WeView Retro Verdict: Crash Bandicoot

One of PlayStation’s most iconic franchises from the 90s is Crash Bandicoot. During the initial part of this retro WeView offering, you had to listen to me gush about the wonderful memories I have of playing with that fury little guy and his pals, but now it’s your turn. With all the speculation at just about every major gaming event about the possibility of this franchise re-emerging, this seems like the best possible time to get everyone’s opinion on just how good those original games really were.

cam_manutd got us off to a good start by talking about its origin and how important it was to the success of the PlayStation.

Crash on the PS1 was the equivalent of Sonic for Sega. It was the cutesy mascot the platform needed. It was a huge success and for a brief time gave Mario a run for his money.

They went on to say that Crash 2 and Warped are definitely worth playing, but the first might only require watching a let’s play.

Our own Jim Hargreaves weighed in next and had a particularly relevant view to share. He arrived late to the franchise and began with Crash Team Racing – the obligatory kart racer that followed the successful platformer – but he’s now played all the originals and continues to play the first, which he happily shared his thoughts on.

While obviously an icon of its time, I’ve had some real issues getting into it on my PS Vita. The way Crash moves requires more precision than the weird camera angles allow for. Also, the checkpoint system is archaic with save points only appearing after collecting three of a certain collectible in-game.

dave87fez piped up next, noting that the first four games made Crash Bandicoot one of his favourite franchises ever. He listed all of them as a must play and said he’s holding out hope that we may yet see more of that pesky bandicoot in the future.

psychobudgie also had wonderful things to say about the games, saying that the ease with which you can play the originals on PS3 or Vita really gives you no excuse, but he even went as far as saying that they’re worth dragging out a PS1 to play. Here’s what else he had to say:

Loved every iteration of Crash on every platform I played it on, including replaying the original via emulation on my Vita. That it still stands up today with the original visuals says all you need to know about the series. Naughty Dog at its absolute best.

Jayboy31 chimed in tostating that Crash Team Racing was his favourite of bunch, though he also noted that his recent experience with going back and playing it didn’t turn out so well. MrJimmy voiced similar concerns about going back and seeing them again, stating that he had fond memories that could very well be spoiled.

So there we have it. Results were quite varied but really only because of the game’s age. Most of you seemed to enjoy them back in their prime and Must Play was the winning verdict, though a few of you did point out just how much they’ve aged by today’s standards. Of the original four games, the consensus was largely that 2, 3 and CTR were the cream of the crop, while the franchise’s first offering is unsurprisingly the most dated and unrefined. That said, if you’ve yet to jump in, it seems like the cost of entry on PS3 and Vita are worth the risk to experience these classic games.

3 Comments

  1. Crash was great back on the PSone, some excellent games and CTR was superb fun in multiplayer. People want to see the mascot return, but they should know as long as Activision own him you’ll never get another good Crash game.

  2. Crash Team Racing was also brilliant. I still play it regularly with my missus and its great fun. Crash Bash wasn’t quite upto scratch but still had some memorable modes and plenty of fun value.

  3. Do Bishi Bashi Special, I double dare you!

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