In my first Rayman Legends Retold preview, I mentioned that I didn’t even get to the really good parts yet. Turns out, Ubisoft agreed, as I got invited to a second preview event that showcased what many consider the good parts of the game, as well as a new sixth realm, the Land of the Livid Dead. Before we dive into those impressions, Ubisoft shared some more details about the upcoming release, which recently got delayed from October 1 to December 3.
Rayman Legends Retold will have a total of six realms, and each realm will be made up of 10 to 15 levels. The sixth realm, the Land of the Livid Dead, is new to Rayman Legends Retold, and I got to experience a small slice of it. The realm also introduces a new skill called Fairy Radiance, which is used to interact with the environment in clever ways. I won’t spoil any of it, but think of it as an added layer to the platforming.
Overall, Ubisoft says the game should take a bit more than 12 hours for those who stick to the main path. Obviously, those looking to collect everything will end up spending more time off the beaten path, trying to solve some of the platforming puzzles. Rayman Legends Retold will be dubbed in eight languages and will feature over 70 costumes across its cast of characters. There’s also Kung Foot Evo for multiplayer fun and endless challenges with the Cave of Trials, and on PC, Ubisoft confirmed the final game will support DLSS at launch.
For this three-hour remote preview, we got to experience the full realm of Mystic Mesa, originally known as Fiesta de los Muertos. It included Invaded levels, Retold levels, and two musical levels: Macarena, which is brand new, and Mariachi Madness from the original. We also got to deal with a boss battle against El Luchador, but I’d rather not talk about how the fight played to avoid spoilers. Macarena was surprisingly challenging, especially for someone who doesn’t consider themselves very good at 2D platformers. Still, it was a ton of fun failing and getting the rhythm down. These musical levels are famous for good reason, and Macarena is a great addition to the repertoire.
The second part of the demo let us experience the first three levels of Iron Shell, originally known as 20,000 Lums Under the Sea. The third part was one of my highlights, as it let me check out the Land of the Livid Dead with the new Fairy Radiance skill. The small bit I saw already showed just how much the gameplay can open up with Fairy Radiance. It really got me thinking about how I was interacting with what’s on the screen in new ways, while clearly staying true to Rayman Legends’ original design philosophy. It’s a fine line to balance when adding new content to such a beloved game, and I do think this new realm will be welcomed, even by the most diehard fans.
Since this was still a remote preview, responsiveness was really the same as the first, when I could definitely feel some input lag. I did use my DualSense Edge this time, though, because during the first hour of the preview, I found out my plain DualSense now suffers from stick drift. I also got to check out a small slice of Rayman Origins: Enhanced Edition, which is included with every edition of Rayman Legends Retold, but I personally struggled with it. I’m already not great with precision platforming, and when combined with the slight lag issues of attending a remote preview, I opted to save that experience for when I can play it locally.
Now, two other big additions in Rayman Legends Retold are Fairy Blessing and Golden Hearts. Golden Hearts will appear if you die repeatedly on a certain section, basically giving your character a bit of a buffer by letting you take additional hits before you die. Fairy Blessing is an optional setting that grants free flight and near invincibility, and it damages any enemy you touch. I did resort to using Fairy Blessing a few times, partly to see how it works and partly to skip sections I had already mastered to get back to the section where I was dying. For someone who tends to get impatient repeating certain sections, I think Fairy Blessing is a welcome addition for those who want to use it. And for those who prefer the challenge, just pretend it doesn’t exist.
As for the cosmetics I got to check out, there honestly isn’t much to talk about here. It’s what you’d expect: the cosmetics change the appearance of your chosen character, and they’re fun to mess around with, but there’s nothing novel about them.
The delay announcement came shortly after I got the opportunity to preview the game again, even though the game has already gone gold. It’s obvious to me, at least, that Ubisoft really wants Rayman Legends Retold to live up to the Rayman Legends legacy and is willing to give it the extra time to get there.
Personally, I’m still on the fence about the new art style, which is clearly more modern, but I still think it lacks a bit of that charm that’s found in the original. I do think it will remain divisive, especially with fans of the original, and there’s still going to be a group of people questioning whether this game really needed a remake. From what I’ve seen, though, I think Rayman Legends Retold will do the original justice, and both can exist for a modern audience. The new additions, from the dragon riding sequences I covered in my first preview to the new realm, do enough to make the game feel fresh.
Rayman Legends Retold launches December 3, 2026, on PlayStation 5, XBOX Series X|S, Switch 2, and PC for $39.99. The game is being co-developed by Ubisoft Montpellier, the studio behind the original Rayman Legends, and Ubisoft Milan, and it picked up Best Nintendo Switch 2 Game at the gamescom Awards last month.
