Following reports that Ubisoft is working on an unannounced Rayman remake, the studio has confirmed that projects based on the series are in the early stages. As reported on Wednesday, the French publisher didn’t reveal whether the game was a remaster, but confirmed it had begun an “exploration phase for the Rayman brand.” Ubisoft confirmed the news, saying the team working on Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown has moved on to other projects at the studio.
New Lehman project in ‘early stages’
Ubisoft confirmed the unnamed Rayman project in an emailed statement to Kotaku on Wednesday, adding that more details about the game would be shared later. “We are pleased to confirm that Ubisoft Montpellier and Ubisoft Milan have recently begun an exploratory phase for the Rayman brand,” a Ubisoft spokesperson told Kotaku. “The project is still in its early stages and we will share more details later.”
Ubisoft Montpellier is the developer of the action-adventure metroidvania platformer Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown, which launched on January 18. Ubisoft’s confirmation of Rayman follows reports that the company’s Montpelier team has been disbanded and assigned to other projects.
Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown team disbands
Independent French media portal Origami reported on Tuesday that despite The Lost Crown’s critical acclaim, its sales did not meet Ubisoft’s expectations. Ubisoft Montpellier reportedly pitched a sequel to the company, but was rejected.
Ubisoft partially confirmed the report to Eurogamer on Wednesday, saying that most developers at its Montpellier studio have been assigned to other projects “that will benefit from their expertise.” While the company didn’t elaborate on its stance on The Lost Crown sequel, it said it’s “excited to bring more Prince of Persia experiences to the table in the future.”
technology shout reviewed Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown positively earlier this year, calling the game an “extremely fun and surprisingly challenging” platformer that could set the tone for future Prince of Persia games.
Ubisoft Montpellier has been moved to other Ubisoft projects
Following Ubisoft’s confirmation, Insider Gaming reports that Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown developers have been moved to three new projects at the company – with the majority of the team reportedly moving on to Beyond Good and Evil 2, 12 developers are reportedly currently working on the next mainline Ghost Recon game, known internally as “Project Ovr”, and around a similar number of Ubisoft Montpelier employees have been assigned to a remaster of a Rayman game, known as “Project Steambot.” Developed at Ubisoft Milan.
In a statement to Kotaku, Ubisoft also confirmed that Rayman brand founder Michel Ancel has been hired as a consultant on the project. Ansel’s involvement also brought its fair share of controversy. In 2020, French newspaper Libération reported that Ansel, who was working on the sequel to Beyond Good and Evil at the time, was leaving Ubisoft after being investigated for allegedly creating a difficult work environment and bullying team members.
Ubisoft has not confirmed whether the Rayman project will be remakes of older games in the series. The last mainline Rayman game was Rayman Legends, developed by Ubisoft Montpellier and originally released in 2013 on PC, PS3, Xbox 360, Wii U, and PlayStation Vita.