45. Rayman Legends
PC, PlayStation 3, PlayStation Vita, Wii U, Xbox 360 (2013)
Ubisoft Motpellier
When Rayman Origins released, it was given immense praise by those who played it. I also thought it was a great game, but at the same time experienced some flaws that really held it back. A lack of tightness and precision in Rayman's movement (and silly control options. Whoever made it so Rayman dashes forward when you press "run" and "attack" should go back to Platformer school) left me wanting, as a Platformer without tight controls will never reach its highest potential, no matter how impressive the other aspects (and they were impressive!) Fortunately, when the Rayman Legends demo hit earlier last year, I was pleased to find that Rayman had cleaned up his act, performing admirably under the biggest control challenges. That coupled with an amazing (AMAZING!) art direction, wistful yet charming (and at times quite beautiful) music, solid and incredibly diverse level design, and a fantastic sense of humor catepulted this game into the stratosphere. I also need to give a shout out to the music levels. Simply brilliant is all that needs to be said.
