Rayman 2

From the very start of this game, its sheer quality shines through. Beautifully detailed introductory sequences outline the story as you prepare to embark on a huge adventure to restore Ray with his magical powers and rescue all of his friends that have been captured and caged by evil pirates. Meeting Globox and the Teensies for the first time will instantly reveal the lighthearted nature of the game, where plenty of humour is injected, making it hard for you to ever become frustrated with the action.

All of the characters have amusing moves to keep you entertained, in particular, the rocket on legs. To tame it so that you can ride on its back to cross the muddy swam, lure it into chasing you and then run like mad in circles to make it dizzy. Eventually it will collapse in a state of confusion.

As you progress deeper into the plot, you'll realise that not only has the learning curve been immaculately tuned, but also that the game has been playtested to oblivion to ensure that there are no niggling problems. Starting off with simple run, jump, float and firing moves, it's not long before you're taught how to scale vines, swing from floating hoops, juggle and throw barrels, water-ski and dive down to deeper depths. There's even a Mario-style slide down a twisting slope level, which flows by at a frightening speed. This is definitely assisted by superb in-game physics, which provide realistic character movements, such as when Ray is reduced to a slow, trudging pace when carrying a hefty barrel above his head.

Enemies are relatively sparse in numbers and most of the time the main challenge is to negotiate numerous tricky leaps and swings without tumbling to your death. There's plenty of classic platforming challenges to test even the most experienced of gamers. Boss characters integrate into levels with ease and even borrow elements from titles like Mario World to ensure superb playability throughout. Nothing is too tricky when taking on bosses though, and you'll soon be progressing after a couple of attempts.

Most of the action is highly simplified and it's always pretty obvious where you're supposed to be going. Objectives are kept simple, where mainly you're looking for different coloured lums (floating, ball-shaped objects) while searching for each of four masks to unlock your secret powers. Yellow lums must be gathered to visit secret locations, green lums act as continue points, red lums give you extra energy and blue lums provide oxygen boosts, while you're under water.

By far the most spectacular aspect of the game is the immense variation and detail. Every level seems even more spectacular than the last, and locations are so well varied that one minute you may be water-skiing around a boggy marsh and the next may see you sliding around icy slopes. From gorgeous rippling effects on the water to the rays of light that pierce through cave walls, Rayman 2 is quite simply a visual delight.

If I had to fault the game, it would be to moan about the camera, which at times can't be adjusted to view the action as you want for tricky platform sections. The game isn't the most challenging in the world, either, although I'd much rather it be like this than for it to become so ridiculously difficult you end up ditching the game in total frustration.

I find it difficult to see why anyone should not want to own a copy of this game. Every aspect of it oozes with class and although it first appears to be slightly simplistic, the action is totally engrossing and addictive right through to the end. Get prepared to be overwhelmed!