When a Wii came into our lives unexpectedly right before the long New Year’s Eve weekend, our thoughts turned to the acquisition of some games. I should point out that unlike any other systems on the market, the Wii actually comes with a game, but that’s a debate for another day. We wanted to try some of the launch titles, but were not willing to buy, so we headed off to the local Blockbuster.
One of the games we rented was Rayman Raving Rabbids. There’s some sort of convoluted storyline involving platform favorite Rayman’s friends being turned into rabbits and then Rayman being locked up and forced to compete in a gladiatorial arena.
The short answer, however, is that this is one big mini-game romp. Each level or stage consists of four minigames, but you only have to complete three of them to move onto the boss stage. Once you have completed the boss challenge, the process starts all over again.
At first, the minigames are clever and innovative. The game takes full advantage of the Wii’s motion detection system. I found myself swinging the controller around my head to make Rayman swing and toss a cow across a field. And then I had to pump the controller up and down in a running motion to make Rayman run.
But as the game progressed, I was possessed by a strange sense of deja-vu. Challenges repeated themselves very often. In fact, it was an absolute guarantee that one of the four minigames in each stage was doing to be a rhythm game challenge. The same rhythm game challenge. The repetition is so atrocious that sometimes they even use songs that have been used in previous iterations of the rhythm minigame. And the end-of-stage boss battles are inevitably going to be either a rail shooter or a warthog race. The game is also very easy to beat- the main mode probably only took ten hours of playing to get through. For those of you who are not big gamers, ten hours is not very long- a good game will provide at least twice that much entertainment, if not more.
If you haven’t already deduced from my (albeit brief) descriptions of the minigames, a quirky sense of humor is quite abundant in the game. But some of the attempts at humor fall flat- like the game in which you have to pull worms out of a bunny’s rotten teeth.
Which brings me to another point of contention- the game’s ESRB rating. The game is a little on the violent side. Granted, we are talking about comic violence- kicking a bunny instead of a soccer ball in a soccer challenge, for example, but it can be a bit much at times. That aforementioned worms in the teeth game definitely comes to mind. This is definitely something that parents should be aware of before bringing this game home for young children. Also, from a practical standpoint, many of the challenges were a significant challenge for several adults who are regular gamers. In one challenge, you had to shake the nunchuk controller up and down with one hand while aiming the Wii remote with the other hand in order to produce a steady stream of carrot juice and spray it at oncoming bunnies. And you have to do this for a whole minute. Needless to say, this is not the easiest thing to do, and what was irksome to adults might be extremely frustrating for young children.
There is a multi-player mode, but this requires each person to have their own controller and nunchuk in order to participate. It is a little fun to play some of your favorite games again, but it doesn’t really provide any long-term fun.
In terms of graphical presentation, the visuals maintain backgrounds and ambience that is consistent with the quirky sense of humor. Everything is bright and cartoony, and there are no instances of stuttering or slowdown. Along those lines, the sound is equally unimpressive. There are cartoony sound effects during games and cutscenes, as well as background music, but there is nothing particularly remarkable about either.
This game is available for multiple systems, but if you happen to have a Wii, then that is the system on which you need to play this game. Part of what made this game appealing is the motion detection system and the interactivity with the Wiimote. I can assuredly say that without that component, all but a small amount of the whimsy would remain. And without the whimsy factor, this game goes from average to below average.
I would recommend Rayman Raving Rabbids, but this is a definite rental. This game is not worth purchasing unless it is $20 or below. Most of the minigames are enjoyable, until they start repeating, but others are just maddeningly frustrating. Likewise, some of the humor works well, but other attempts fall flat. This is an average game- it’ll provide some fun for a week, but it gets old fast.
