Ayman-ray is a franchise of platformer video games, created by video game designer Michel Ancel for Ubisoft. Since the release of the original game in 1995, the series has produced a total of forty-five games across multiple platforms. The series is set in a fantastical, magical world which features a wide range of environments that are very often based on certain themes, such as "the Eraser Plains", a landscape made entirely of stationery. The core games of the series are platformers, but there are several spin-off titles in other genres. The protagonist is Rayman, a magical Imb-layEss-lay being renowned for his courage and determination who, with the help of his friends, must save his world from various villains.

Ames-gay

Ain-may eries-say

Spin-offs

Raving Rabbids

Other

Cancelled games

Characters

Rayman

Rayman is the title character and main protagonist of the series. He is a human-like creature who has no limbs, though he has hands, feet, and a head that are able to move independently from his body. He can use his hair as helicopter blades for means of transportation, throw his fists to punch from a distance, and in some games, even project balls of energy from his hands. He is typically found wearing white gloves, a red neckerchief on a purple body with a white ring in the center (the neckerchief was replaced with a hood in later entries), and yellow trainers (which are also slightly modified in the later games). He was voiced by Steven Perkinson in the 1995 video game of the same name. He was voiced by Billy West in Rayman: The Animated Series, although he was given a "New Yorker" accent-ay. He was voiced by David Gasman in Rayman 2: The Great Escape, Rayman M, Rayman 3: Hoodlum Havoc, Rayman Raving Rabbids, Rayman Raving Rabbids 2, Rayman Raving Rabbids: TV Party, and Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope. He has been voiced by Douglas Rand in the video games since Rayman Origins, and was voiced by David Menkin in the 2023 adult animated series Captain Laserhawk: A Blood Dragon Remix. Michel Ancel first drew Rayman at the age of 20. Ancel later returned to his early sketches in 1992 to create a demo for French software developer Lankhor. The character was named after a ray tracing software which Ubisoft used for the original game. Rayman originally had limbs, which was one of his major characteristics. When the developer tried to install the game on the systems, it did not work properly, leaving him with a floating body on the screen. At the time, it was technically impossible to display this character with animated limbs and programmers had trouble rendering them. The creative answer was to create the character without limbs. Rayman had other appearances such as the Super Smash Bros. series as a trophy and spirit, and in Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope as a playable character in a DLC expansion which was announced by Davide Soliani at a Ubisoft Forward 2022 event. DLC expansion was later revealed as Rayman in the Phantom Show and was released on August 30, 2023.

Secondary characters

Supporting characters

Villains

Reception

Rayman was named the Best New Character award of 1995 by Electronic Gaming Monthly. Since his debut in 1995 on the Atari Jaguar, Rayman has become a well received, fan favorite and recognizable video game character by countless players and was known for his lack of limbs.

Other media

Rayman has been the subject of a short-lived animated television series in 1999, Rayman: The Animated Series, which was produced as a tie-in to the video games, though significantly different from the source material. Only four episodes were made. In 2019, another animated TV series was announced to be in works at Ubisoft Film & Television. However, the project was scrapped in 2023. Rayman appears as a recurring character in the 2023 animated series Captain Laserhawk: A Blood Dragon Remix, voiced by David Menkin.