Crash Bandicoot

Crash Bandicoot: The Platforming Icon

Crash Bandicoot, developed by Naughty Dog and released in 1996 for the PlayStation, is a 3D platforming game. The story is set on a fictional archipelago in Australia, where the evil scientist Dr. Neo Cortex and his assistant Dr. Nitrus Brio are using a machine called the Evolvo-Ray to mutate the local animals into an army of super-soldiers.

The main protagonist is Crash, a friendly bandicoot who is mutated by the machine. However, the experiment fails, and Crash becomes a wild, uncontrollable creature. Cortex deems him a failure and casts him out of his castle. Crash decides to go on a journey to rescue his girlfriend, a female bandicoot named Tawna, whom Cortex has chosen as his next test subject.

Gameplay and Levels

The game is a linear 3D platformer, where you move Crash through a series of levels, from beaches and jungles to ruins and castles. The game has a “forward-scrolling” perspective, meaning you usually move into the screen.

• Movement and Attacks: You can control Crash to run, jump, and spin. The spin attack is your main offensive move, used to defeat enemies and break crates.
• Crates and Items: The levels are filled with various crates that contain items. The most common are Wumpa Fruit, which you collect to gain extra lives, and Aku Aku masks, which grant you a temporary shield from one hit. Collecting three Aku Aku masks makes you invincible for a short time.
• Obstacles: You’ll have to navigate through various hazards like bottomless pits, rolling boulders, and dangerous enemies. If you fall or get hit without a mask, you lose a life.

The game is structured with a boss battle at the end of each island. Crash must defeat a series of villains, including the muscular Papu Papu, the gangster Pinstripe Potoroo, and Cortex’s assistant Dr. Nitrus Brio, before facing off against Dr. Neo Cortex himself.