Rumors of a new Rayman title began last year in October and gained further momentum when Ubisoft confirmed it had started an “exploration phase” for the brand. Subsequent job listings also indicated that a new triple-A title in the franchise was in development, but its progress is currently unknown.

Rayman Legends is the last major Rayman-focused title, released in August 2013 to extensive acclaim. The platforming icon would also receive a dedicated story DLC in Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope, even though the turn-based tactical strategy title failed to really meet the publisher’s expectations.

In the meantime, to celebrate Rayman’s 30th anniversary, Ubisoft will release concept art, interviews with the development teams and behind-the-scenes details. Stay tuned for more updates.

“It’s worth noting that the Mario + Rabbids team have largely disbanded,” said Dring. “Although Ubisoft Milan still exists, the people behind that game have gone and formed a new studio. I know they had pitched another title that didn’t get approved. I don’t know why, but it just never happened, which was again, I think, tied to Nintendo.”

The third game’s pitch being turned down and the team largely being disbanded might have led Ubisoft Milan to start working on a new Rayman game. Job listings were spotted back in May with Ubisoft Milan looking for a 3D gameplay animator and a senior game designer, indicating that the studio might be working on a new 3D title that would fall under the “Rayman brand”. While the listings have been taken down quickly by Ubisoft, they can be viewed on the Internet Archive.

“Ubisoft Milan is looking for a Senior Game Designer who will work on the Rayman brand,” said one of the listings. “The ideal candidate has a proven and solid experience as Game Designer in the videogame industry with an in-depth understanding of how to define, prototype and implement game systems within the scope of the project and following the Game direction, making sure to capture the gameplay feel, while still being fun and accessible.”

Outside of the Mario + Rabbids series, the Rayman brand has largely been dormant at Ubisoft. The Rabbids themselves were spun off from older Rayman titles where the characters first made their debut. However, a report from back in October indicates that Ubisoft might be looking at the Rayman series back in the form of a remake.

According to the report, a remake of one of the older Rayman titles is seemingly at work, involving developers that have worked on side-scrolling metroidvania title Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown, alongside developers at Ubisoft Milan. Rumours also indicate that Rayman creator Michel Ancel is serving as a consultant on the project. However, there have been no details revealed yet about which Rayman game will be the subject of the remake.

Ubisoft confirmed that a new Rayman game might potentially be in the works through a statement shortly after the report came out. In its statement, Ubisoft said that its Montpellier and Milan studios have started “an exploration phase” on the Rayman brand. The company noted that the project was still in early development.

The last mainline games in the Rayman franchise were side-scrolling titles Rayman Origins and Rayman Legends. Both titles were praised at the time for their art direction and gameplay. For more details, check out our reviews of Rayman Origins and Rayman Legends.

The job listings have since been taken down by Ubisoft, indicating that the company might have accidentally posted them earlier than it intended to. However, the listings for both positions can be seen on the Internet Archive. Both listings also indicate that the Rayman game will be developed at Ubisoft Milan.

“Ubisoft Milan is looking for a Senior Game Designer who will work on the Rayman brand,” reads one of the listings. “The ideal candidate has a proven and solid experience as Game Designer in the videogame industry with in-depth understanding of how to define, prototype and implement game systems within the scope of the project and following the Game direction, making sure to capture the gameplay feel, while still being fun and accessible.”

Aside from the fact that both positions are for development on a AAA Rayman game, however, neither of the listings reveal any more details about what kind of game it could be. The fact that one of the listings is for a 3D gameplay animator does indicate that it likely won’t be a 2D sidescroller like Rayman Origins and its sequel Rayman Legends. The title could also potentially be something along the lines of the Mario + Rabbids titles.

Back in October, Ubisoft had indicated that it was exploring a return to the Rayman franchise. According to the company, its studios at Montpellier and Milan would be heading up the project, and that the project was still in its early stages. Rayman franchise creator Michel Ancel was also said to be involved in a consultant role “to ensure consistency with the universe.”

