Rayman 2: A find for PlayStation Fans

He has wowed many on the Nintendo 64 as well as the Dreamcast, and now that the plucky little French videogame character is heading for the PlayStation, it is time for me to get excited. Rayman 2 is a stunning looking game which feels like a classic Mario-inspired adventure. Indeed, French company Ubisoft has moved closer to Nintendo's impressive formula for 3-D adventuring action than other game company to date, and this means Rayman 2 is nothing less than an absolute winner.You may have enjoyed Crash Bandicoot, or one of the many other cartoony 3-D platform games for the PlayStation, but Rayman 2 is immediately as good as any other game you have seen to date.

In the game, you have to stop a huge clan of marauding robotic pirates from enslaving Rayman's world. To do his at the start of the game you must escape from the brig aboard one of the huge magic flying pirate vessels. Luckily, your odd magical friend, Globox, helps you by restoring your magical powers and from here on in, you are in for a colourful and imaginative adventure which is part Dr Seuss, part Alice in Wonderland.

Rayman 2 is full of colourful creatures, funny gibberish dialogue and delightfully imaginative architecture. The Teensies, for example, are very odd creatures which help you gain access to new realms - when they are not busily engaged in amusing, Three Stooges-inspired squabbling amongst themselves. Globox, is also an amusing character, even if he does look like a Muppet reject. Rayman is superbly animated, as he moves with organic flexibility about the place.

The game is delightfully easy to control, with Rayman jumping, climbing walls and using his ears as a helicopter so he does not fall to the ground. There are also many simple puzzles and contraptions for you to interact with. There are deadly rockets which are first aimed at you, but once they tire can be ridden like nitro-fuelled horses. There is also a brilliant waterskiing stage, which is frantic and has some great water-spray effects. Rayman2 is full of rather big boss characters and often the most logical way of fighting an opponent is not always the best. This is a good thing because it teaches you to be resourceful and look around your environment for items which may help you in your battles.

Rayman 2 is a real find for Playstation gamers. Only a mere four years ago, Mario 64 was released for the Nintendo 64 and Rayman 2 is arguably a better looking game, even though it is running on the technically inferior PlayStation. The music and speech are also superb and help add to the fairytale atmosphere of Rayman's magical domain. If you were to be critical, you might quibble about the few camera control issues which occasionally make it hard to see the part of the game world you were moving to, but these don't stop Rayman 2 from being a captivating piece of code.