2--filling up the coin to extend your life bar as you free the Teensies from cages was very reminiscent of the orginal Rayman, as was Rayman's loaded punch. The game is funny, and doesn't take it's self too seriously, with dry humor, and sly jokes abounding (John Leguizamo and Billy West doing Globox and Murphys' voices was classic). And as long as we're talking about voices, it was great that all the characters actually have voices this time around, and the subtitles, and french voiceovers are gone--unlike Rayman 2, this lends the game a much less generic, and more finished feel. Probably best of all, and unlike Rayman 2, there are few if any areas in the game where you will die instantly because of falling--except on the teensie highways where you CAN fall, but this doesn't really count as there will be times on the highways where you will WANT to jump off so you can try again for the jewels you missed--plus, you lose a point--not a life for falling here.

Here once again, I can find little to complain about in Rayman 3 save for having no gamepad compatibility at the menus, not having any bonus/expanded content for PC players, and leaving out all but an automated checkpoint save system all together (while intended to be a convenience feature, checkpoint save systems always drive PC players bonkers). Rayman 3 is not a perfect game, but nor did I expect it to be. For a value title, this game offers high production values, good challenges, fun mini-games, large levels, good graphics, low system specs, and plenty of re-play value. The strategy guide is a helpful companion, and comes highly recommended, but is not necessary. As the "E for Everyone" label misleadingly implies, it's probably not a good choice for younger kids (8 or younger I'd have to say), as it's probably a little deep for them, and they will probably just overlook the game's challenges, get frustrated with it, and not play (evidenced by the other highly unfair reviews posted mostly by pre-adolescent kids). This is not a typical platorm game in the sense that the puzzles are not simplified for the sake of the kids--there are real challenges here for serious players and platform game fans (assuming you're not the aforementioned reviewer, and know how to play). For all others, I recommend actually PLAYING the game--not just trying to see how fast you can finish it. Maybe then you might find more of what you're looking for.

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