“Rayman: 30th Anniversary Edition” Review by Nick Navarro
In 2025, few studios have built as much goodwill in the retro preservation space as Digital Eclipse. After spending time last year reviewing their work on “Mortal Kombat: Legacy Kollection” (you can check out my review of that HERE), I’ve come to associate their name with thoughtful curation, smart emulation, and genuinely meaningful historical context. So, when I saw they were handling “Rayman: 30th Anniversary Edition,” I was immediately interested, not just in revisiting a classic, but in seeing how they would frame and preserve one of the original PlayStation era’s most recognizable mascots.
Originally released for the PlayStation way back in 1995 and developed by Ubi Pictures, the first Rayman was a striking debut. It introduced players to a limbless hero navigating a lush valley thrown into chaos after the magical Great Protoon was stolen by the villainous Mr. Dark. All I really recall from back then was that this game was cool but very hard. I believe it also became one of the best-selling PlayStation games, and it, of course, laid the foundation for a long-running franchise. This anniversary release is positioned as the definitive edition of that original adventure. Rather than simply porting a single version forward, Digital Eclipse has compiled five playable editions: MS-DOS, PlayStation, Atari Jaguar, Game Boy Color, and Game Boy Advance. On top of that, the package includes more than 120 additional levels sourced from “Rayman’s New Levels,” “Rayman 60 Levels,” and “Rayman By His Fans.” Most fascinating of all is the inclusion of the long-lost Super NES prototype, which has never been commercially released before. As a preservation effort, that alone feels significant.
For anyone unfamiliar with the original structure, Rayman is a side-scrolling platformer built across six thematic worlds. Each level hides six cages containing captured Electoons, and freeing them is central to unlocking the final area. Rayman collects blue crystals known as Tings, earning an extra life for every hundred gathered. You begin with five lives, and losing them forces you to reload your save or start over. Throughout the adventure, Rayman gradually acquires new abilities from Betilla the Fairy, including running, flying via his helicopter hair glide, and hanging from platforms. His detached hands evolve as well, most notably through the telescopic fist, which allows him to punch distant enemies. This is a really frickin’ hard game. Rayman’s cheerful art style masks a platformer that demands precision, memorization, and patience. Enemy placement can feel punishing, jumps require exact timing, and later stages expect you to string together mechanics with very little room for error. Even with modern conveniences like rewind, multiple save slots, infinite lives, and instant level unlocks, I still took a beating. There were stretches where I admired the craft more than I enjoyed the moment-to-moment frustration.
That said, I can’t deny how beautiful it remains. The Dream Forest still bursts with color, Band Land leans into musical chaos, and the animation work holds up remarkably well. The sprite art has a fluidity that feels handcrafted, and the worlds carry a whimsical tone that stands apart from many platformers of its era. Even when I was gritting my teeth after another failed attempt, I couldn’t argue with the artistry on display. Where this anniversary package truly shines is in its documentary content. The interactive documentary includes over fifty minutes of new interviews with the original developers, alongside rare concept art, early sketches, and design documents. For anyone curious about how games were made in the mid-1990s, before massive corporate pipelines defined the industry, this material is genuinely compelling. It paints a picture of a creative team driven by experimentation and passion, and it adds meaningful context to Rayman’s creation.
Unfortunately, there’s one decision that casts a long shadow over the entire release. The soundtrack has been fully reimagined by Christophe Héral, and there is no option to switch back to the original score composed by Rémi Gazel. For a package that positions itself as a preservation-focused celebration, the absence of the original music is baffling. Gazel’s compositions were a major part of the game’s identity, and not including them feels like a fundamental omission. The new soundtrack isn’t bad, but preservation should mean choice, and here that choice simply doesn’t exist. That missing piece significantly impacts the overall value of the collection for me. Nearly everything else is handled with care: the emulation is solid, the image filters are tasteful, the accessibility features are welcome, and the documentary content is excellent. Yet something as central as the original score being unavailable makes the experience feel incomplete.
Even as someone who has never been the biggest fan of Rayman’s earlier punishing design, I can appreciate its importance. It represents a specific moment in gaming history when mascot platformers were everywhere and studios were experimenting with bold visual identities. I didn’t love every second of playing through it again, but I respect what it accomplished and the legacy it left behind. If you’ve never played the original, this edition offers a comprehensive way to understand why Rayman became such a beloved icon. If you grew up with it, there’s a lot here to explore, especially in the archival material. I just wish the presentation had fully honored every aspect of the original experience. “Rayman: 30th Anniversary Edition” is a thoughtful and ambitious re-release that almost gets everything right. It preserves multiple versions, adds meaningful enhancements, and delivers exceptional historical context. But without the original soundtrack to complete the package, it never quite feels definitive.
7/10
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Related: Nick Navarro Reviews
Gaming since I was given an original Nintendo as a kid. I love great storytelling and unique ingenuity. When both collide in a single game, I'm a happy gamer. Twitter/IG @NickNavarro87
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