Sights & Sounds
- Like the N. Sane Trilogy, the graphics are clean, polished, and brightly colored
- The animation both in gameplay and cutscenes is smooth and looks rather nice as well
- Overall, while not visually mind-blowing, the optimization is pretty impressive. The game looks better than you'd expect at the frame rates it hits
- Like the rest of the series, the music is pretty good. Lots of nice homages to the tunes in previous games without sounding exactly the same
Story & Vibes
- Like all Crash games, there is a story, but it isn't really important. The key details in this game's plotline are interdimensional/time travel (which introduces additional characters to play) and the existence of a bunch of other masks besides Aku Aku (which introduce new platforming techniques when they show up)
- Otherwise, the plot mostly involves meeting all the masks, finding the bad guy, beating him, getting betrayed, and then beating that bad guy too
- As you'd expect from a game in the franchise, the vibes are silly and cartoonish
Playability & Replayability
- If you've played any Crash game before, you know what to expect. If you haven't, you're in for some tricky platforming, fun chase sequences, and a sore vocal cords from yelling at your screen
- Most of the frustration is directed at the camera. Any turn or perspective shift in the level immediately makes it difficult to tell which way your character is moving. This can make platforming rage-inducing
- There are some nice QoL improvements, fortunately. By default, the game eschews lives in favor of allowing you to pick up from a checkpoint however many times you need. Believe me, you'll be grateful. Another nice feature are the new "pity checkpoints". Die enough times in a segment, and the game will convert a regular box into a new checkpoint to make things a little easier
- The new playable characters are interesting. Tawna is a little cringey in that pandering sort of way, but all the non-Crash/Coco characters introduce new platforming elements that are pretty fun to use
- The masks you collect will force you to do things like slow time, flip gravity, and switch between dimensions to platform your way across levels. In all, I liked the change of pace these offered
- Like most 3D platformers that harken back to the 90's, there's a bunch of stuff to collect. It's really only there for people who have the patience to actually get it all
- I'm no completionist, so I'm not playing through the levels again to collect all the gems and wumpa fruit. It just seems a little tedious
Overall Impressions & Performance
- Crash 4 doesn't stray far from the series' tropes. The only real difference I noticed was how long the levels have become. In some ways, it feels good to finally grind your way through a level that took you 40 deaths and 30 minutes to beat, but I do kinda miss the shorter levels in the previous games
- The game ran exceptionally well on my mid-tier setup
Final Verdict
- 7/10. Fans of the series will definitely appreciate the game, its quirks, and the challenge it offers. If you're new to the series, you may have a better time with (and get more value out of) the N. Sane trilogy, but this is still a worthwhile experience for all platforming fans
- Like the N. Sane Trilogy, the graphics are clean, polished, and brightly colored
- The animation both in gameplay and cutscenes is smooth and looks rather nice as well
- Overall, while not visually mind-blowing, the optimization is pretty impressive. The game looks better than you'd expect at the frame rates it hits
- Like the rest of the series, the music is pretty good. Lots of nice homages to the tunes in previous games without sounding exactly the same
Story & Vibes
- Like all Crash games, there is a story, but it isn't really important. The key details in this game's plotline are interdimensional/time travel (which introduces additional characters to play) and the existence of a bunch of other masks besides Aku Aku (which introduce new platforming techniques when they show up)
- Otherwise, the plot mostly involves meeting all the masks, finding the bad guy, beating him, getting betrayed, and then beating that bad guy too
- As you'd expect from a game in the franchise, the vibes are silly and cartoonish
Playability & Replayability
- If you've played any Crash game before, you know what to expect. If you haven't, you're in for some tricky platforming, fun chase sequences, and a sore vocal cords from yelling at your screen
- Most of the frustration is directed at the camera. Any turn or perspective shift in the level immediately makes it difficult to tell which way your character is moving. This can make platforming rage-inducing
- There are some nice QoL improvements, fortunately. By default, the game eschews lives in favor of allowing you to pick up from a checkpoint however many times you need. Believe me, you'll be grateful. Another nice feature are the new "pity checkpoints". Die enough times in a segment, and the game will convert a regular box into a new checkpoint to make things a little easier
- The new playable characters are interesting. Tawna is a little cringey in that pandering sort of way, but all the non-Crash/Coco characters introduce new platforming elements that are pretty fun to use
- The masks you collect will force you to do things like slow time, flip gravity, and switch between dimensions to platform your way across levels. In all, I liked the change of pace these offered
- Like most 3D platformers that harken back to the 90's, there's a bunch of stuff to collect. It's really only there for people who have the patience to actually get it all
- I'm no completionist, so I'm not playing through the levels again to collect all the gems and wumpa fruit. It just seems a little tedious
Overall Impressions & Performance
- Crash 4 doesn't stray far from the series' tropes. The only real difference I noticed was how long the levels have become. In some ways, it feels good to finally grind your way through a level that took you 40 deaths and 30 minutes to beat, but I do kinda miss the shorter levels in the previous games
- The game ran exceptionally well on my mid-tier setup
Final Verdict
- 7/10. Fans of the series will definitely appreciate the game, its quirks, and the challenge it offers. If you're new to the series, you may have a better time with (and get more value out of) the N. Sane trilogy, but this is still a worthwhile experience for all platforming fans