Crash Bandicoot 2: Cortex Strikes Back
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| Crash Bandicoot 2: Cortex Strikes Back | |
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| Developer(s) | Naughty Dog |
| Publisher(s) | Sony Computer Entertainment Universal Interactive Studios |
| Platform(s) | PlayStation, Playstation Network |
| Release date | JP December 18, 1997 NA October 31, 1997 PAL December 1997 |
| Genre(s) | Platform |
| Mode(s) | Single-player |
| Rating(s) | ELSPA: 3+ ESRB: E OFLC: G |
| Media | CD-ROM |
| Input methods | PlayStation controller |
Crash Bandicoot 2: Cortex Strikes Back is a platform game and the sequel to Crash Bandicoot. It was developed by Naughty Dog and published by Sony Computer Entertainment for the PlayStation video game console and released in the United States on the Halloween of 1997.
Taking place in and around the fictional N. Sanity Island, Crash Bandicoot 2 follows the anthropomorphic bandicoot Crash. Crash is abducted by the series villain Doctor Neo Cortex, who has apparently turned over a new leaf and is now willing to save the world. Crash is then thrust into several parts of N. Sanity Island in order to gather Crystals and allow Cortex to contain the power of the upcoming planetary alignment and keep the planet from being destroyed. He is joined by Coco, who is suspicious of Cortex's true intentions, and partially by Doctor Nitrus Brio, who tries to convince Crash to gather Gems instead of Crystals.
On July 26, 2007, the game became available for download on the PlayStation Network, making it playable for both the PSP and PS3. However, like MediEvil and Spyro 2: Ripto's Rage! it was removed a week later due to technical problems. It was re-released on the PlayStation Network on January 10, 2008.
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[edit] Gameplay
Crash Bandicoot 2's gameplay is largely similar to that of its predecessor, though a number of new elements which would go on to become staples of the series were also introduced. Instead of choosing stages from a 3D overview of the environment, as was the case in the original, players must utilise special Warp Rooms. Each of the five Warp Rooms contains five levels (which can be visited in any order), and the goal of each level is to obtain the pink, glowing crystal located within. Collection of all five crystals in a given Warp Room will activate the corresponding boss battle, and once the boss is defeated, Crash can travel to the next Warp Room.
Players make their way through a limited 3D environment and are confronted by numerous hazards (such as pits, spikes, TNT crates and hostile wildlife) intended to impede progress. Breakable crates are dotted around each stage and contain either wumpa fruit, an extra life, a checkpoint or a protective Aku Aku mask. If the player succeeds in collecting 100 wumpa fruit, an extra life is awarded. Breaking every crate in a level earns the player a gem. Special additional gems are sometimes available, usually in hard-to-reach locations, and are obtained simply by guiding Crash into them. If every gem in the game is collected, a secret ending is made available. A bonus level is also located in each stage, and can be attempted if Crash steps onto a platform or trap door marked with the '?' sign. Bonus levels are often more challenging than the environment in which they are situated, but they invariably offer substantial rewards upon completion.
Crash can defeat enemies either by jumping on top of them or by performing a spin attack. Later in the game, enemies are often protected against one of the two methods of dispatch, and in some cases are immune to both. A number of new moves are also available to Crash in the game, including the ability to slide, crouch, crawl, and perform a body slam. A special high jump can be performed by jumping immediately after sliding or crouching. Also new to the game are bright green Nitro crates which explode upon contact.
[edit] Plot
[edit] Setting
The environments in Crash Bandicoot 2 are varied, ranging from the forest/jungle/beach levels of Crash Bandicoot and the snow-filled Second Island, to the catwalk-filled insides of Cortex's space station, in which a jetpack must be used to navigate through some areas of the station. Much of the game is set on the very islands that Crash navigated through in the last game, while the last fifth of the game takes place in Cortex's space station.[1] The jungle levels were originally to have featured ground fog, but this was abandoned when magazines and the public began to brutalize other developers for using fog to hide polygon count.[2] The snow levels have become one of the more memorable locales among fans due to their plentiful effects, such as falling snow and reflective ice.[2]
[edit] Characters
While traveling on his adventure alone, Crash receives messages in the Warp Room from Doctor Cortex, his younger sister Coco, and the deranged scientist Doctor Nitrus Brio, Cortex's former right-hand man. The game also introduces Doctor N. Gin as Cortex's new right-hand man, while also marking the return of the insane kangaroo Ripper Roo and the introduction of three new enemies: the Komodo Brothers Joe and Moe, and the musclebound, unintelligent tiger, Tiny.
[edit] Story
The original Crash Bandicoot largely took place in the Wumpa Islands off the coast of southeast Australia. During an experiment, Neo Cortex and his assistant, Nitrus Brio, created Crash Bandicoot in an attempt to create a general for Neo's "Cortex Commandoes", but when Crash was inserted into the unfinished Cortex Vortex, he was deemed a failure, and escaped from Cortex's castle. Before a female bandicoot named Tawna could be experimented on, Crash returned to the castle, rescued Tawna, and attempted to escape on Cortex's airship. When Cortex tries to destroy Crash, he ends up plummeting to his supposed doom, leaving Crash to escape. Later, it is said that Tawna dumps Crash for Pinstripe Poteroo, however, this is never told in the game.
