Crash Bandicoot 2: Cortex Strikes Back

"This game will rock your socks!"

Crash Bandicoot 2 is one of the best games on the Playstation. I never got a chance to play the first Crash game, But I did buy the third one when it came out. And noticed that it was not at all the same as 2. There was just a difference between the levels and the story. Crash Bandicoot 2 just had a sense of completion. There really wasnt anything wrong with it. And I mean that literally. CB2 is almost a perfect game.

GAMEPLAY

Theres really only one mode. Which is the story line. Thats not to say there is something missing. The storyline is pretty much perfect. There are 5 levels per ''Zone'', the fifth level of each zone of course, being the Boss level. After you beat the boss level, you are able to take the warp elevator to the next zone. In between each zone, there is a zone boss. Some of these bosses are pretty easy to dominate. But later ones can be vein popping impossible. Luckily, you only have to battle them once. But that’s another interesting feature in this game. You can go back and do any level you want. It is also needed to get 100% in the game. Each level has a purple crystal that needs to be collected, as well as a certain number of boxes. If you collect all the boxes in the level, you will be rewarded with a clear crystal. This can also be vein popping impossible as well. But its well worth it. All in all, the gameplay in this game is very good.

10/10

SOUND

Yet another category that CB2 excels in. The menu and level music is very mood setting and suggest that this is a very “goofy” game. It does all that while maintaining a sense of seriousness during boss levels. The music really does suit the mood of the game, and even certain levels. The sound effects are nothing short of amazing too. Like when you jump on another creature. It makes something like a “BOING!” sound. And when you die, sometimes the admirable little crash goes “YEOWW”. Overall, Im very pleased with the effort put into this games sound. Naughty Dog should be very proud of their employees for the dedication shown in this game.

10/10

GRAPHICS

Unbelievable. I think that sums up the graphics in this game. In this day and age, we have Playstation 2, and all these fancy consoles. Well CB2 is almost PS2 material. The graphics are unbelievable. Everything is complete. The water looks conceivably real, the rocks look like rocks, snow looks like snow, Crash looks like a….dingo, and so on. That’s about all I can say about the near perfect graphics.

10/10

CONTROL

What can I say, Its just a tiny portion of this great game. Not to say control doesn’t matter or anything, but it really takes a backseat to the rest of the important elements in the game. Fortunately, they are easy to learn and hard to forget. Once, you know them, you can do all sorts of interesting things. One of my favorite is perfecting the super jump. Once you know how to do it, you can actually have access to a bonus zone. As well, some of the bosses require precise control to beat them. Which can be a hassle to learn sometimes. In the end, Id give this game a 9 in control, its easy to learn, quite useful in later levels. But it just feels like they could have made it easier for people to pick up and play.

9/10

REPLAY VALUE

Well, I guess there is some. I have played it through more then once, and enjoyed it on all 3 occasions.

9/10

OVERALL

Crash Bandicoot is a great game. You’d have to be ludicrous not to like or buy this game. Im pretty sure its really cheap now. So if you are given the chance to get this game, cease the opportunity. I promise you wont regret it.

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 04/18/02, Updated 04/18/02