Ubisoft has been largely quiet about the Rayman franchise since the last mainline game in the franchise – Rayman Legends – was released back in 2013. Rumours from back in 2024, however, indicated that a remake of a Rayman might be in the works at Milan. According to these rumours, the title was being worked by a part of the development team behind Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown.

The last major release by Ubisoft Milan was side-scrolling metroidvania game Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown. It was released back in January 2024 on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S and Nintendo Switch. The game was eventually also released on macOS, as well as Android and iOS later on. For more details, check out our review.

Rumours have indicated that more than 1.3 million copies of the title had been sold as of January 2025. Ubisoft has confirmed that it has “well over” 2 million players. Other rumours have indicated that the team behind the game had pitched a sequel to Ubisoft, which had unfortunately been rejected. According to reports, the reason given for the rejection was so that long-term sales for Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown wouldn’t get cannibalised.

A recent leak claimed that a Rayman remake was in development at Ubisoft Milan, and that series creator Michel Ancel was serving as a consultant on the project, with his involvement raising concerns for some in the development team due to past reports alleging toxic leadership issues. 

Now, Ubisoft seems to have confirmed the same in a statement. In a statement to journalist Stephen Totilo (which he shared on Twitter), a Ubisoft representative has stated that the company’s Milan and Montpellier studios has “recently started an exploration phase on the Rayman brand”, and that the project in question (whatever it is) is “still in the early stages”. 

The representative also confirmed that Ancel is indeed consulting on the project in order to “ensure consistency within the universe”.

Of course, this isn’t an explicit confirmation that a new Rayman game (or a remake, as the leak alleges) is coming, but it is very strong indication of the same, at the very least. 

“After 25 years, 11 of which beautifully spent working with Nintendo on Mario + Rabbids along the company of our incredible community of players, I have decided to leave Ubisoft to embark on a new adventure,” Soliani wrote in a statement on Twitter. “I can’t say more now. Thanks a lot for everything, truly.”

Ubisoft Milan, the lead developer of the Mario + Rabbids series, also confirmed Soliani’s departure on Twitter, writing, “After more than 20 years, Davide Soliani and Ubisoft Milan part ways, as friends. Davide and the teams at Ubisoft Milan still share the same quest — to make gamers have fun, scream with delight, and dream – but we will now be on a different path.”

“We hope that he will like what we will work on in the future, as we will definitely keep in mind his best teaching: surprise players with unexpected experiences,” the studio added.

In addition to serving as creative director on both Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle and Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope, Soliani has worked on a number of other titles during his tenure at Ubisoft, including Rainbow Six, Just Dance, Beyond Good and Evil, Open Season, and more. Soliani has yet to announce where he’ll be headed next after Ubisoft.

However, the turn-based tactics title’s development at Ubisoft Milan doesn’t seem too worried about how the game has performed since its launch last October. In a recent interview with VGC, series producer Cristina Nava said that being a turn-based tactics game, Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope is likely to see a “slow burn” of increased sales over time, and that even though it’s got off to a slow start, the developer remains “coinfident” that its numbers will increase “over a number of years.”

“The first Mario + Rabbids had more than 10 million players,” Nava said. “Even though it’s Mario, it’s also a genre game: turn-based tactical adventure. So we cannot expect to sell high numbers at the very beginning, because a game like that is a slow burner.

“Even if at the beginning it seemed like Sparks of Hope didn’t meet expectations, we are confident that over a number of years it will grow. Because it’s been received, by both the press and the public, very, very well. It’s just a matter of giving it time, with word of mouth etc.”

Nava went on to add that reception for Sparks of Hope has been positive from critics and audiences alike, and that, in addition to the game being much more accessible than its predecessor with the introduction of real-time mechanics, has helped word of mouth grow.

“It’s more accessible than the first game, because we introduced real-time combat, so for less experienced players we take them by the hand and guide them,” she said. “So I am sure, and have already witnessed that, the word of mouth will grow. We’re not worried on our side, because we know that we achieved what we wanted with this sequel. On our side, we’re not worried and we’re satisfied with what we did.”

