When you have a saga like Crash Bandicoot, being able to create a product compatible with the tastes of the lovers of the original debut, is certainly not a small task. To be able to successfully model this fragile pasta, you need mastery, and respect for the origins of one of the brands that made the history of video games, thanks to the chapters patented by N to PlayStation 1. It takes very little to upset the community that has been waiting for the game for several months, those that have passed since the first dangerous announcement. Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time is now a reality, is not just a platformer like many others, but a delicate chapter that takes the trouble to bring the amazing adventures of peramele in the current generation, not under the name of remake but as a true canonical sequel to the original saga. 
Starting today, Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time is available for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, and we had a chance to get our hands on the game in order to analyze the work done by Toys for bob for this risky new iteration of the brand. The software house of the Activision has managed to handle this hot potato with remarkable skill, creating solid foundations for the future of the saga, which has recently come back into vogue thanks to Crash Bandicoot N'Sane Trilogy. Let's find out its crazy peculiarities together!
It's been a long time!
It was the year 1998, when PlayStation 1 players found themselves living the third chapter of the Crash Bandicoot saga, which ended with the release of N from the brand itself after the spin-off Crash Team Racing. Subsequently, however, there was no lack of other titles dedicated to peramele, certainly not appreciated in the same way by the community - as they often distort the idea - even if sometimes underestimated. Needless to say the developer didn't want to make the same mistake this time, as he has tried his hand at creating a game that competes with modern works in all respects, totally facing the platform genre. The goal remains to respect the origins of the crazy marsupial and of all the titles that, for better or for worse, have echoed the exploits of Crash up to the doors of the ninth generation of videogames.
The first step? Pick up exactly where we left off, with N. Cortex e N. Tropy prisoners together with Uka Uka in time. The mask manages to fix the situation, bringing back the evil evil in today's era, ready to conquer the world and capture the most dangerous creation of the scientist Cortex: Crash Bandicoot. Then comes the player's turn, who impersonating the role of the animal will have to go through levels upon levels in order to reach the end credits, which, based on the user's skill, can show up after less than 10 hours of play, obviously not counting. the additional contents that we will deepen later. While in, the narrative sector never tends to disappear and breaks the hours of gameplay with the right rhythm, through pleasant and well-made cutscenes.
Both in the playful and in the narrative field, the crazy original ideas and humor of the series have traveled through time and remained immaculate, and both taking on a more dazzling shape on consoles of this generation. As the characters themselves remember in-game, all subsequent adventures in Crash Bandicoot 3: Warped took place in a sort of parallel universe, which has nothing to do with the current identity of the brand, now again devoted to pure platforming. We therefore hope you have missed the jumps that require one millimeter precision, Twirls inspired by the Tasmanian devil, hundreds of crates to destroy and the myriads of Wumpa fruits to collect!
Aku Aku's new likes
Respect for the original works does not preclude agameplay evolution, which was fortunately not long in coming. Let's talk about the detail, for example Double Crash Jump, useful for wiggling in the air and reaching unthinkable places at first glance, as well as the circle placed just under the feet of the animal, which allows you to identify the point where it will land after a jump, before it is too late. Instead, to accompany the now iconic Aku Aku from the incomprehensible verse we find a total of 4 other characters, Quantum Masks ready to alter space and time once worn by Crash. Let's talk about the one dedicated to Time, which can slow moving objects to cause Crash to continue Force, to make powerful turns, to the Severity, to walk on the ceiling and jump over exaggerated obstacles, and finally to theAlteration of Reality, to travel between two dimensions and alternate the possibilities of each of the two to continue along the paths.
Quantum masks deepen fun gameplay, in step with the times
Let's be clear, this is not an open world adventure which allows you to enrich the look of the Marsupial at will with the aforementioned objects, but with alternative and constant gameplay solutions, limited to certain small areas. The base is in fact still the punitive platforming gameplay, which manages to shine like never before in the new iteration of the brand. Considering the new masks added, the importance of the classic 3D Level Design is even more marked, and luckily well done. Apart from some phases that are slightly unbalanced (as regards the difficulty) compared to the rest of the game, the levels are all appreciable and inspired, as well as diversified as regards the tests to be passed and the playful solutions.
Speaking of the difficulty, the developer has decided to leave the user the right to balance his game, according to his preferences, choosing the approach of the old glories of the platformers or the new generation. Selecting between modern and classic mode, users can then decide whether to simply restart from the last checkpoint in the first case, or whether to have a certain amount of lives as in the second, which obviously once finished reset the progress made in the current level. The dynamic difficulty, designed to place some additional bonuses after an excessive amount of deaths, such as some Aku Aku mask useful to avoid further early deaths. Another feature from the latest revival of the brand also concerns the presence of Coco Bandicoot, sister of the well-known peramele that can be interchanged with the latter for all scenarios… but is not the only star to make an appearance in the game system of Crash Bandicoot: It's About Time!
Contents to no end
If as far as Coco is concerned we are dealing with a simple Skin, the Toys for Bob adventure manages to vary its formula thanks to the addition of 3 additional characters which greatly enrich the experience. We find in particular Tawna, who can use the grappling hook to climb surfaces and is an expert in close combat, the furious Dingodile, not particularly agile but able to glide through his breath and use his tail as a weapon, and the Dr. Neo Cortex, evil scientist armed with his dangerous invention. The new characters, however, are only an accessory quality to the work, as despite being treated beyond belief just like the main protagonists, unfortunately they are only offered in rather restricted gameplay sections.
Their possibilities, however, wisely revolutionize the adventure, Dr. Neo Cortex for example compensates for his lack of mobility with a mid-air sprint, necessary to reach certain surfaces, and can use his aforementioned weapon to turning into enemies in static or rubbery platforms, useful for the same reason. Obviously, the sections dedicated to these characters offer level design solutions specifically dedicated to their potential, and are only a way to disconnect from the classic formula with relative rarity, a real shame given their potential depth!
The contents of Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time are truly mind-boggling!
The enormous amount of content expands the work also from the point of view of the hours to be spent in the company of the odd characters, as well as the almost essential replayability to 100% complete (and beyond) the adventure. Just think that each level offers a total of 6 gems, necessary to unlock additional skins dedicated to Crash and Coco. 3 of these can be obtained based on the number of Wumpa Fruits collected, one in case of destruction of all the crates, a further one if you avoid exceeding 3 deaths and one last that must always be found in some secret ravine wisely hidden by the developer. They are added to the package VHS, which must be recovered without having already met death and unlock very difficult Extra levels, and the Relics available through the sadistic time trials. Why not also add a real new mode, the Variant N. Vertita, that through graphic filters it revolutionizes the levels in mechanics and how these can be accomplished.
Make up your look
To top it off, Toys For Bob has also thought about including a multiplayer mode in Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time, perhaps not required, perhaps not necessary, but undoubtedly appreciable for many users. Remembering the old days when it was the practice of passing the Joystick between friends, the developer has decided to make this mechanic canonical and competitive, asking a maximum of 4 total players to try the levels one at a time, to then compare the results obtained and decide a winner.
How not to mention also the amazing graphic sector of Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time? A union of bright and unconventional color ranges, which animate the interesting designs created for this generation. Also in this case, we find choices respectful of the past and innovative, which do not aim to distort the concept of the Naughty Dog universe but to make it suitable and pleasant for today's period. The game scenarios emanate genius from all pores, and it's natural to keep playing to discover the next colorful glimpse to admire, while being captivated by the delightful renewed animations dedicated to all the characters and objects in motion.
