Crash: Warped Retrospective Review

PlayStation Top 10

After the announcement of the PlayStation Classic I decided to look back at my personal Top 10 PlayStation games to see if they hold up. Each gets a minimum of 3 hours of game play before I compare how I remember the game and how it plays now.

The rest of my Top 10 games are:

• Castlevania: Symphony of the Night
• Motoracer
• Grandia
• Resident Evil
• Quake 2
• Metal Gear Solid
• Final Fantasy VII
• Lunar: Silver Star Story Complete
• Lunar 2: Eternal Blue Complete

Crash Warped – Then (1998)

I rented Crash Bandicoot dozens of times in the 90s.  There were other games available, but Crash drew me in. I debated putting the first of the series on this list because of my love for it, but Warped is the better game. I hear people praise Crash 2, but I’ve never played it. The first game was my obsession, but the few times I played Warped at my friend’s house blew it away. It was everything a sequel should be.

Warped competes with Chrono Cross for best looking games on the system. No surprise, Naughty Dog always pushes Sony hardware to the limit. Jak 3 on PS2, and Last of Us on PS3 are gorgeous. Warped had that same impact back in the 32-bit era. Character models were detailed and well animated. Environments had a lot going on, in the foreground and background. It was a marvel to behold.

More than beautiful, Warped played well. Platforming was tight. Crash controlled like a dream, moving through the 3D environments with ease. Varied level types changed up game play. I remember riding a motorcycle one level and a tiger the next. Underwater levels were fun, which isn’t easy. Crash had it all.

I can’t wait to find out if Crash Warped remains a high point in the PlayStation library, but first I have to mention one thing. Crash Bandicoot has the best old school video game commercials ever. Crash stood outside Nintendo headquarters with a megaphone and talked smack. They were funny, a little edgy, and loud. Everything a kid wanted in the 90s. “Plumber boy your time has come.”

Crash Warped – Now (2018)

Crash Warped is the exact game I remember. It plays and looks exactly how I expected it to. The graphics don’t have the same wow factor, but they’re impressive for a 20-year-old game. The recent HD remakes look better, but the PlayStation original aged well. The cartoon designs are simple enough that the low polygon counts don’t matter. The colors are bright and the textures basic. Nothing feels muddled by the low-resolution PlayStation output.

Jumping and attacking with Crash is accurate.  Full analogue controls makes Crash a breeze to navigate the various levels. Occasionally completing a 180 turn was sluggish. Not every time, but it felt off enough that is was worth noting. Overall, Crash controls well and you’ll only fail when you screw up. Comparing it to modern titles like Mario Odyssey it comes up short, but most games will. Crash controls just fine.

I remember Crash having the craziest levels. I don’t find them crazy anymore. The first level is a jungle. Second is a water level with Crash wearing scuba gear. The third level had Crash’s sister riding a panda through an auto-scrolling level and the fifth is a jetski obstacle course. The levels aren’t crazy. I’ve seen variations of them in other games, but variety keeps the game fresh. That feeling of amazement is gone, but don’t let me being old and jaded reflect too harshly on the game. I appreciate the variety presented.

Boss battles don’t get the same pass. I honestly forgot how Crash boss battles went until I sat down to play it again. Bosses follow simple patterns and go down with ease. There’s no challenge. I hate comparing Crash to the Mario games, but even Super Mario 64 has better boss battles than this. A day after playing the game you’ll forget all about the bosses. On the other hand, you’ll definitely remember riding a tiger over the Great Wall.

The music is fine. The sound effects are fine. They do the job. There’s nothing of real note here. The only stand out moment is the tiki mask’s probably racist exclamation when Crash takes a hit.  It’s the only audio cue in the whole game that remained burned into my memory after twenty years.

Crash Warped is a fun game. If you like platformers, you’ll have a good time. If you hate them, Crash Warped isn’t going to change your mind. Crash Warped is a great PlayStation platformer, but it pales next to the incredible Super Mario 64. There’s a reason the games were a smash hit, but going back also makes it clear that its not a classic series.