It’s about time we have a deserving sequel to one of the biggest platformer franchises of the 90’s! Crash Bandicoot is back with a brand new adventure, from the developers of the Spyro Reignited Trilogy and most of the Skylanders titles and it’s looking to be a return to form for the Marsupial.
Scheduled for an October 2nd release, Crash 4 shows off a plethora of playable characters from classics such as Crash and Coco, to the unconventional Neo Cortex with many more stated to be revealed up until the launch. With this many characters with skins gameplay variety is sure to be a big selling point of the newest outing.
The story kicks off just as Crash Bandicoot Warped ends, with Cortex being stuck in the past trying to find a way to get back to the present, in doing so he accidentally creates a split in the space-time continuum revealing a vast multiverse for us to spin, jump and crash through. The new settings seem to range from futuristic cities, to Imperial China trying to foil the mad scientists newest evil scheme.
Unexpectedly, this entry has taken some inspiration from Crash’s history with the mask concept from Wrath of Cortex only this time it has been dialled up and become a lot more crucial to the gameplay. The two quantum masks shown so far are the time and gravity masks both with unique aspects that will change the way you approach the different levels in the game. Firstly, the gravity mask, named Kipuna-Wa helps Crash flip gravity upside down to change the way you approach the platforming in 2D and 3D sections. Secondly, the time mask, named Eka-Eka, helps Crash slow down time to more easily avoid fast obstacles and land on fast moving platforms within the stages.
This certainly feels like the Crash game that die hard fans have been waiting for since 1998 and I firmly believe that bringing back the old fans and introducing new ones with the N Sane Trilogy was the right decision to make before trying to make their own true successor to the franchise. Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time will be releasing on October 2nd for PS4 and Xbox One.
Video game completionist and 3D platformer connoisseur, Riley is a fan of the whimsical frenzy of bright and colourful characters that blessed us in the late 90's. Their favourite game's are Spyro, Persona 5 and Super Mario Sunshine.