Of course, it remains to be seen whether Ubisoft will have things planned for the coming months and years to help increase the game’s sales. Reports have strongly suggested that the Nintendo Switch successor will launch in the second half of 2024, so we wouldn’t be surprised to see an enhanced re-release of Sparks of Hope for the next-gen platform at some point in the future.

In our review of the game, we awarded it a score of 9/10, saying, “Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope is a massive leap over its already-excellent predecessor, making a whole host of changes and improvements and delivering an utterly charming and mechanically dense tactics experience.” Read the full review through here.

Mario + Rabbids Sparks is available exclusively on the Nintendo Switch. Its third and final DLC, Rayman in the Phantom Show, is due out on August 30.

The DLC sees Rayman teaming with Rabbid Mario and Rabbid Peach in a battle against the Phantom (who appeared in Kingdom Battle). The latter now has a television studio and news “true stars” to help low ratings. Cue the trio to lend their expertise across new levels with new music by Grant Kirkhope and Christophe Heral (known for Rayman Origins and Legends).

With vertical traversal being important, Rayman’s Haircopter comes in handy and can carry his allies. You also have the Plunger Blaster for some new tactics. Stay tuned for more details ahead of the DLC’s release. Check out our review for the base game here in the meantime.

Speaking in an interview with Multiplayer.it (via VGC), the game’s creative director Davide Soliani and producer Cristina Nava confirmed that while Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle was developed by a team of over a hundred people, that development team has more than tripled in size to work on the upcoming sequel. On top of that, other Ubisoft studios are also providing support.

Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope is in the works exclusively for the Nintendo Switch, and is due out some time in 2022, though a specific release date is yet to be announced.

Ubisoft Milan, the studio that developed last year’s Nintendo Switch exclusive Mario + Rabbids: Kingdom Battle is apparently working on a new AAA title, for which they’re currently looking to hire new people as well. Given how amazing Mario + Rabbids was, against all odds, it’s worth sitting up and taking note of any new project this studio works on.

Ubisoft Milan has posted listings for eight openings over at Ubisoft’s official website (via ResetEra), out 0f which three mention that the new hires will be joining their team to work on “a prestigious AAA title”. These three positions are for a Gameplay Programmer, a UI Technical Artist, and a UI Artist.

At this point, this game could be literally anything. Given how the job listings don’t really say much about the project that can help us determine even what kind of game it could be, coupled with the fact that Ubisoft Milan’s only big project to date is Mario + Rabbids (with all their other work having been done in supporting other Ubisoft studios on big projects), it’s hard to say what this game could be. Maybe Mario + Rabbbids 2? But then again, maybe not.

Either way, stay tuned to GamingBolt, and we’ll keep you updated on any new info that comes our way.

When the existence of Mario + Rabbids: Kingdom Battle was leaked to the world earlier this year, I was hardly the only one scratching my head. But the game launched to great critical reception as one of the weirdest, most interesting Switch exclusives of the year. The XCOM inspired crossover out of Ubisoft Milan was as good as it was thanks to the influence of Nintendo, according to Creative Director for the game, David Soliani.

In an interview with Gamesindustry.biz, Soliani recounts how involved and serious Nintendo was about helping the project be all it could be, how they wanted to be involved first hand in the entire project, how their feedback was their safety net, and how the involvement of Shigeru Miyamoto at the reveal helped turn around the reception.

“Nintendo were super picky. They wanted to know everything, and play everything. This was good, because it gives you a feeling that you are safe. They have over 125 years of lifetime, and they’re giving you feedback with the expectation of a certain level of quality. So for me, Nintendo is a shield. It means we know we’ll hit a certain level. Having Miyamoto on stage [At E3] was effectively having the father of Mario tell the audience that, if he’s here, then it must be a quality game. Then the players played it. That’s when we started to change the mindset,” says Soliani.

Also enraptured by the creative crossover, Gamingbolt gave it a strong 9/10, roughly in line with the Metacritic score of 81. If it’s been awhile since you’ve enjoyed the game, the second DLC pack is currently out to enjoy.