At the start of the game, Cortex is seen having survived his fall and landed in a damp cave, where he finds a large Crystal that proves to be useful for his upcoming plans. But to obtain the full power needed for these plans, he will also need 25 additional Crystals scattered throughout the Wumpa Islands. Without any comrades of his own, he captures Crash Bandicoot and takes him into a dark room. There, Cortex convinces him to gather the Crystals for him, with the promise of the use of the Crystals for good. He tells Crash that soon the planets will align and this will create a catastrophic solar flux and that the Crystals are the only means of contatining this force. His true intentions are revealed to Crash by his sister Coco once all of the Crystals have been gathered, and Cortex is defeated just in time for the Cortex Vortex not to be used. In the game's epilogue, Doctor Cortex's space station is destroyed by Doctor Nitrus Brio using the laser beam powered by the gems Crash collected for him, setting the stage for the next game.
[edit] Bosses
Ripper Roo returns from the first game of the trilogy serving under Nitrus Brio, in an attempt to stop him from gathering the 25 Crystals for Doctor Neo Cortex. The level takes place around a waterfall, much like the first game, with platforms scattered above the water. Having been trying to smart up since his previous defeat, the insane kangaroo places numerous TNT boxes on the platforms to destroy Crash, but Crash manages to dodge the explosions. Then, Ripper Roo decides to place NITRO boxes on the platforms, but when he jumps on them, the explosion hits him, giving Crash time to attack him. As the boss level progresses, Ripper Roo places more and more TNT and NITRO boxes, making it harder. In the end, Ripper Roo gets hit by his own explosion and is knocked out cold by Crash.
With Ripper Roo defeated, Nitrus Brio recruits the Komodo Brothers. The boss level takes place in an ancient room, with decorated curtains. The brains of the operation, Komodo Joe, is knocked by Komodo Moe into a spin, in an attempt to defeat Crash, with the aid of Komodo Moe throwing swords at Crash. However, when Komodo Joe gets dizzy, Crash exploits his opening and spins into Komodo Moe. This is repeated until both the brothers are knocked out and Crash is able to procede to the third Warp Room.
Crash eventually finds himself inside a space station, where he is faced with the aggressive Tiny Tiger, a dangerous tiger with superhuman strength who can rip through metal and any other substance. There are nine platforms, ordered in a three-by-three fashion, and a bottomless pit beneath them. However, the platforms are faulty, and are constantly malfunctioning and deactivating. Tiny uses his supernatural jumping ability to try and crush Crash beneath his feet, but Crash uses the malfunctioning platforms to his advantages and lures Tiny into a trap, making him step on one of the faulty platforms and causing him to fall to his doom. At the end, when the platform Tiny fell off reappears, Tiny falls off, unconscious.
An infamous physicist within the Defense industry with a live missile lodged in his head, Dr. N. Gin uses a gigantic robot in an attempt to destroy Crash in a giant space station. After he demands that Crash give him the 20 Crystals that he has collected, N. Gin fires numerous laser beams and missiles at Crash. But Crash takes advantage of the fact that when N. Gin opens one of his rocket launchers, he fires Wumpa Fruit at them, eventually blasting them off. Having lost the ability to use any of his robot's arms, N. Gin uses his last laser beam to disintegrate the platforms and lure Crash into the bottomless pit. But Crash fires his Wumpa Fruit to destroy N. Gin's robot into debris and send N. Gin into the vacuum of space.
His plans revealed by Coco Bandicoot, Dr. Neo Cortex decides to escape his space station through a portal and activate his Cortex Vortex. But Crash chases Cortex through space using his jetpack and spins him a couple times, defeating the mad scientist and foiling his troublesome plans. In the ending credits, if you haven't collected all of the Gems, the Cortex Vortex is seen still floating in space.
[edit] Reception
Crash Bandicoot 2's public reception has been overall positive in terms of critical reviews and acclaim, with an average rating of 89% on Game Rankings.[3] GameSpot stated the game was a major improvement over its predecessor, praising the game's graphics and soundtrack, rating the game 8.6 out of 10[4] in comparison to their rating of the original Crash Bandicoot as 6.8 out of 10.[5] IGN, which rated it 8.5 out of 10, praised its graphics and controls but criticised its repetitive level design.[6] Over three million copies of the game have been sold.[7]
[edit] References
- ^ Crash Bandicoot 2 Gallery. Retrieved on 2007-06-23.
- ^ a b Setting. Retrieved on 2007-06-23.
- ^ GameRankings Retrieved 2007-07-9
- ^ GameSpot review Retrieved 2007-07-09
- ^ GameSpot Retrieved 2007-07-09
- ^ IGN review Retrieved 2007-07-9
- ^ Sales Retrieved 2007-07-09
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
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