Rayman Legends Retold Feels Like A Remake That Didn’t Need To Happen

I've felt off about Rayman Legends Retold since its announcement. It's a remake of Rayman Legends, the best game in the platforming series, but the original game still holds up surprisingly well 13 years later. I can't help but compare Retold to Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced--another remake of a 13-year-old Ubisoft title--in that neither feel necessary. And having now played Retold for just under three hours, that feeling isn't going away. Retold feels like an excellent framework for what the series should look like going forward, but the original Rayman Legends already established that sentiment back in 2013. Retold is held back by being a remake. The game rebuilds the original Rayman Legends to look and sound entirely new, with a 3D art direction and completely new cutscenes that have voice acting. The remake also incorporates an actual antagonist to give the story a conflict, creating a throughline that never existed before and that now culminates in a sixth game world that has brand-new levels. These are all great changes, but Retold is still mostly just a repeat of a game from 13 years ago. So as much as it looks new, it doesn't feel all that new. Now, obviously, if yo…