Rayman 3 & Linear Narrative

This week I played Rayman 3: Hoodlum Havoc. I remember seeing this game on the cover of a magazine when I was a kid, now 13 years later I finally get a chance to play it!

Nostalgia aside, Rayman 3 is a platformer game with a very linear story which follows the 'string of pearls' approach. While playing through the game, whenever you enter a new area or trigger an event you are 'rewarded' with a cut-scene. These short cutscenes remove the players control over the game events and you have to watch the embedded narrative unfold. Although you aren't able to change the course of the narrative, you are presented with several existents you must overcome before the narrative progresses.

I personally find these kinds of games the most entertaining to play as you can play them over & over as the narrative is not the core focus of the game, it is instead the game play. "in a narrative game, the player plays to win, to beat the game, and story is mostly a lure into the game world." (Marie-Laure Ryan). As said by M-L Ryan, the story is used to create an immersive experience. Without the story, you are solely playing to beat the game rather than playing it for the experience it provides. This is what makes the story-nodes in Rayman absolutely necessary as they are the core of the games narrative. Without these story-nodes the game could be described as 'limbless man jumps on platforms'.

I found the cut-scenes not only built upon the games narrative but also gave insight as to what the player was tasked to do for that level, providing critical information giving the player a direction and objective. These didn't necessarily make the game easier but gave you a path to follow whilst still allowing you to explore the area. Although the game is far from open world in terms of exploration it is still well-worth exploring the level as you're rewarded with extra points, life restoration and other secrets; if you're able to find them.

In summary Rayman 3 follows a linear narrative which provides you with a cutscene whenever you successfully make it through an area. These cutscenes show the player a set path they need to follow in order to progress the story, however you are able to explore the given area and are rewarded for doing so. I would say this game is an example of a relatively successful linear narrative with a nice balance between story and gameplay; it can be immersive at times and other times just plain frustrating, which brings the narrative to a halt (looking at the camera controls that get me killed over and over).


References:

Ryan, M.L. (Author). (2009). StoryWorld: A Journal of Narrative Studies [Article]. United States: University of Nebraska Press

Ubisoft (Developer). (2003). Rayman 3: Hoodlum Havoc [Game]. China: Ubi Soft Entertainment, Feral Interactive