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| The Entertainment Review |
| Genre: Action Developer: Radical Entertainment Publisher: Vivendi Games |
Even though Crash Bandicoot has never been as popular as other gaming characters, he has managed to stick around in the gaming
community. This time around “Crash of the Titans” bring Crash back to his platform roots, no go kart racing or party games, which is a
good thing. Instead, players are able to take control of, or jack, some of the larger enemies in the game and use them to bring
destruction and mayhem to the bad guys. Players are able to use the bad to destroy the bad, pretty cool. But the coolest part about this
is that players use mind control to control a giant monsters and smash things to pieces, it is a lot of fun. Unfortunately for Crash, there
is yet again a long list of issues that keeps this game from being the best game in the “Crash Bandicoot” series.
When it comes to the graphics of the game, there is a new art design that seems a lot like a cartoon, aimed more towards younger kids
who have never heard of Crash before, “Crash of the Titans” is not a bad looking game. Out of all the systems that “Crash of the
Titans” was released on, the Xbox 360 has the sharpest graphics of all of them. For those who have an HD television, HD looks
amazing. The backgrounds are clean and very animated, almost like a storybook, but some of the textures are muddy and blurry. Even
though the backgrounds are varied throughout the game, they still feel very much the same. There are some impressive focal points to
the levels, but the roads reaching those points are fairly boring. There is also some frame rate issues, but nothing too terrible. The
graphics get the job done and the entire game looks like a cartoon, something that the younger gamers will enjoy.
In terms of overall presentation, the humor of Crash and his gang is still there. The smaller minions say some very funny things, but
they are sometimes a bit dated. The main story doesn’t pretend to be anything that it isn’t, but players will still feel as though the writers
were trying a little too hard while writing the story for this game.
The game is mostly linear, which is similar to most of the games in the “Crash Bandicoot” series. It is actually more so because of the
fact that the game is all about jacking mutants, and combat is emphasized over everything else is the game. Sadly, the game really has
no variation throughout the entire game, and that’s where the game suffers. There aren’t any real puzzles for players to solve other than
the shoot a target and open a door. Most of the special items that can be unlocked can be found floating in plain sight, making the idea
of exploration absent from the game. This is great for those who want to earn achievement points.
Players will quickly find that there is a lot of repetition, which for a brawler type game, isn’t bad if there is actual game play that is solid.
“Crash of the Titans” is not an example of this. Basic combat is easy, hitting the X button to do simple combos and holding the Y button
for a charged attack. Move moves can be unlocked by collecting Mojo orbs. The new moves don’t add much to the combat of the game.
The best part of the entire game is the monsters that Crash can control in the game, and they are a fairly interesting group of creatures.
These creatures are each a mixture of two different animals. There are fifteen controllable enemies, but this is a bit misleading
because most of the creatures are controlled exactly the same. Players have the basic monsters that are good for fighting, there are
some that are able to throw projectiles and snipe targets. There are also the slow moving creatures who can take out large numbers of
enemies at one time. Eash monster also has their own special move and combo, but they usually involve smashing the X button over
and over again. In order to jack a monster, players first need to punch one of the monsters until a star meter appears over their head,
players then press a button. Players can then use a lower lever monster to jack a larger one, effectively climbing up the food chain.
There is also a co-op mode that is very fun. The second player takes control of a Crash clone, and both players play on the same
screen. Combat becomes easier because the players can help each other jack a monster faster or provide cover for the other
character. The neat thing is that one player can jump in the other player’s backpack and ride around while the other player is fighting as
normal. This makes jumping from platform to platform much easier, which then solves the main problems that have normally haunted
the platform co-op.
“Crash of the Titans” is a good idea wrapped in an okay game. This is a bit of a letdown because the good idea involves smashing
small things with large monsters. This is a game that kids and fans of the “Crash Bandicoot” series will like the game and the co-op is
perfect for any pairs that want to play a game together. This may not be the best game for a collection, but it is surely a good rental.
