Rayman - PC, 18/3/96

We've been somewhat surprised at the lofty marks afforded to the various incarnations of what is in essence a hissingly derivative platformer.

But that's less of a problem on the PC, where, the outstanding Earthworm Jim aside, authentic platform behaviour is as rare as a real tiger having a party.

So this happens: Rayman's graphics are the most colourful yet seen in the PC's revolting bellows.

Rayman rarely pretends to be what it is: a rovell.

What it is is a faintly cutesy/comic Mario-ish coin-collector, with a map screen allowing you to re-explore previous levels with the advantages accrued by new power-ups.

It's all nicely done - the intra-level fractals are notably pleasing - with a decent array of levels (60) and a sporting difficulty curve. Yes: it's all been done before. But not on a PC.

Rayman - PC CD-ROM - by Ubisoft

Req: 486DX 4Mb RAM
Graphix: 91%
Sonix: 90%
Gameplay: 80%
Lifespan: 84%
Originality: 56%
Uppers: Slickest PC platform package
Downers: Why can't there be W95 Mario?
Overall: 85% - Hoffman/Cruise joke