Gameplay
For those who have played Crash Team Racing it will not be difficult to get used to it here. We are also free to choose between the characters we want to follow. The characters are strictly divided into heroes and villains, and depending on which side you choose, you will get a certain ending. The design of the game is similar to the last racing game in the series, where the racer was placed on the arena, which led to different levels. There are five worlds in Crash Nitro Kart, each with four tracks and one compulsory boss. The central point is the Colosseum-like arena, where you'll travel from. By taking first place in all levels of a particular zone, you get access to the battle with the boss. If you win the boss, you get a key that will open the gates to the next zone. And so on until the very end. For lovers of collecting there is also a bonus world. It is noteworthy that in addition to opening new areas of the game, the won key gives the opportunity to pass the already familiar levels in special modes. The developers did not think twice about it and decided to take over the side missions directly from Crash Team Racing. Thus, there is a game mode for the time in which you have to drive three laps on a particular track in as little time as possible. Depending on how fast you are, you can be awarded a sapphire, silver, gold or even platinum relic. The situation is somewhat alleviated by the wooden boxes with numbers on the edges scattered around the perimeter of the level. By breaking such a box, you automatically freeze the timer for one, two or three seconds. If you don't have to strain yourself especially to get the sapphire relict, you will waste all your nerves to get the platinum. What's that, and exorbitant complexity has always been the hallmark of the series. The other mode will run like a normal race, with the only difference that now you will not only have to finish first, but also collect three letters hidden at the level of "C", "N" and "K". A special badge is given for the victory, which serves as a pass to the special tournament. And the victory in that tournament gives a precious stone. In general, there is definitely something to collect here. Luckily, it's not meaningless - if you show tenacity and collect all the collectibles, you'll get the final bout with Velo and an alternative ending. Believe me, it is worth it.
Crash Nitro Kart pretends to be Crash Team Racing with all its subtleties of control and tricks that allow you to hone your tactics for months. But with all due respect, he's not doing it the best way. It's hard for me to find an explanation for that: the acceleration tiles seem to work just as well as they did before; the slippage with jumps seems to have a similar physics, but you won't find the same feeling of excitement and wild speed here. Maybe it's about building the tracks themselves, or maybe it's just that my mind is too conservative and unwilling to praise a product that isn't under the wing of Naughty Dog, but one thing is clear - the effect produced by Crash Team Racing isn't here. Another omission, even more subjective - Oxid, the main antagonist of the previous races, for some reason lost his super tricked-out transport and moved into the maps more modestly. It is clear that he was downgraded and equated with the others, but it's still a shame.
Just like in the previous race, in Crash Nitro Kart you can, and even need to act dirty methods to achieve victory. There are special wooden boxes around the perimeter of the racetrack that contain special bonuses. Breaking such a box, you get a randomly generated ability that you can activate at the touch of a button. These abilities are a whole heap, such as additional acceleration. But of course, the bulk of it is aimed at sins. Bombs that you can leave behind you or self-directed missiles - all this greatly enriches the gameplay and gives a lot of fun. Except we've been through it all before.
Circuit design is definitely a strength of the game. They all don't look alike, and they experiment with mechanics. For example, there are a couple of interesting sections, where the map, spitting on the laws of gravity soars up or climbed the wall and sucked to it. But here, unfortunately, there is something to pick on - some tracks impudently copy parts of the tracks from the last racing game. Either it's a tribute to Naughty Dog, or it's an uncovered raspberry - it's not clear. But those who played in Crash Team Racing, will certainly notice this nuance. In addition, the history mode here is not allowed to be short - obviously, the main bet is made on multiplayer.
But in addition to network modes, there is something to do. For example, there is a standard racing mode for the game for the time being. In it you drive in a proud loneliness and numerical boxes do not make your eyes blush. The goal here is not to collect relics and other valuables, but to set your own record. Once you've saved your best score, you can start over and compete with your own ghost. Beat the Ghost - Update the result and race with the updated ghost. And so on to infinity. Of course, you're free to choose any character or track you like. Unfortunately, unlike Crash Team Racing, if you set up a fast enough result on all tracks, you won't open any H. Tropics. A pity! Blue temporary man would fit very well into this alien world.
The next mode is called "team mode". Its meaning is to act in concert with your partner. Your ally is controlled by a computer. When you are close to each other, a special scale begins to fill in. When it is filled in, you get access to a special trick called "Madness", which means that you have access to an unlimited number of all kinds of reinforcements and weapons. Finally, the most entertaining mode is the arena fights. Here you don't have to go anywhere, the tracks form an open space, where several participants travel chaotically and shoot missiles and bombs at each other. The goal here is to destroy your opponents. Weapons and other bonuses still need to be searched in boxes. The lesson is really interesting, but not new - all this has already been in the Crash Team Racing and, by the way, is better implemented. Another variation - the collection of scattered crystals in the arena of racing. As it is not difficult to guess, the winner is the one who collects the most crystals. Here you can act alone or as a team. Also, there is a kind of typical team game to capture the flag. All this is quite funny and can give not a little funny minutes, especially if you play with live opponents.
Crash Nitro Kart is a pretty strong game, if you separate it from the rest of the series, and quite mediocre, if you compare it.
Music and sound
The music in Vicarious Visions tries to repeat the success of Crash Team Racing, but he fails. The bizarre melodies written by Mutato Muzika, which are close to his heart, can never be outdone by modern composers. The arrangements themselves, of course, have become more qualitative, but the melodies are stale and not tasty, as if tarnished bread. The soundtrack is quite able to convey the mood, but none of the tracks will reach your players - they turned out to be too fresh. As for the sound, it is not made badly, but without fanaticism. The actors' voices are convincing, and the background noises are in harmony with the picture. Still, there's something missing.
Afterword
Crash Nitro Kart - a game that envy the classics. She tries to overcome the efforts of the guys from Naughty Dog, but the more she tries, the more she makes sure that it is unattainable height. Those people have created an incorruptible work of art that remains relevant through the years. Crash Nitro Kart, on the other hand, looks more perfect and has a lot of brand new content, offering a lot of new characters, tracks and game modes. And it should delight fans. However, on the contrary, people perceive this game as a spit in the face of the series and an attempt to profit from someone else's wonderful idea. The gameplay, despite its vivacity, does not meet the need for speed. The plot, though funny, but too abstract and short. New characters are significantly inferior in charisma to the previous ones. As you can see, on all parameters it is a passing game. And yet, it may well bring satisfaction if you have not previously played in any race with the heroes of platformers.