Barry O'Rourke writes for Culture about the big gaming releases this autumn...
Crash Bandicoot is back – and It's About Time...
Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time is an aptly named game. It’s a story all about time travel, so much so that it serves as a direct sequel to the game Crash Bandicoot: Warped, which was released back in 1998 on the PlayStation 1. Yes, we are all that old now.
A mascot for a golden era in gaming, Crash fans have been patiently waiting for a brand new chapter to his story, to say the least. So has the wait been worth it?
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Crash 4 manages to blend nostalgia with modernity in a new game with a familiar sense of fun. While gameplay requires the same old signature Bandicoot concepts of jumping, spinning, sliding and fruit-collecting, brand new game mechanics and playable characters offer fans sizeable new content.
The storyline is simple and straightforward. You play as either Crash or Coco Bandicoot, who discovers the evil trio of Dr. Cortex, Dr. N. Trophy and Uka Uka have finally escaped their prison in space by causing a rift in the fabric of time. It’s up to the Bandicoot siblings to repair the timeline and bring the villains to justice with the help of the four Quantum Masks.
The new Quantum Masks are possibly the biggest (and best feature) to Crash 4, appearing throughout levels and equipping Crash and Coco with special abilities including slowing down time, reversing gravity and shifting objects in and out of reality.
You might have to slow time down at the precise moment something falls in order to create a pathway. Other times you’ll shift TNT crates and bridges in and out of reality to pass by safely, all the while hoping your brain can keep up with predicting what happens when.
You also get to play as 3 other characters - Tawna, Dingodile and Dr. Cortex himself - adding even variety throughout levels spanning from deserted wastelands, pirate ships to swamps and outer space itself.
There are a number of ways you can play Crash 4. Retro mode is a throwback to Crash’s golden years and is as unforgiving as you remember. Reserved for gamers solely looking to be punished, you collect wumpa fruit to rack up lives; if and when you run out, it’s game over.
Modern mode is something you’ll wish had been available in every Crash game. You have no lives; instead there’s a death counter. Dying in a Crash Bandicoot game is inevitable, but in this mode you’ll simply return to the last checkpoint. If you die a lot (like I do), the game spawns even more checkpoints across the level out of sheer pity. Perform well in levels to earn gems which can be used to buy skins for both Crash and Coco.
The new 'N. Verted Mode’ is another stand-out feature, which generously doubles the replay value of the entire game. In this mode, you replay a mirror-image of a level set to a different art style or playstyle. Secret ‘flashback’ tapes found in levels offer even more insane challenges.
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Crash 4 also introduces a new local-multiplayer element to the game. 'Pass N. Play' mode lets up to 4 players tackle the main story together, passing the controller each time someone dies, reaches a checkpoint or both. It’s a novel and unexpected feature that finally gives you a chance to relish in someone else’s frustration at the game.
Crash 4: It’s About Time is simply Crash Bandicoot at his best. New features bundled with the same classic 90s nostalgia elevate the world-famous marsupial into a new era of gaming. And while there is incredible replay value in Crash 4 to keep fans happy for a very long time, my only hope is we aren’t expected to wait too long for the next chapter.
Crash 4: It’s About Time is available on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One
Going Under – a hilarious take on the tech generation.
Whilst Netflix's The Social Dilemma aimed to expose tech companies with accounts from insiders, in Going Under you play as an insider. And it is hilarious.
Set in the dystopian city of Neo-Cascadia, Going Under is a dungeon crawler about exploring the cursed ruins of failed tech start-ups. You play as a young, unpaid marketing intern named Jackie, whose big dreams include someday affording health insurance.
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Joining a high-tech drinks brand named Fizzle to get marketing experience, Jackie is tasked with 'one small job’ first; defeating the labyrinths of monsters living below in the company basements. From fighting caffeinated contractor goblins to skeletons in a crypto-currency crypt, the satire in Going Under is always on, always clever, and always unapologetic.
Throughout the game, you’ll be met at every corner with a joke, an eye-roll and an amusing riff on some part of millennial life. Avocado Toast restores your health and is aptly described as ‘a delicious alternative to home ownership.’
Skills such as Influencer and Self-Starter help make Jackie stronger. Your friend, the senior accountant, advises you to start picking up change from the floor if you want to earn any money.
As a dungeon crawler, each level in Going Under is randomly generated, so no two visits will ever truly be quite the same. Your main goal remains singular, however - eliminate the end-boss and make it out alive.
To fight these enemies, Jackie can interact with (and make weapons out of) virtually everything around her. It’s in the combat that Going Under is deceptively sophisticated. Bash enemies with pencils and keyboards. Fire yoga balls and potted plants like missiles that ricochet off walls. There are literal money guns to fire cash at your problems.
Going Under fully commits to its dissection of millennial and tech culture. The gameplay is chaotic, the parody delicious.
Going Under is available on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch and PC.
Tamarin - an adorable gun-wielding monkey has revenge on his mind
You cannot deny the sheer cuteness of Tamarin. That is, until an insect army invades your homeland and kidnaps your family.
With your habitat destroyed and industrial factories set up, the water becomes polluted and toxic. Trees are burnt to a crisp. It's a simple story that serves as a tragic metaphor.
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Luckily, your friendly neighbourhood hedgehog doubles as an arms dealer and gives you a variety of guns and weaponry throughout your journey, including guns, rocket launchers and shuriken to enact your revenge.
As you jump, shoot and roll your way through a number of Insect-infested levels, the slapstick humour and bizarre mix of platformer and shooter gameplay of Tamarin will certainly feel novel and fresh.
With no map keeping track of where you are and where you need to go, navigating around Tamarin can be difficult, but perhaps it’s a level of frustration needed to make a platform game that bit more challenging.
And Tamarin certainly is challenging. With a plethora of collectibles, from rescuing and rehoming birds across levels to capturing a huge array of elusive fireflies, puzzle-game fans will find Tamarin a straight-forward, but entertaining experience.
Tamarin is available on PlayStation 4 and PC.
Barry O'Rourke
