Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time Review

Join Crash and friends in the direct sequel to the original Crash trilogy, a series that came out in the ’90s. This time around game developer Toys for Bob took a crack at it and have released Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time over two decades since the original. Featuring a new art style and a modern take on the classic platforming experience they’ve managed to renew it with unique and inventive touches.

In this direct sequel to Crash Bandicoot: Warped, Crash Bandicoot: It’s About Time sets Crash and Coco against Neo Cortex and Doctor N. Tropy’s evil quest to dominate the multiverse. It’s up to bandicoots Crash and Coco to jump, spin, wall run, rail grind, and blast through the levels to prevent the evildoers conquering not just this dimension, but all dimensions!

You can enjoy “Crash 4″ in two different ways: Retro or Modern. Retro gives you a limited amount of lives and when they run out you’ll have to restart the level while Modern lets you continue from the last checkpoint after your lives run out. The gameplay difficulty for both modes is the same so feel free to switch between them to find what works for you while still keeping your rewards.

To help you make your way through the levels, you need to harness the power of the Quantum Masks – Guardians of Space and Time. Lani-Loli allows you to phase various objects, crates and obstacles in and out of existence. Akano gives you the ability to spin vigorously after a jump to hover in the air and glide from one platform to another. Kupuna-Wa can slow time down, which makes it easier to jump across fast-moving platforms and avoid fast enemies. Ika-Ika can flip the direction of gravity letting you walk on the ceiling to solve puzzles and avoid hazards.

The majority of levels are fun to play and might test your ‘platformer’ mastery at times, but when the quantum masks show up in certain places, the difficulty ramps up as you have this extra complexity to contend with. Having said that the games difficulty is pretty fair and if you’re difficulty with a certain section the game will add in a handy checkpoint to help you out.

Besides the 43 story levels Crash Bandicoot 4 will keep you entertained for hours with Time Trial, Mirror Levels (N.Verted mode), Alternate Timelines, Flashback Tape Levels and much more. Levels can be played as either Crash or Coco, but three new playable characters will appear along the way, each with their own levels to complete.

Need a new style? You can update Crash or Coco’s look by unlocking the 29 character skins. To do this you will need to collect gems, a task that is sometimes easier said than done. To get them all, you will need to collect all the Wumpa fruit, smash all the crates, find the hidden gem and finish the level with three deaths or less.

Crash Bandicoot 4 isn’t only about the single-player experience. It has a local competitive mode where up to four players can compete head to head. See who’s the fastest as you race to the finish line in Checkpoint Races or get smashing in Crate Combo. If you prefer to cooperate, load up Pass N. Play and take turns progressing through levels in normal or N. Verted mode. All competitive and cooperative modes only require a single controller, so you can pass, play, and easily join in.

Buy now: Crashbandicoot.com | Takealot | Loot | BT Games

Get Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time digitally and you’ll receive the Totally Tubular Skins (available upon completion of the second level), which put Crash and Coco into some digs that shows off their radical 90s roots.

For the latest news and updates, visit the Activision Games Blog and follow Crash Bandicoot on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and subscribe to the official Crash Bandicoot YouTube channel.

Reviewed on Xbox One. A review code was supplied by the publisher.