Information:
Name: Crash Bandicoot 4
Platforms: PlayStation 4 and Xbox One
Genre: 3D Platformer
Developer: Toys For Bob
Publisher: Activision
During the 90s, Sony decided to rival Nintendo’s already iconic character, Mario, with their own mascot for the original PlayStation. The result of that ambition was Naughty Dog’s Crash Bandicoot, which immediately became a beloved icon. But the PlayStation era finished, and with-it Sony lost their icon, but that’s a story for another day. After many years, console generations, and various attempts to bring back the Bandicoot to its glory days, it’s just now that a sequel finally feels like a proper continuation to its classic trilogy. After N Sane Trilogy, developer Toys for Bob was entrusted to continue Crash’s adventures but, was it worth it?
Story
Just like the classic games, expect a story to keep you hooked for around 16 hours (depending entirely on your playstyle) where what shines the most are the characters and the crazy adventures they get involved in, the new cast of characters along with returning ones have more personality than ever, and this is complemented by being able to see their side of the adventure, even as villains as you help them set up traps for Crash and friends for example.
Visual presentation
Developer Toys for Bob took a lot of liberty with this one; aside from updated, new designs (quite an unexpected, but welcomed, change considering they had N Sane trilogy models), this game is immediately distinct from its prequels, with new enemies, new cues, new backgrounds and small details it feels like a proper embrace of past Crash adventures but also an entirely new thing, featuring more dynamic environments and levels that have a well-managed change of pace and even level design between checkpoints that never gets boring. There are also many new modes, which I’ll cover later on, but that also bring an entirely new visual presentation and tweaks to already beaten levels.
Gameplay
The classic gameplay formula is back; it may sound like a conformist approach, but it’s more than what one could have asked for. The platforming, spin, and tricky to calculate jumps are better than ever, with optional features that can make things easier for newcomers but remain fairly challenging; about Time steps up and adds new mechanics, this time in the form of new masks that grant you powers, and despite sounding like a power-up, it’s actually demanding and mandatory to master the more you advance. This time around We have more playable characters than Coco and Crash; you play as both their friends and foes, each one of them has their own mechanics and bring a refreshing change of rhythm that only makes you want to keep playing so you can see what’s waiting for you on the next level.
Difficulty
Crash Bandicoot has always been known for being relatively hard, especially with how messy PS1 controls used time, so how to do you remain accurate to this nowadays that gaming has changed, so mole, Toys for Bob’s answer is options. Since the very beginning, you are given two options, which you can change as you please, the classic mode where you are given 5 lives and a game over screen after you run out of them, like the original trilogy, or a new modern mode where instead of that you are given a counter of how many times you’ve died per chapter. For those who are fans of 100% complete games, this one has a lot of things to do, entirely new modes dedicated to replaying value through new visuals and placements of objects in already beaten levels, challenges, and recompenses in the way of new character skins and trophies/achievements.
Verdict:
In conclusion, Crash Bandicoot 4 About Time is the sequel that fans of the original trilogy were waiting for so long, a natural follow up in all aspects while also having a nostalgic sensation surrounding it. In short, words, if You have great memories of the Bandicoot and his adventures, you definitely don’t want to skip this game
9/10
