A new rumor suggests that former Prince of Persia developers are working on a Rayman remake. Recently, news broke that the Ubisoft Montpellier team behind this year’s Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown was reportedly disbanded due to the game underperforming. Before this, the team reportedly pitched more DLC expansions for The Lost Crown to follow September’s Mask of Darkness, as well as a sequel, but apparently the higher-ups at Ubisoft shot these ideas down due to concerns that sales for the first game would suffer even more.

While Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown reportedly fell short of Ubisoft’s sales expectations, its positive reviews have left some gamers wondering how the team behind it would handle a 2D Rayman game. While Rayman is one of Ubisoft’s signature franchises, the little platforming mascot with floating hands hasn’t seen a proper game since 2013’s Rayman Legends. The closest Rayman has had to a return to the spotlight after that was a handful of mobile spin-offs, a playable appearance in Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope’s DLC, and a recurring role in last year’s Captain Laserhawk: A Blood Dragon Remix animated series.

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Sources at Insider Gaming now claim that former Prince of Persia team members have been transferred to a new development team working on a yet-announced Rayman remake. This project is reportedly being developed under the codename “Project Steamboat,” and is being handled by a team primarily located in Ubisoft Milan - an Italy-based studio with over 25 Ubisoft titles to its name. The staff involved in this project is said to include over a dozen members of the disbanded Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown team.

Former Prince of Persia Team Reportedly Developing Rayman Remake

Additionally, it is being claimed that Michel Ancel, creator of Rayman and other Ubisoft franchises like Beyond Good & Evil, has been brought on as a consultant for this rumored Rayman Remake. This has reportedly generated a mixed reaction from the rest of the development team, due to Ancel previously being investigated for toxic workplace behavior during his tenure at Ubisoft, which ended with his retirement in 2020.

The extent of Michel Ancel’s involvement in this supposed Rayman remake isn’t clear, and it should be pointed out that the project itself is only the subject of unverified rumors at this time. That being said, many fans have been waiting for Rayman to return for over a decade, and some of the staff reportedly working on this remake include those who have worked on Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown.