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Michi Reviews Crash Bandicoot - The Original and N. Sane Trilogy
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Michi
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  • Hey there folks, Pengu here!  If you're like me, you grew up with the Crash Bandicoot series.  Likewise, you were probably fond of the original 3 games:


    Back then in the PS1 days, Sony was still looking for their Mascot.  Nintendo had Mario, and Sega had Sonic the Hedgehog.  But Playstation was still a relative newcomer with no specific face to their brand...until Crash Bandicoot was born.



    At that point, Crash brought something new to the table that many platformers hadn't tried.  It was a 3D platformer that was linear (think more linear Mario 64), it was a collectathon, but it was an exceptionally challenging collectathon.  It was a title that challenged to you finish levels without dying to reap the extra rewards, and punished you by taking the bonuses away if you did indeed die.  Levels ranged from exceptionally easy (IE the beginning levels and hog riding levels) to downright hair pullingly difficult (the bridge levels, Slippery Climb).  Bonus levels followed this same formula, with less repercussions for dying.  Likewise, bosses ranged from easy (Papu Papu) to frustratingly difficult (Cortex).


    An image from Crash Bandicoot's "Slippery Climb" level, one of the most difficult in the game.

    Then came along Crash Bandicoot 2: Cortex Strikes Back.  One of my absolute favorite PS1 titles to this day.  This was actually my first entry into the Crash Bandicoot series, so it has a special place in my heart, and for good reason.  This game took everything that made Crash Bandicoot enjoyable, and added more story to it.  The world map was scrapped for a Warp Room hub, and Gems were given more of a notice (meaning they were actually given more of a purpose).



     One of my favorite bits is that you weren't penalized for dying within a level and thus losing the chance at that gem.  You would still have to redo it if the level involved a secret Death Path (since those require getting to them without dying, hence the name), but in this game getting gems, especially special gems, required different methods (successfully finishing a Death Path route, getting all boxes, finishing secret levels with all boxes, entering the level from a secret area for certain colored gems, not breaking any boxes for a colored gem, etc...).  In short, it offered more variety in place of "finish level with all boxes without dying to earn a gem."

    Likewise, the variety didn't stop with just the gems.  Levels now had different themes (as to mainly jungle/ruin/lair themed) to them: there were still jungle and up-river levels, but there were also snow levels, sewer levels, new varieties of jungle levels (IE with snow and bees, at night), space levels, and the like.  Some of the chase levels were spiced up (being chased by a giant polar bear, for example), and the riding levels were now played with a polar bear cub that could be sped up at the press of a button.  There were even jetpack riding levels introduced in the last warp area, which actually were pretty fun.





    If anything, the only let down with this game was that whereas the final boss was challenging in the first game...he was laughably simple in the 2nd (you chase him on a jetpack, and just have to hit him 3 times before he reaches his ship).  All in all though, 2 was a heavy improvement to the 1st game.


    Crash Bandicoot 2 also introduced one of my favorite villains, Tiny the Tiger.

    Finally, Crash Bandicoot Warped.  This game essentially took what Crash Bandicoot 2 had, and cranked it up to an 11.  Sometimes those changes worked, and sometimes I think they were a hinderance to the game.  For the most part though, I was quite satisfied.  Whereas Crash Bandicoot 2 introduced some new areas, Warped essentially threw out all of those and introduced brand new ones.  The once overused Jungle was replaced by a Medieval fantasy level.  The riding levels still existed, only this time on a tiger on the Great Wall of China.  The up-river levels were scrapped, and both jetskiing levels as well as underwater swimming levels were introduced.  Jetpack levels were scrapped, replaced with Airplane levels.  Boulder/Polar Bear chase levels were removed, replaced by Prehistoric Dinosaur chase levels. 





    Virtually any level that was a staple Crash Bandicoot level before Warped was removed or completely replaced...and I absolutely welcomed it...with one exception.



    I present to you...the racing levels.  These levels are the bane of my gaming existence with how infuriating they can be.  As expected, the level requires that you get 1st place to be able to get the crystal you need to progress with the rest of the game.  Unlike gems, you literally cannot reach the next boss or get to the next area until you've gotten all of the crystals in the previous area.  Meaning until you grind through your frustration and win those racing levels, beating the game is an impossibility.

    At a glance, that seems easy enough.  There's roughly only 3 of them in the game, plus a secret 4th one.  But after you beat that first one with frustration, you realize that there's still 2 main ones left (and yes, they're both in completely different warp areas), and 3 if you want to get that 100% status.

    What makes it frustrating?  Mainly the controls.  Controls aren't as responsive as they should be, and lord help you if you hit a speed boost...because if you're not quick with those controls you'll be hitting the dirt (which slows you down), going out of bounds (which, think Mario Kart when you go out of bounds), or falling in a hole (see previous statement).  Between the annoying amount of obstacles, the precise timing it takes to pass the other cars (and don't bump from behind, because it pushes them forward as if they got a speed boost...and don't hit from the side, because even that will make them speed up/slow you down), and avoiding speed boosting your way to a hole/out of bounds...getting first place to get that crystal is a frustrating chore that will make you turn off the game after a bit.  And hell, good luck on that secret racing level...because now you've got obstacles that drive at you as well.

