Rabbids

The earliest Rayman 4 trailers depicted menacing rabbits, 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".[4]

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".[5] 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.[6]

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.

A cosplayer in a Rabbids costume.

Rabbids – Rabbids are wild rabbit-like creatures. They like to cause havoc and mischief on Rayman's world, the human world and others, and are gibberish speaking and yell "Bwah!" whenever they experience adrenaline rushes. They were originally the antagonists; however, due to increase in popularity, they became the protagonists in Rabbids Go Home. A notable Rabbid who first appeared in Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle is 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 appears as a playable character in a Mario + Rabbids: Sparks of Hope downloadable content.

Professor Barranco II – Professor Barranco II is the supreme leader of all Rabbids. He is seen wearing black glasses and surgical equipment, and he is responsible for everything in the first Rayman Raving Rabbids. In promotional videos he can be seen designing contraptions that would appear in the game. He, alongside three other leaders, is the smartest Rabbid to exist outside of the 2010 TV series.

Professor Barranco III – the third leader of the Rabbids, who planned out all of their invasions on Rayman's world, Earth and others. He is seen in the games Rayman Raving Rabbids 2, Rabbids: Travel in Time and Rabbids: Alive and Kicking as the main antagonist. He is one of the rare smart Rabbids to exist after the events of Rabbids Go Home, but can be easily fooled as well. In Rabbids: Alive and Kicking he has a Rabbid scientist as his second in command, who would later go on to become a major character in the TV series. He is heterochromic, with blue and red eyes. He appears in the TV series, but is more of a dictator to his Rabbid minions.

Serguei – Serguei is the main villain of Rayman Raving Rabbids. He is a large, black Rabbid who abducted Rayman and the Globox kids and forced them to take part in the Rabbids Olympics filled with deadly challenges. In the end, Rayman manages to escape and free most of the Globox kids. It is unknown what happens to Serguei at that point, though his absence in further games suggest that he was relieved of his duties due to failure in keeping Rayman.

The Semi-Leaders – the Semi-leaders are fat, lazy and angry Rabbids who serve as the secondary antagonists of Rayman Raving Rabbids 2. They constantly force the Rabbids to bring them food and do not do pretty much anything other than sitting or lying around and keeping things in check. They each have different themes in clothing.

The Rabbids series, along with its titular characters, have become very popular. IGN has stated that the Rabbids have "more personality and charisma than 10 of the most popular video game mascots combined",[23] and that the bunnies have literally "upstaged Rayman himself".[1]

GameSpot noted that the Rabbids themselves are "almost exclusively responsible for [selling the game's humor], as they are, without a doubt, hysterical. They're adorably designed, with their dumb stares, high-pitched shrieks, and a penchant for taking comedic bumps."[2]

• Official website