Rayman Raving Rabbids

2006's Rayman Raving Rabbids marked the return of the well-known rabbit hero Rayman, this time battling a horde of strange rabbit-like creatures called Rabbids who have kidnapped his friends and thrown his world into chaos. The game combines classic platforming with shooting segments and a range of minigames in which the player tackles various tasks, from races on odd vehicles to cork-gun shootouts where the goal is to take down the Rabbids before they attack first.

The PlayStation 2 version was one of three editions released simultaneously (alongside Xbox 360 and PC), sharing the same gameplay built around classic analog stick and button controls. Compared to the slightly later Wii version, which reworked the game into a collection of dozens of minigames controlled by Wii Remote motion, the PS2 release stays truer to the original concept - a genuine platformer with an ongoing story and progression between levels, where minigames are just one of many elements rather than the main focus.

Graphically it's understandably the weakest of the three simultaneously released versions, owing to the console's older hardware - lower texture resolution, simpler lighting effects, and shorter draw distance in the more open sections compared to Xbox 360. Even so, the game remains fully playable and offers the same content, the same levels, and the same minigames as the other platforms of the time; the PS2 version thus appealed mainly to players who didn't yet own a next-gen console but wanted to experience the original, more action-oriented take on the Rabbids before the whole franchise, propelled by its enormous success on Wii, shifted toward pure party games full of short minigames.

Controls on PS2 follow the classic DualShock analog stick and button layout familiar to console players at the time - moving the character, jumping, and aiming the cork gun work the same as in previous Rayman games, just with the added elements of modern platforming. Since this is the last major entry in the series still built on a traditional platforming core with a progressing story, the PS2 version represents, for many players, the last chance to experience Rayman in his original, more "serious" form before the following Wii entries turned him into a family party-game mascot.

Why play it: The last major series entry still built on a traditional platforming core with a story - the PS2 version's classic DualShock controls offer a final chance to experience Rayman before he became a Wii party-game mascot.