    Besides that obvious glaring frustration, though, Warped did a lot of things right.  The story was pretty decently done, the bosses were exceptional (N. Tropy is one of my absolute favorites), the variety in level types and innovations was wonderful, the addition of time trials for another set of collectibles was was welcomed...and overall it was just an exceptional game to play for the most part.  I didn't even mention another good part, which was that when you beat a boss, you learn a new move (like a more powerful spin attack, or double jumping, or the fruit bazooka).

    I think what impressed me the most is that, if I recall correctly, each Crash Bandicoot game in the trilogy came out only 1 year after the other.  In this day and age to see that kind of progression between titles that quickly is pretty amazing.

    And now we come to what I think is the most important thing in this topic, the remake.



    Now anyone who knows me knows I'm highly skeptical of remakes and reboots to projects.  While I enjoyed the direction Tomb Raider went, I still do very much miss the old Lara and her cynical humor (of which I hope they bring into the 3rd game in the new trilogy).  I also enjoyed the old stories, and feel the reboots are doing a disservice to those by essentially re-writing/omitting those (essentially ignoring both Tomb Raider Legends flashbacks as well as other backstories provided by the original trilogy).  Likewise, the Ratchet and Clank reboot was lovely, but again a disservice to the series with everything that was omitted.  Even Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D wasn't a true remake to me, because aside from some sprite and new building looks, a lot of the assets just looked like they were slightly reworked as opposed to being an actual built-from-ground-up-remake.

    Thankfully...the Crash Bandicoot N Sane Trilogy is in actuality a complete remake from the ground up, but not even close to a reboot.

    To give an idea, here's the trailer:


    Naturally, I was still skeptical even after seeing the reveal trailer, giving how Ratchet And Clank had an impressive trailer...and then the reboot was not as impressive.  Also, the fact that it was Activision producing it (with their awful Skylanders track record with Spyro and Crash) and some company that did the GBA titles developing it, I was nervous.  But I was still curious, so I played a demo at Gamestop (which had 2 levels from the first game, and then one from the 2nd game), and I was actually really impressed.

    Everything from the placement of boxes to the enemies was completely identical to the original games.  I was literally playing through the same original trilogy I knew and remembered, but it was given a beautiful fresh coat of paint to appeal to audiences nowadays who are obsessed with games looking amazing.





    The new look is a definitely welcome upgrade to an already great trilogy.

    There's a smidge of a downside, but it's really not one that's incredibly noticeable, to be honest.  The jumping physics are...slightly different.  Unlike the original trilogy, you're a bit more likely to jump onto the very edge of something, and you'll automatically fall if you do.

    Also, the controls in the racing levels are just as terrible.

    However, the good changes (in my opinion) outweigh the downsides.  In the first Crash Bandicoot game, you're no longer penalized on normal gem levels if you die.  That's right, you can now die 50 times in a level, but as long as you get all the boxes and finish, you can now get some of the game's most frustrating gems.  However, this doesn't include Death Route gems or special colored gems - those still require a perfect level performance (or perfection up to a point in the former's case) to obtain that treasure.  And yes...this still includes being able to beat one of the game's most difficult levels (Slippery Climb) flawlessly to obtain one of those colored gems.  However, you can at least rest easy knowing that the game's other frustratingly difficult level (the High Road) won't require as much effort to obtain its clear gem.

    Likewise, the time trials from the 3rd game have been extended to the other two games...adding to the games' challenge, and making you work harder to earn that 100% spot (I usually avoid the time trials myself).  So if you're a glutton for punishment, I wish you luck in getting the platinum relic in the High Road and Slippery Climb (but especially the former).

    Another new addition is being able to play Coco Bandicoot (Crash's sister) in most of the levels in all 3 games.  In the original trilogy, she was only playable in specific levels in Warped, so this is an interesting, but welcome addition (and they even explain her presence in the other two games in the Warped remake so that it makes sense).  She doesn't add anything new aside from new death animations and being able to play a female character, but it can be fun to play as her in some of the levels.

    Overall, I'm very impressed.  Vicarious Visions definitely made this trilogy with love and care, and it really shows.  They very carefully recrafted the levels from the ground up and made them exact.  Character voices were re-worked using actors from previous Crash games (which I was hesitant to accept at first, but they actually sound pretty alright), everything looks absolutely beautiful, and for better or worse, everything plays out exactly as it did in the original trilogy.



    It's like playing the original games with a new coat of paint, and I absolutely love it.  If you have a PS4 and have played the original trilogy, I highly recommend picking up the N Sane Trilogy.

    I only hope that if V.V does remake the Spyro trilogy (as people have been demanding, and Activision seems open to), that they give it the same love and care that they gave the Crash Bandicoot N Sane Trilogy (and please god don't use Skylanders model...do what was done with Crash and just update the original model).



    4 people like this post: Hydra, Gerrick, Aethelia, Mathyland
    « Last Edit: December 22, 2020, 11:13:16 AM by Michi »
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