The game was originally planned for release on the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, and featured a 2 player co-op mode and different graphics. Although it was nearly complete, Ubisoft decided to move the project to CD-ROM based consoles, and hired cartoon animators to improve the game's graphics. A prototype demo of one level from this version of the game was later officially released in 2026 as part of the game's 30th anniversary re-release compilation.

Early in development, the main character of Rayman was a 10-year old boy named Jimmy who created a world called Hereitscool inside his computer. When this world was threatened by Mister Dark, Jimmy was sucked into his computer and became Rayman. Most of this plotline was quickly abandoned.

Due to its poor reception and short lifespan, over 60 Sega 32X games are known to have been cancelled. As the 32X only received 40 official releases worldwide, this makes it unusual in that it had more cancellations than actual game releases. Many of the cancelled 32X games would eventually be ported to other platforms to commercial and/or critical success, including Daytona USA, Die Hard Trilogy, and Rayman.