Average Rating: 
Rating:  - A lot of fun but could have been better
First, let me say my kids love thos game. My daughter is willing to put up with the long load time and other drawbacks. Once you begin to master the game, it's a lot of fun. I've played it with and without them and do find the long loading times annoying but no worse than having to wait for a DVD menu to show up. Patience is the key here I suppose.Initially there are five different games you can play to beat Neocortex. The flying game where you have to destroy tornado generators that are destroying the countryside is quite fun although relatively easy to master. The chase through the castle is probably the most challenging at the moment. Trying to out run the dragon without stepping into a pit is a bit of a challenge. You just have to remember where all the pits are and keep moving. The reason I've given this four stars instead of five are related to the long load times. Still, the graphics are beautifully rendered and the characters, sound effects and challenges are well thought out and imaginative. The violence is mild and most of the fun comes from trying to escape the wizards and knights guarding the castle. Just remember that you can jump on top of the knights and dispose of them quickly this way. On the other hand, the avoid the wizards. Even if you jump on top of them, they'll send you back to the beginning.
Rating: - Another Crash Bandicoot game.
There's not much to say about this one. Vivendi Universal hasn't strayed too far from the formula which made the Crash series on Playstation such a success.There are five worlds and each world has five levels. You can eventually open up a sixth bonus world. You bust open crates to collect fruit and try and get to the end of a level. Some of the levels are rather dull and not at all creative. However, that's not true of all of the levels. Some of them are quite fun. You get to ride on such things as a scooter, snowboard and mine cart just to mention a few. It's this break from the monotony that makes the game a decent platformer. My recommendation is to check it out if you are a Crash fan or a platform junkie. Otherwise, you might consider passing up on this one because it ultimately doesn't offer enough new elements to make it too interesting.
Rating: none - Avoid moving things at all costs!
Avoid moving things at all costs! That's what Crash Bandicoot: The Wrath of Cortex is based on. In each level, the object is normally to guide Crash Bandicoot through the level without touching any moving objects. Most of the moving objects are animals or people. An example would be the spinning penguins. In one of the levels, penguins spin by and if Crash Bandicoot gets bumped or touched by a penguin, he automatically dies. Another example would be green nitrogen boxes. If Crash Bandicoot touches one of those, he automatically dies. Other ways to die include falling, and getting hit by some sort of explosive device thrown by a bad guy. This "one hit and your dead" game play may sound quite hard, but it only makes up for the easiness of finding your way through each level. Getting hit by bad guys and falling are basically the only ways to lose. When Crash Bandicoot dies, he doesn't always start back at the beginning of the level. Thanks to "Checkpoint Crates" or boxes that you can jump on and save your spot, Crash will normally start some where in the middle of the level after he dies (depending on where the last "Checkpoint Crate" he jumped on was). In my opinion, the game play isn't really that much harder than your average game. I'd give it 5 stars for challenge, because the challenge is just right. It's not too hard, but not too easy. On average, it takes about 3 tries to beat the beginning levels. As you go on towards tougher levels, add one more try to each level before you beat it. Now that you know what each level is like, there is still a lot more to this game. Before each level, you start in one big room with smaller rooms attached to it. They are called hubs. Each "hub" or smaller room has 5 separate levels in it. You can choose to go to any of those 5 levels, in any order. Once you beat all 5 levels in a hub, you can try to beat the "boss" or big bad guy. After the boss is defeated, the next hub is unlocked and you are free to try out the levels in that hub. Remember, the only thing you must do to beat a level is to make your way to the end of it. This is a lot like Sonic Adventure 2 Battle, where you get to the golden ring at the end of the level. The only challenge is getting around the bad guys without falling or touching nitrogen boxes. In the end I rate this game 5 stars because I give the... Graphics 5 stars (Very colorful.) Challenge 5 stars (Just right.) Replay-ability 4 stars (Gets a little boring after a while.) Sound 4 stars (Cortex uses the same lines each time but it still sounds realistic.) Levels 5 stars (There are a lot of different levels to play in, and they are all unique.) Loading Time 3 stars (It often stops to load, but doesn't take that long to do so.) Items 5 stars (There are a LOT of items! To name a few: TNT Crates, Crash Crates, Checkpoint Crates, Invisibility Crates, and Surprise Boxes.) Even though I rate this game very high, please consider that there are MANY great games out there. I'm not saying you must buy this game, because some games are better. But I am pretty sure that this is just a well-rounded, fun game, and any body could get this and spend hours of fun playing it.
| 
