Ubisoft appears to be bringing Rayman back in a new AAA experience, based on job listings that call for talent to join the development team. Studio Ubisoft Milan recently posted job listings searching for a 3D gameplay animator and a senior game designer to be “involved in the production of a prestigious AAA title for the Rayman brand.”
It’s unclear whether the “prestigious AAA title for the Rayman brand” description denotes a stand-alone Rayman game or a crossover title, à la Mario + Rabbids, a spinoff of the Rayman franchise. Polygon has contacted Ubisoft for comment regarding the new Rayman game, and will update when the company responds.
One job listing says that the 3D gameplay animator will be responsible for “[creating] high-quality character animation that captures nuanced emotional states and personality, develop and maintain a consistent animation style that defines the game’s visual identity, collaborate across multidisciplinary teams to integrate animations seamlessly into gameplay mechanics, and iterate on character animation systems, pushing the boundaries of technical and artistic expression.”
Meanwhile, the calling for the senior game designer requires the new hire to “pitch, design and prototype core game systems, [implement] approved designs within the editor, create and maintain design documentation, including feature specification and implementation guidelines, contribute to the handling, gameplay, and mechanics setup, including data creation, collaborate with the team to ensure the implementation of systems into actual gameplay, and maintaining the overall balance between multiple gameplay systems.”
The last proper mainline Rayman title, Rayman Legends, arrived in 2013 for the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Nintendo Wii U, and PlayStation Vita. The game was re-released in 2017 for Nintendo Switch as Rayman Legends Definitive Edition.
Update: When reached for comment, Ubisoft provided us with this statement: “The project is still in its early stages, and we will share more details later.”