Back in March, Universal Interactive released Crash Bandicoot: The Big Adventure for the Game Boy Advance. When I reviewed the game shortly after it's release, I was reasonably impressed with its gameplay, and it certainly looked the part. But once I had completed it there was little to come back to, unlike Sonic Advance and Wario Land 4, which I have replayed a good number of times. So, with the sequel, Crash Bandicoot 2: N-Tranced, can Vicarious Visions fix this and create a game that rivals both of those titles?
Story-wise, the game isn't going to break any boundaries. Bad guy N. Tropy has teamed up with N. Trance, an even more evil villain with hypnotic powers. Their cunning plan is to brainwash all of Crash's friends and turn then against him, quite for what reason I have no idea. With his friends against him, Crash must once again save the day, and ultimately, save his friends. Ok, I told you it was hardly the most inspiring storyline ever, but it’s a platformer, what really counts is the gameplay.
When I reviewed the first Crash game I had no direct problems with the way it plays, apart from the fact that it never really offered that much innovation and excitement. So how are Vicarious Visions going to fix this? For starters, it looks like the levels will be a lot more varied. There will be at least 40 of them (double what the previous game offered) and they will be set over eight different environments. As with the first game, the majority of it will be played as a side on platformer, but, to add more variety a selection of levels will play differently. Some levels will see you flying through space, others doing a spot of water-skiing whilst being chased by a giant shark. It all looks and sounds rather impressive.
A puzzle element comes into play in many of the levels with the use of crates. In addition to the Bouncy, Nitro, TNT and Switch crates are three new types; Freeze, Copter (which gives Crash the ability to fly for a short period of time) and Magic Carpet. These crates both hinder and aid Crash in his quest to reach the end of each level, and by the sounds of it, will make this game even more fun than the first. Finally, another new feature is that you'll not only be able to play as Crash, but also his friends Coco and Crunch. Quite how these different characters will affect Crash Bandicoot 2 gameplay wise is not known.
As you can see from the screenshots Vicarious Visions have once again worked wonders on the small screen. The game exhibits great use of colour and detail, both with the character sprites and the beautiful backgrounds. Once again, stylistically this looks a lot like the Donkey Kong Country games, which is in no way a bad thing. Judging from what I have seen so for, everything moves and animates just as smoothly as the first Crash game, so there are no complaints here at all.
Overall, Crash's second GBA title is looking very strong indeed. Throw in the promised head-to-head multiplayer option with multiple modes, and if Vicarious Visions beef up the gameplay a little, then Crash could be thrown up there with Wario, Mario and Sonic as one of the GBA's best platformers. Crash Bandicoot 2: N-Tranced is currently set for release early next year. Hopefully we’ll have a more solid release date shortly, but until we do, be sure to check back for regular updates on this game.
