Crash has gotten bigger and better

Crash Bandicoot is the closest thing we've got to a bona fide mascot on PlayStation. His original outing met with mixed reviews, his second with overwhelming success, and he's on number three. They say the third time's the charm, and in this bandicoot's case that holds very true.
As you've probably guessed by now, Warped's story centers around time travel. It so happens that our hyperactive hero and his little sister have been caught in a time warp and must not only battle the returning Dr. Neo Cortex, but his boss Uka Uka as well. It's an adventure through time as Crash attempts to recover gems and crystals before these two very bad dudes (and plenty of bosses) can use them in their plans for galactic domination.

Warped is very much like Naughty Dog's previous two efforts at its core. Crash still runs, jumps, and spins his way though vertically and horizontally-scrolling 3D environments, classic platforming game style. But it also has its share of improvements. Among these are a wider variety of locales (eight in all, from ancient Egypt to the future), a second playable character (Crash's sister Coco), and the closest thing to free-roaming environments we're likely to see in a Crash title; a biplane dogfight and Jetski-style ocean outing are just two. All-in-all, there are more than 35 stages.

There's also a time trial mode where you can compete against your buddies to see who can get through levels faster, plus unlock a secret warp room is you beat the top time in each. Naughty Dog has also taken strides to ensure that Dual Shock feedback and analog control are both supported in this sequel. You've no doubt played one of Crash's first two adventures, but how does his third stack up? Here's the verdict straight from our resident experts.

Crash has come a long way, from mascot hopeful to the hardcore platform fan's hero. His latest game may be largely more of the same – that much is true. But in this case, it's more of a good thing, and that's definitely not bad in my book.

Warped is a drop-dead gorgeous game. The textures are impeccable, the animation's top-notch, and the special effects kick some serious booty. It sounds great too (thank heavens for more musical diversity, although I had nothing against Mark Mothersbaugh's score for part two). Play-wise it's the best action-platformer I've played since, well, the last Crash.

On the issue of difficulty, Warped does come up one the easy side. It can be beaten by most experienced players in an afternoon. But it'll take days of play to truly complete the game, finding all of the items, and out-doing each stage's best time. Simple as it may seem, the time trial mode really does a lot to increase the game's longevity.

So what if the game may not offer the most innovation I've ever seen from a sequel? It still brings enough freshness (in the form of its semi free-roaming portions and new play mechanics) and refinement to the table to suit my tastes just fine. Not only that, it's an incredibly fun game.

Crash fans, I've got good news: Warped is a winner. Anyone who enjoyed the first two games won't be disappointed, and if you've never played a lick of Crash before, you're in for a serious treat. Highly recommended.