Players can only hope that the idea of jacking monsters is used better in a future sequel.
community. This time around “Crash of the Titans” bring Crash back to his platform roots, no go kart racing or party games, which is a
good thing. Instead, players are able to take control of, or jack, some of the larger enemies in the game and use them to bring
destruction and mayhem to the bad guys. Players are able to use the bad to destroy the bad, pretty cool. But the coolest part about this
is that players use mind control to control a giant monsters and smash things to pieces, it is a lot of fun. Unfortunately for Crash, there
is yet again a long list of issues that keeps this game from being the best game in the “Crash Bandicoot” series.
When it comes to the graphics of the game, there is a new art design that seems a lot like a cartoon, aimed more towards younger kids
who have never heard of Crash before, “Crash of the Titans” is not a bad looking game. Out of all the systems that “Crash of the
Titans” was released on, the Xbox 360 has the sharpest graphics of all of them. For those who have an HD television, HD looks
amazing. The backgrounds are clean and very animated, almost like a storybook, but some of the textures are muddy and blurry. Even
though the backgrounds are varied throughout the game, they still feel very much the same. There are some impressive focal points to
the levels, but the roads reaching those points are fairly boring. There is also some frame rate issues, but nothing too terrible. The
graphics get the job done and the entire game looks like a cartoon, something that the younger gamers will enjoy.
In terms of overall presentation, the humor of Crash and his gang is still there. The smaller minions say some very funny things, but
they are sometimes a bit dated. The main story doesn’t pretend to be anything that it isn’t, but players will still feel as though the writers
were trying a little too hard while writing the story for this game.
The game is mostly linear, which is similar to most of the games in the “Crash Bandicoot” series. It is actually more so because of the
fact that the game is all about jacking mutants, and combat is emphasized over everything else is the game. Sadly, the game really has
no variation throughout the entire game, and that’s where the game suffers. There aren’t any real puzzles for players to solve other than
the shoot a target and open a door. Most of the special items that can be unlocked can be found floating in plain sight, making the idea
of exploration absent from the game. This is great for those who want to earn achievement points.
Players will quickly find that there is a lot of repetition, which for a brawler type game, isn’t bad if there is actual game play that is solid.
“Crash of the Titans” is not an example of this. Basic combat is easy, hitting the X button to do simple combos and holding the Y button
for a charged attack. Move moves can be unlocked by collecting Mojo orbs. The new moves don’t add much to the combat of the game.
The best part of the entire game is the monsters that Crash can control in the game, and they are a fairly interesting group of creatures.
These creatures are each a mixture of two different animals. There are fifteen controllable enemies, but this is a bit misleading
because most of the creatures are controlled exactly the same. Players have the basic monsters that are good for fighting, there are
some that are able to throw projectiles and snipe targets. There are also the slow moving creatures who can take out large numbers of
enemies at one time. Eash monster also has their own special move and combo, but they usually involve smashing the X button over
and over again. In order to jack a monster, players first need to punch one of the monsters until a star meter appears over their head,
players then press a button. Players can then use a lower lever monster to jack a larger one, effectively climbing up the food chain.
There is also a co-op mode that is very fun. The second player takes control of a Crash clone, and both players play on the same
screen. Combat becomes easier because the players can help each other jack a monster faster or provide cover for the other
character. The neat thing is that one player can jump in the other player’s backpack and ride around while the other player is fighting as
normal. This makes jumping from platform to platform much easier, which then solves the main problems that have normally haunted
the platform co-op.
“Crash of the Titans” is a good idea wrapped in an okay game. This is a bit of a letdown because the good idea involves smashing
small things with large monsters. This is a game that kids and fans of the “Crash Bandicoot” series will like the game and the co-op is
perfect for any pairs that want to play a game together. This may not be the best game for a collection, but it is surely a good rental.
Players can only hope that the idea of jacking monsters is used better in a future sequel.
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