[h1]Rage Bandicoot[/h1]
Platformers were by far my favorite genre when I was a kid, and they still remain one of my top genres to this day. My very first console was the Sega Master System with Alex Kidd built straight into the hardware. I also remember playing Super Mario Bros on the NES at my cousin's house, and a few years later, I got a SNES bundled with Super Mario All-Stars and then the Donkey Kong Country games. You could easily say I didn't have much of a choice; I was practically destined to become a platforming enthusiast.
Then, Crash Bandicoot arrived—Sony’s very own platforming crown jewel. I remember playing the first game at a friend's house and being completely sold within five minutes. I knew right then that I needed it in my own PlayStation collection. Since then, I’ve played all of Naughty Dog’s Crash games to death. Crash Bandicoot 1, 2, 3, and even Crash Team Racing. Naturally, I wishlisted this the second the remake was announced. All three original games packaged into one complete bundle? Count me in.
So, does this trilogy live up to the classics that made Crash an unofficial mascot for PlayStation, or does it fail to recapture the magic?
[b]Where it really jumps high:[/b]
• [b]Nostalgia Fever:[/b] This remake perfectly captures what made the original Crash Bandicoot games so incredible. It is exactly how I remember them, brick by brick. The developers chose to stay entirely true to the originals without making massive changes to the core gameplay, map design, or UI, and that is definitely a good thing. It works perfectly and takes me straight back to my childhood. That being said, they also threw in two extra stages that weren't in the originals: "Stormy Ascent"—a notoriously unfinished level from the first game that was never officially released—and "Future Tense," a brand-new level crafted specifically for this trilogy.
• [b]The Graphical Overhaul:[/b] Vicarious Visions put in serious work to make these decades-old games look like fully modern, timeless titles. It was rebuilt completely from scratch, and it shows. The lighting is beautiful, the textures are sharp, the animations are incredibly fluid, and the colors look fantastic. It looks exactly the way your childhood brain remembers it looking—right up until you boot up the actual PS1 version today and realize your memory was playing tricks on you. Furthermore, the game runs smoothly with zero stutter and no input lag, which is pretty vital for a platformer of this caliber.
• [b]Linear and Minimalistic:[/b] Crash Bandicoot is beautifully straightforward. It’s all about reaching the finish line, smashing crates along the way, collecting Wumpa fruit, finding bonus areas, and spinning enemies out of your path. It is a linear, old-school platformer that functions like a classic 2D game wrapped in a 3D space. That simplicity is exactly what makes it so rewarding to play.
• [b]Three-in-One Package:[/b] Getting all three classic titles in a single bundle offers fantastic value. Most modern developers would probably have split these up and sold them as three separate remakes just to squeeze out extra profit. Having everything unified under one clean, polished hub menu feels great.
• [b]No Hand-Holding:[/b] Crash Bandicoot games might look like children's games on paper, but holy hell, they do not hold your hand. One thing a lot of people tend to forget is that these games are brutally difficult, especially if you aim to collect every single Gem and Relic. Personally, I view this as both a positive and a negative. The great thing about the difficulty is that it transports you back to an era where actually beating a level provided a massive rush of accomplishment. Modern games hold your hand too much, so overcoming a genuine hurdle really feels rewarding. However, hunting down 100% achievements can push things a bit too far. I love a good challenge, but there is a very fine line between a fair challenge and pure suffering.
[b]Where it actually crashes:[/b]
• [b]The Physics Engine:[/b] Because the game was built on a modern engine, certain changes were made to Crash's hitbox and falling momentum. Crash now has a slightly rounder collision box and drops faster, which frequently makes it feel like you have butter on your shoes. They also tweaked the jumping mechanics slightly, and the combination of these changes can lead to a lot of frustrating, accidental deaths.
• [b]Repetitive Recipes:[/b] Since this is a very faithful remake, the gameplay loop can start to feel a bit repetitive after a while. All three titles follow a very similar blueprint. The collectibles, Gems, and Relics are distributed in the exact same manner across the trilogy, and a few design choices definitely show their age. The rigid camera angles and tricky depth perception can also be annoying. While this wasn't a dealbreaker for me, your enjoyment might vary if you don't look at it through the same pair of nostalgia glasses that I am wearing.
• [b]A Completionist's Nightmare:[/b] As I mentioned, I usually enjoy hitting a wall, failing, and retrying until I win—it’s the main reason I go for 100% achievements in games. Actually, it's also because I have OCD, but yeah. Grinding out the gold and platinum Relics in this trilogy, especially in the first game, really challenged my sanity. Some of the levels turn a fun trip down memory lane into a brutal challenge. There is absolutely no need to do this, of course. It's a form of self-harm that I willingly choose to inflict upon myself. The point is; 100% completing the game is a challenge that probably isn't worth it. Do it on your own accord. Just consider yourself warned.
• [b]The 60 FPS Lock:[/b] The game is hard-locked at 60 frames per second, which feels incredibly lazy for a platformer where timing is everything. Sure, there are community mods out there that can unlock the framerate, but this should really have been a native setting in the PC options menu from day one. It is a missed opportunity.
[b]The final verdict:[/b]
Vicarious Visions successfully resurrected a gaming icon without losing the soul of the original PlayStation era. The trilogy looks stunning, runs great, and serves up a glorious hit of pure nostalgic fun. Yes, some of the levels will occasionally make you want to throw your controller straight through your screen, and going for the 100% achievements is a one-way ticket to a mental asylum. But if you just want to relive the glory days of linear platforming, this package is easily worth it.
