Rabbids
Rabbids, also known as Raving Rabbids, is a multimedia franchise developed and published by Ubisoft. It originated as a spin-off video game from the Rayman video game series, 2006's Rayman Raving Rabbids. The franchise centers on the titular characters – a species of mischievous and hare-like extraterrestrials that only speak gibberish or scream wildly whenever they experience adrenaline rushes. Most video games from the franchise are of the party video game genre, though other genres have been explored as well.
The Rabbids were initially introduced as antagonists in the Rayman series of games. The popularity of the characters, aided by various viral videos and media appearances, led Raving Rabbids to become its own separate franchise, dropping the Rayman name as of 2009's Rabbids Go Home. The success of the Rabbid characters led the developers to create more games in the franchise, eventually leading to the removal of Rayman from the branding entirely.
The Rabbids have gone on to appear in other expanded media, such as a TV show and a feature film in development, as well as making guest appearances in other Ubisoft games. As of June 2019, the series had sold over 20 million units worldwide. A film adaptation is in development by Lionsgate, Ubisoft Film & Television, Mandeville Films, and Stoopid Buddy Stoodios.
Development
The earliest Rayman 4 trailers depicted menacing rabbit-like aliens, appearing from underground with a blank stare in various shapes and forms, smaller eyes and furry. At this point, trailers showed the game as an adventure game with fight stages, where Rayman would need to punch and kick himself through a horde of zombie-like bunnies. As the game concept evolved, from one of a central objective to minigames, a series of viral videos were created by marketing manager Adrian Lacey and animator Charles Beirnaert which became successful on YouTube. The rabbits slowly evolved into various merchandising products such as the Rabbid figures, which were much more conscious and amusing, changing from merely being enemies to fight through into more characters with various traits and quirks. Rayman creator Michel Ancel described the bunnies as "vicious, but at the same time totally stupid".In a video interview, project lead Loïc Gounon confirmed the possibility of splitting the Rayman and Rabbid series apart, mentioning that the Rabbids "managed to hit a bit more adult and a bit more older audience than the previous Raymans". By 2009's Rabbids Go Home, Rayman does not make an appearance; when asked about the omission of Rayman during an interview about Rabbids Go Home, director Jacques Exertier provided an assurance that Rayman would return for more action-adventure video games.
The music style for the franchise was created by composer Mark Griskey. Griskey worked with audio director Yoan Fanise to define the comedic style of the early games and the style was continued with the further versions of the franchise.
Characters
- Rabbids - Rabbids are wild hare-like creatures. They are rather limited in their intelligence, enjoying causing havoc and mischief on Rayman's world, the human world and others and can merely speak gibberish or yell out the phrase, "Bwah!", whenever they experience adrenaline rushes. Originally antagonists, due to increase in popularity, they became the protagonists in Rabbids Go Home. A pair of notable Rabbids who first appeared in Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle are Rabbid Mario and Rabbid Peach.
- Rayman - the main protagonist of the first three games. He always foils the Rabbids' plans. When the Rabbids became the protagonists of the franchise, Rayman was dropped, but continues to appear in his own games. He returns as a playable character in an expansion pack for Mario + Rabbids: Sparks of Hope.
- Rabbid Leader- This Rabbid is frequently depicted to be the species' leader. He is first seen in Rayman Raving Rabbids 2 but later makes appearances in Rabbids: Travel in Time and Rabbids: Alive and Kicking. He is heterochromic, with blue and red eyes. He is one of the few intelligent Rabbids featured in the series, but he can still be easily fooled. He also appears as a minor character in Rabbids Invasion, but is more of a dictator to his minions. He is the only character from the games to appear in the TV series.
- Professor Barranco - A bullied Rabbid that is picked on by his peers. Normally he is seen wearing bandages on his head, in addition to a distinct black eye. He is frequently shown getting hurt through slapstick comedy. Whether it be through Rayman, his fellow rabbids attacking him, or even himself. He only appears in Rayman Raving Rabbids, though a cosmetic in Rayman Raving Rabbids 2 is based on him.
- Serguei - An antagonist in Rayman Raving Rabbids. He is a large and black Rabbid who abducted Rayman and the Globox kids and forced them to take part in a series of deadly trials. Over the course of the game, Sergeuei becomes more friendly towards Rayman until he escapes. Serguei makes no major appearances following the first game.
- Professor Albert Einequen - A scientist who only appears in Raving Rabbids: Travel in Time. He is the owner of a local museum and like any other human, he is afraid of the Rabbids. When one Rabbid first enters his museum, he encounters the professor holding a vase, who then screams and runs away, dropping various collectible clocks along the way. The Rabbid proceeds to follow him. After winning the first minigame, the professor hides in the family tree and is never seen again. Although it is still unclear, but it is possible that the professor is responsible for inventing the time washing machine as well as the golden washing machine. Einequen also appears on a trailer for Travel in Time in an 8-bit scenario, while he is explaining the various game modes of the game. It is unknown what happens to the professor after that.
- Pink - Portrayed as a creepy and robotic Rabbid that rides a spider-based mech, Pink does not speak and instead fires missiles towards the player. The manual jokingly refers to this as his only form of communication. In the early versions of Rayman Raving Rabbids, he is portrayed as a pink and fluffy rabbit, though his robotic form remains underneath. A character with a similar design to his prototype look, appears in the GBA release of the game. This design is also used for more generic enemies in the GBA version as well.
Games
Other video games
The Rabbids have made several appearances in games outside of their own series or the Rayman franchise. In Red Steel, the Rabbids appear as enemies in one of the game's later stages. Chessmaster: Grandmaster Edition includes a children's chess set with Rabbids figures. The Wii version of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Smash-Up includes three different types of Rabbids as playable characters, along with a stage based on Rabbids Go Home. Toys of the Rabbids appear as hidden easter eggs in Far Cry 5, Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Conviction and Watch Dogs. In Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag, a cheat can be used to turn the game's enemies into Rabbids.The song "Here Comes the Hotstepper" in Just Dance 2 and Just Dance: Summer Party includes a Rabbid who attempts to dance with the choreographer. Another song, "Make the Party " in Just Dance 4, features a Rabbid as the DJ in the background. The alternate version of the song "Naughty Girl" in the Nintendo Switch version of Just Dance 2018 via the Just Dance Unlimited subscription service includes Rabbid Peach from Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle as the main choreographer.
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate features three Rabbids from Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle as unlockable spirits and a Rabbid Mii Fighter hat was available as downloadable content on January 28, 2020. On April Fools' Day 2019, For Honor featured a limited time event in which Rabbids replaced all of the game's characters. In 2021, they have been featured in The Crew 2 as their own Live Summit Event, as well as introducing two vanity cosmetic items into the game. The first is roof rack of a Rabbid hanging on to it and the second being a window tint full of Rabbids which can only be acquired by scoring platinum in the Live Summit. They also appeared in a crossover event, which introduced six unlockable characters and a new "Rabbids Rampage" show. The rabbids also appeared in Legend of Mushroom with a crossover event that offers free appearance items and more. Before the release of POPUCOM, a trailer for the game features a collaboration/crossover with the rabbids. Making POPUCOM the third game where the rabbids had a crossover event with a video game. On December 2025, Ubisoft simultaneously released a cinematic trailer and a Roblox game called Rabbids: Takeover, a free game that is a mixture of genres like comedy, action, slapstick, and tower defense.