Gaming Target - PlayStation 2: Crash Bandicoot: The Wrath of Cortex

Written by Adam Woolcott on July 31, 2001

First Impressions: And you thought the days of long load times were over.

For most people, when you mention Crash Bandicoot, you think PlayStation. While not Sony's true official mascot (so they said), Crash was given the unofficial nod as Sony's spokes-bandicoot. He first burst onto the scene in 1996, featured in humorous commercials plugging his game against Nintendo's Mario 64 in the parking lot of Nintendo headquarters. The buzz was enough to make Crash a hit, with good platform gameplay and solid visuals. Eventually the PS would see 2 actual sequels, a kart racing game, and a mediocre party game.

All the while, one thing loomed Ц Crash was not only an unofficial mascot, he wasn't even owned by Sony! Universal Interactive owned the name, but Sony bought it for a set period of time. SCEA in turn enlisted Naughty Dog to create a game based upon the character they were Уrenting.Ф It was here where ND proved to be a force in American game development. Each of the 3 Crash platformers was tweaked by Naughty Dog to critical acclaim.

Unfortunately for Crash, Naughty Dog is no longer working on any Crash games, due to Sony's licensing agreement to expire. No longer is Crash a Sony exclusive, as seen by the rendition of Crash on Game Boy Advance. Instead of being Sony's 1st party cash cow, Crash is now just another mascot in a diluted pool of mascot platformers. Or is he? If this title, Crash Bandicoot: Wrath of Cortex lives up to the promise and pedigree can stand out like the previous three, there's no reason why the series can't rise up and stand out from the crowd. If not, he will be closer to Gex than Sonic the Hedgehog.

UK based Travellers Tales (Toy Story, Rascal, Sonic R, Sonic 3D Blast Genesis) is behind this rendition of Crash, and so far they're doing a really good job of keeping the game as similar to the first Crash games, thus keeping the theme familiar. The story is even the same Ц Dr. Cortex is out to get the gems and crystals, and it's Crash's job to collect them before Cortex does, and get rid of Cortex once and for all. Of course, Crash has been trying to get rid of Cortex since the first Crash, so disposing of him might be easier said than done. Also returning are Uka Uka and Coco, keeping the main characters from the old games in the minds of Crash fans.

There is a good change with Crash: WoC Ц the game will be shifting from 2 and a half D gameplay to almost complete 3D roaming gameplay. It's a little closer to Sonic Adventure 2 than Mario 64, really. This is obviously a welcome change from the old days, and if pulled off correctly, will add a whole new outlook to the way Crash Bandicoot plays.

Besides that, practically everything is the same Ц from collecting fruit to the weird special moves, to the unique level variety of Crash 3, this Crash sequel is turning out as if it's going to play exactly like it's predecessors in every way. Of course there are some new tricks (besides the new engine and dimension), but for the most part it's the same tried-and-true gameplay that elevated Crash to the level of stardom he had on PSOne. Crash can drive a tank in one level, along with some other creative little machines, thus maintaining the feel of the past, as well as add new stuff to keep it fresh, like all sequels should have.

The graphics engine is very similar to the past Crash games Ц while it won't be anything that will blow you away like maybe Jak & Daxter (made by Naughty Dog of course), it's still looking pretty darn nice, with lots of cool effects and a full 60 FPS engine running it. The visuals on the whole are crisp and clean with very few glitches thus far. Crash: WoC is definitely shaping up to be very much like a cartoon, instead of the realism a lot of other games are gunning for lately. Of course if it were to be realistic, Crash would be a brown rodent-like thing that doesn't wear pants and sneakers. And where's the fun in that?