Introduction:Rayman 3: Hoodlum Havoc is the next for the platform series of games for the Xbox. And does it really do the trick? Does it bring the excitement you want to the Xbox that was reminiscent of early platforms that were so popular for so long? In a word, it does that and more! BANG! This game is ON as far as Xbox platform games go!

The Game:Well, I’m sure the world of Rayman is no mystery to those who have played it, or any other platformer. It is the regular 3d camera and action mode. You can run, jump, blah, blah, blah. You all get what I mean! If you don’t… Well, then I don’t know what to say! Anyways, so yea, Rayman does all the regular platform game stuff. Plus he has propeller on his head to help you glide down a little better when you need to. That cracked me up every time I used it! How odd can you get?

What makes this Rayman 3 a little different than previous Rayman’s is the particular emphasis on fighting and more fighting moves. You have a lot of weapons that you can collect along the way in which are used in different time to help you accomplish certain jobs. Be sure to watch the meter because they usually only last for so long! And once they run out you have to run back to the energy “can” (looks like a can of pop or something with a green glow) that you powered the weapon up from and recharge it! There are a few parts that I got stuck with this for a few minutes. But, nothing some brainpower can’t overcome!! (good thing my pet hamster plays games too! I am running low) Rayman also now comes with a strafe mode which lets you move back and forth to avoid being shot and throw strait or curved punches! It’s pretty cool! In fact, I think I need detachable hands now! That would be a cool trick!

Graphics & Sound:The graphics in Rayman 3 are pretty awesome. They really do a good job with the game. I’m not sure if it is Xbox enhanced at all. But, in all it really does the job. It is a very visually pleasing environment. Even the camera seemed ok. One thing I have always hated about the 3d platform genre is the stupid camera AI. Rayman 3 does a pretty good job of having the camera in a good location most of the time. It still needs to be played with a lot though. That is just a downfall of the genre and 3rd person 3d games in general.

The sound… Well, it was sound. They could have done a lot better to make the sounds more pleasing and fit the game better. But, what can you do? I doesn’t really detract from the game. I love the sound of the propeller (once again I’m back to the propeller… I think I need one of those too! To go along with the detachable hands!)

Mojo:Well the mojo on this game is great. I had a really good time playing it! I can see myself wanting to play it a lot. It caught me in its spell and sung to me that lullaby that I love to hear: ~play me play me play me~. You know what I mean? This game has some style to it!

Lowdown:The lowdown on this game is: pick it up! If you are at all interested in the platform genre and want some just pure fun this is the game for you. It’s not technically challenging and doesn’t take much to just pick it up and play for a while!!! Don’t count on this game increasing your intelligence, however, this is good to sedate all you crazies out there for a while!

The only real downfall to this game is that it was a little on the short side. But, it has replay. Each level gives you a score of how you did and everything. You can always go back and find some secret stuff and try and get better scores. Not so shabby! Except for you guys who only like to watch movies once and everything… Nothing pleases those guys! I’m not sure how they live in this world. But to all you creatures of habit, this is a game that you can play for a while and not get too bored of!

Gameplay: 8, Graphics/Sound: 7, Innovation: 7, Mojo: 8 . Final: 8