On any given level, Rayman has a lot of enemies to deal with, platforms to jump,
and switches to flip. Again nothing new, but at least they didn’t mess it up.
Now considering that Ray has no arms, he’s still a lethal fighting machine. And
in one of the odder methods of powerups, he can use cans of laser washing powder
to get superpowers. (Laser washing powder? Seriously, you can’t make stuff like
that up…) Rayman’s basic attack consists of launching his fists at enemies. If
he winds up his fist before launch it becomes even more powerful. But for the
real muscle he can open a can of the washing powder and get anything from a
mini-tornado to a grappling hook, or even a small rocket. Each of these
power-ups come in very handy depending on the circumstance. For instance, in one
area you have to shoot the rocket and guide it through a narrow passage that is
too high for you to reach. In another you must use your Heavy Metal fists to
pound down a door. Some of the puzzles are solved by you figuring out which of
the powerups to use.
 |
| Rayman collects his thoughts. |
Like any good platformer there are just tons of hidden treasures for you to
find. At the end of each level you get a percentage score of how many items you
found. I typically was around 70%, so I can imagine that in order to get 100%
you really have to keep your eyes open. The more stuff you find the more points
you get and this opens up special features, most of which are not actually in
the main game itself. Some are mini-games and others are “out-take” kind of
features that you might find on a DVD movie. Some of these are pretty darn funny
and humor is a very strong point in Rayman 3. The voice of Globox is provided by
John Leguizamo and some of his lines and deliveries are hilarious. I also got a
kick out of the boss battles when an announcer would start giving a play-by-play
description of the action. Funny stuff...
My biggest problem with Rayman 3 is a combination of the camera angles and the
Lock On feature. The camera angle issue is pretty much the same that is suffered
by all but the upper tier of platformers. You can get Ray in places that you
just can see him and you can’t adjust the camera quickly enough to stop him from
taking a few cheap shots from the Lums. It’s too bad that we still have to deal
with camera issues since 3-D games have been around long enough for everyone to
figure out a nice solution. But since most games have the problem, you
unfortunately have to overlook it as long as it doesn’t destroy the fun of the
game. However what I cannot overlook is the frustration of the Lock On system.
The Lock On is Rayman’s answer to the Zelda “Z-Lock” system in which you press a
button and no matter where you run you keep a “lock” on the targeted enemy. In
Zelda it worked awesomely. Here, not so good. A big problem with it is that the
same button (R1) is also used for strafing. So all too often you will find
yourself trying to lock on to a target only to watch Rayman slide to his left or
slide to his right like he was trying to do the Electric Slide dance. On top of
this, there is the unfair advantage that the Lums have in being able to shoot
you. They can start taking shoots at you from a ways away, but in order for you
to lock on to them, and not to strafe, you have to get way too close. This leads
to some unneeded damage.
In The End, This Game Hath Been Rated:
81%. Rayman 3: Hoodlum Havoc is a
nice platformer with good style and funny moments. Unfortunately, the camera and
lock-on problems are no laughing matter. Nonetheless, give it a weekend rental
for some colorful and entertaining gaming.
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