If certain retailer listings are to be believed, it appears that Rayman Origins won't be confined to the Xbox 360 and PS3 when it's released this holiday. Amazon has posted a listing for a Wii version of title, including the convincing box art seen here. Furthermore, a purported GameStop new release list mentions both a Wii and DS version of Rayman Origins. For what it's worth, both GameStop and Amazon specify a November release date.
While Ubisoft hasn't confirmed anything outside of the 360 and PS3 versions, a port to DS or Wii certainly seems possible, especially given the game's 2D presentation.
With over a dozen core games and spin-offs, Rayman is an enduring franchise. And the most recent issue of Game Informer magazine, issue #218, has a bunch of new information concerning the upcoming title Rayman Origins. Game Informer writer Annette Gonzalez's piece puts together everything she learne...
When Game Informer revealed the contents of its new issue yesterday, buried under the Assassin's Creed: Revelations hoopla was the promise of Ubisoft news that has nothing to do with white hoodies or hidden knives: "six pages of new details and assets on the gorgeous new platformer, Rayman Origins."
For those assets, you'll have to wait to see the issue for yourself, but NeoGAFfer SolidSnakex summarized the new information about the platformer -- information welcome to those of us who get nervous when they don't get regular status updates about Michel Ancel games.
First announced as a downloadable, episodic title, Origins is now a retail game, and it's due this holiday season. It features four-player local co-op, though whether that is also online is unclear. According to the preview, it's designed to be accessible to players of different skill levels, and for each level to be enjoyable alone or in multiplayer. "I Dare You" challenges will allow players to bet on whether they can complete a "complex, acrobatic chain" to win in-game currency ("Lums.")
Pictured above: Rayman, floppy-haired hero and decliner of limbs, along with dim-witted partner in mischief, Globox.
They've been missing since December 2010, but we're happy to report that they're not dead. In an MCV interview published today, Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot said Rayman Origins was "very much" a Michel Ancel project. So, a bizarre information blackout following a promising announcement was to be expected.
"There will be a new Rayman game, Rayman Origins, by Michel Ancel," Guillemot said. "It will be HD in 2D and it will be a big event for the whole industry." It's unclear whether the game will still be episodic, as originally planned, or if it will still be a downloadable title. Ubisoft has not answered any of our specific questions regarding Rayman Origins during the last three months.
Aside from being a return to Rayman's roots, the game serves as a showcase for the UbiArt development framework, which allows the incorporation of detailed drawings from a variety of sources into a skeletal animation system. In other words: game so, so pretty.
Rayman Origins, a beautiful 2D adventure created within Ubisoft's UbiArt framework, was scheduled to launch on HD consoles by the end of this year. While the official website still believes that to be the case, it's now clear that the release has been delayed. Planned as an episodic series, Rayman Origins examines the mischievous beginnings of Michel Ancel's famous limber-yet-limbless hero, and his friendship with Globox, a boisterous frog-type ... thing.
Ubisoft has made no announcement regarding a delay, but a company representative confirmed to Joystiq that the first Origins episode would not make it out this year. (Obviously.)
Provided Rayman Origins doesn't vanish behind a veil of secrecy, Ancel fans should have a good year in 2011, which also promises a high-definition update of Beyond Good and Evil for Xbox Live Arcade and PlayStation Network.
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Ubisoft's new direction for Rayman, revealed at its wacky E3 2010 showing, will tell the story of "the birth of an uncontrollable eggplant in a crazy world" on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 this holiday. But that's not all... More »
Rayman and Globox will be slapping everything in sight as soon as this holiday season. The "about" page for Rayman Origins, the new 2D Rayman revival, reveals that the first episode is scheduled for a Christmas release, with "the rest" to follow in 2011. Ubisoft specified releases on "HD Consoles" for the platformer, with Wii, PC, iPad, and 3DS in consideration as well.
The page also reveals that the Ubiart framework used by Origins' five-person team to create the game will be released open-source next year, allowing users to design levels and characters. Not only is Ubisoft making a convincingly indie-style game, it's going to release tools to let you make indie games.
Earlier this month, Ubisoft assured fans that Beyond Good & Evil creator Michel Ancel was still with the company, and still toiling away at the sequel to the beloved action adventure game. Ancel himself emerged at the Montpellier in Game conference, detailing the development a bit.
Ancel told attendees that he's working on a 3D version of the toolkit being used to make Rayman Origins. "It takes a bit longer," he said, "but we're very keen to use this system with this game, because it's an ambitious game and we want to create something exceptional."
Another factor that is stretching out development time: "On this game, we're keeping the team small," he said, "to preserve creativity and so the game doesn't become a commercial product, so that it has soul." This also has the added benefit of keeping the budget low, limiting the chance that Ubisoft will cancel it. Unfortunately, it also limits the chance that Ubisoft execs will know it exists.
We told you it was beautiful -- but in case you didn't believe us, you can watch a trailer after the break. Ubisoft's Rayman Origins is a gorgeous game, and uses the new Ubiart framework to deliver "full HD" 1080p visuals. According to the team's official blog, Origins will be delivered as episodes "because big games take a long time to make" and "episodes also let us imagine a longer and more developed saga than with a more 'classical' format."
Although specifics weren't mentioned, it's easy to imagine that Origins will end up on services like PSN and XBLA as a downloadable game. The team appears to be aiming for a release "this year," which has our digital wallets quivering in anticipation.
