Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time

Really great, plays smoothly, and unlike the other Crash Bandicoot games, the difficulty actually comes from the unique level design and not the inherently wonky game mechanics. This game plays well, and the variety of characters and levels always provide something fresh upon booting up. I do wish some of it wasn't SO difficult, but it was still an absolute blast to play.

Is it a good sequel to the original trilogy? Yes. Did it finally manage to fill the huge gap with its Nintendo competitor? Definitely not. The ones who liked the old games will keep liking the saga, and the ones who didn’t like it will keep not liking it. There are some new elements and multiple characters available, but the gameplay feels almost the same as the recent remakes.

The level design tends to rely on “Warped”, but areas got noticeably bigger and a little more varied. The quantum masks are the most obvious addition to the gameplay, but unfortunately, they can only be used in specific areas of the levels. The whole multiverse/time travel idea could have been used for much more interesting gameplay dynamics.

I liked the introduction of levels that let you use other characters with completely different movies, even though it’s only very short sections that ultimately force you to go through segments you have already cleared with Crash but on a harder difficulty.

The level of challenge is my biggest issue with this game. 106% completion is nearly impossible, and even clearing all areas once without caring about crates and gems drove me crazy. I like games that push your limits, but honestly, the last couple of areas felt more like conscious trolling rather than smart level design choices. You won’t have to repeat levels once you run out of lives like in the old games, but you will keep repeating the same checkpoints dozens of times and dying every five seconds during the most difficult sections.