rayman raving rabbids tv party title screen

Ubisoft has chosen to present many of the cinematics by way of a retro 2D style that I feel misses the mark as it does not mesh well with the rest of the experience, either the television displays that show mini-game previews or the gameplay scenarios themselves, most of them polygonal 3D. This is, of course, the setup for the 50 mini-games that follow and while I actually do like the premise and some of the jokes and spoofs that ensue, I've also found the overall execution a little lackluster. In TV Party, Rayman finds himself trapped and forced to watch critter television, a week's worth of network programming by the Rabbids. This year's title also puts a newfound emphasis on the multiplayer mode, as most of the included minis are compatible with four-player same or split-screen competitions, a must for any party title, and there's even an eight-player turn-based option, also welcomed. And yet, with so many offensively bad mini-game-infested titles running rampant on Wii, TV Party still feels a cut above, its humor well played and some of its gameplay scenarios still enjoyable. If you're expecting a revolutionary experience, look elsewhere - this sequel tightly grips the proven formula, one which has aged with every year. There's no getting past the point that with each iteration, the novelty of a mini-game compilation wears a little thinner and TV Party does magically sidestep this truth. And the developer has with this latest title tried for fresher gameplay designs and also minis that make use of the Wii Balance Board for varying results incidentally, TV Party is the first Wii offering that enables you to control an experience with your buttocks - and how's that for a selling point? It's also a project that proudly puts forth dozens of new mini-games whose concepts blaze past the arbitrary and border of the disturbing. It's a sequel that clings to the same jokes - specifically, Rabbids screaming 'Bwah!' wildly as they run about with crazed looks of simultaneous panic, rage and confusion on their faces. That is something that remains true, even as the publisher releases the third game in the Rabbids series. Thankfully, his replacements, the evil Rabbids, are more than worthy successors, both well-designed and primed for comedic impact. When Atari Jaguar was battling for a piece of the videogame pie, Rayman was cool, his limbless body jumping from ledge to ledge with then-fluid animation, but as the years have passed, I've found the character less and less interesting.

It is, nevertheless, true, and the company's own Rabbids are partially to blame. Is it fair that Ubisoft's once-popular platforming hero has fallen so far from grace in my eyes? Maybe not.

An hour into Rayman Raving Rabbids TV Party, I spotted Rayman in a cut-scene and found his inclusion, even just a cameo, notably disappointing.

Rayman raving rabbids tv party title screen