Rayman Legends for Xbox One, PS4 kills loading times thanks to power of new consoles

The Xbox One and PlayStation 4 versions of Ubisoft's colorful platformer Rayman Legends will launch on February 18 in North America, one week ahead of their previously scheduled February 25 release dates, Ubisoft announced today on its blog. The game now launches in Europe on February 20.

Rayman Legends was originally announced as a Wii U exclusive, but has since seen release on a multitude of platforms, including the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PC, and PlayStation Vita.

It is a sequel to 2011's Rayman Origins, which was widely praised by critics.

Rayman Legends for the Xbox One and PS4 will include numerous features and content not found in the other versions, including new Far Cry, Assassin's Creed, and Splinter Cell-inspired playable characters available to players in the Heroes Gallery.

In addition, both new versions of the game feature "even sharper" visuals thanks to the power of the Xbox One and PS4. The enhanced power of the new machines has also allowed Ubisoft to do away with loading times when players enter or exit a level, lead designer Emile Morel said.

"Jumping in and out of a level has never been faster and it's a great feeling to have such a seamless experience," Morel said. "Navigating in the game now feels smoother and your gaming experience is never stopped by loading transitions."

On the Xbox One, you'll be able to earn 10 time-limited achievements by completing a set of challenges in a limited amount of time, in this case one week. These are in addition to the existing standard achievements carried forward from the Xbox 360 version.

Meanwhile, the PS4 version of Rayman Legends uses the DualShock 4's touchpad to enable an all-new camera mode that players can use to snap screenshots and share them with friends. The game also employs the touchpad as a means to allow you to virtually scratch in-game tickets. A scratching sound will even emit from the DualShock 4.

Finally, the PS4 version of Rayman Legends includes Remote Play support, allowing users to play the full game on their PS Vita. For more on Rayman Legends, check out GameSpot's review.