Crash Bandicoot - N. Sane Trilogy (Vicarious Visions Game, PS4, 2017) - Reviewed by AlanG

There is a general rule in life; you don’t mess with a classic. You are almost certainly setting yourself up to fail. Volkswagon tried with the re-launch of the ‘Mini’ and while the German version of the British classic car may be a solid vehicle and has racked up good sales, true fans of the original will say that the new car has none of the character that made it’s predecessor so revered. In recent years we have seen modern remakes of classic BBC comedies: ‘Yes Minister’ and ‘Porridge’. ‘Yes Minister’, despite being penned by the same writing team was an abhorrent mess, a complete insult to the class and quality that oozed from the original, and ‘Porridge’ (again from the pen of the original writers) while not quite as deeply unpleasant was still extremely forgettable. In a nutshell, if something has already been nailed, there is little point in trying to improve it.

Crash Bandicoot (Naughty Dog game, PS1, 1996) reviewed by AlanG

It is impossible to review a platform game without mentioning a certain Italian plumber or a blue hedgehog. They basically laid down the blueprint for the genre, setting the standards for the world to follow and every subsequent effort is measured against them. Their games demonstrated that there are some elements that are a prerequisite for such a game to be successful. It must be challenging. It must be fun. The levels need to offer variety. It shouldn’t be possible to be killed by something that was previously unseen. There should be a central character that is cute and appealing. It should be well drawn and the levels should be clear and well laid out. It needs that ‘one more go’ factor and, above all, it must be fun. Seemingly a straightforward list, but the halls of gaming history are littered with those that tried and completely failed to repeat the formula.