When Crash Bandicoot: The Wrath of Cortex was released on the PS2 last fall it was greeted with lukewarm reviews and accused of being far too derivative for its own good and the inexcusably long load times didn’t help matters either.  Thankfully, Wrath of Cortex has been somewhat refined and enhanced for its Xbox debut, but this is still the same game with only two notable exceptions.  First, the graphics have been given an extra layer of polish and the jarringly long load-times have been cut down considerably.  The legacy that Naughty Dog started on the PSX has been faithfully carried over to current-technology consoles – too faithfully in fact.  All the been-there done-that sequences of Bandicoot-past have been revived in full form on Crash Bandicoot: Wrath of Cortex for the Xbox.  Everything from the obligatory mine-cart chases to the run-away-from-enemy-tunnel-chase levels are in attendance.  It seems Universal Interactive just doesn’t think Crash should evolve from his original form.  This can be good or bad depending on your perspective but one thing is for sure, the Crash franchise will go the way of the Tomb Raider series if Universal refuses to reinvent, or at least innovate on the current formula for Crash Bandicoot games in the future.

The story for Wrath of Cortex is not unlike that of its predecessors; Uka Uka and Dr. Cortex are working together with the aide of the ‘elementals’ to do away with their long-time foe Crash.  The utilization of the four forces known simply as elements will give Dr. Cortex the ability to unleash the powers of earth, wind, fire, water, and a bandicoot-bashing foe named Crunch on Crash in an effort to put a stop to his constant meddling.  Each world in WOC, which consists of 5 levels and a boss fight, are centered around the traits of each specific element, with Dr. Cortex’s world centered around electricity and gadgetry-type scenery.  There is a fair amount of side-scrolling portions in the game, which will become apparent once you find one of many bonus stages scattered throughout the game, water-based levels are also strictly side-scrolling.  The majority of the game allows crash to move in all 8 directions giving the game a full 3D style sense, but since the game pushes you in only one direction at all times you’ll find that progression is incredibly linear.

Lots of cool graphical enhancements are included with the Xbox version, like realistic fur, and real-time lighting, reflection, and particle effects.  Crash has never looked this good before thanks to the technical superiority of the ‘box.  Environments are super-colorful and offer many diverse enemies.  Levels are much larger and draw distances much farther then previous Crash games.  Textures are crisp and clean with virtually no aliasing defects.  By Crash Bandicoot standards this game looks great, but when compared to other Xbox games on the market this title is only marginally above average.  Cut-scenes are cartoony and lip-syncing is for the most part spot-on, though not quite as impressive as Jak and Daxter.

Sound effects are at best, uninspired but you may not even notice since the soundtrack of the game overshadows the played-out sound effects with a cool, addictive, happy-go-lucky-type feel.  Each stage offers a new and fun musical track that actually enhances the overall experience. 

As with previous Bandicoot games you will find that level design is very diversified.  Levels include lots of cool vehicles, and gameplay dynamics that do a good job of keeping the action fresh.  Of the more notable sequences in the game are the Hamster-ball levels that allow you to move around Super Monkey Ball style.  Other variations in transportation are the mini-copter, jeep, mech-suit, and one-person submarine.  You’ll also be given control of various aircrafts to dispose of Cortex’s army of minions.  Coco, Crash’s sister, will take center stage in a few of the game’s levels.  She controls nearly identically to Crash but lacks his special abilities.  Most of Coco’s stages consist of simply run-and-jump dynamics.  Crash himself controls very similarly as he did in the previous games, all the trademark moves are present like spin, slide, and crawl.   

After each boss fight you will be given a new special move to help Crash successfully complete the following levels.  Special moves include the ability to tiptoe, perform a crash-dash, death-tornado or super double-jump.  You’ll also be awarded with a Bazooka that you can use by holding the left-trigger and pressing B to shoot.  While these new moves are a nice addition, they are rarely necessary to progress through a level.

Since there is no option to move the camera perspective you’ll find yourself dying unnecessarily due to blind-spot pitfalls and out-of-the-way nitro crates.  This annoying aspect relegates certain levels to trial and error, having to memorize what your supposed to do in order to progress is not something that this reviewer finds entertaining.  As you make your way to the end of each stage you’ll collect peaches, after collecting 100 you will be awarded with one free life.  You’ll also need to retrieve a crystal on each stage, which reduces the overall power of the four elemental masks. 

Like most platforming games, Wrath of Cortex offers extended play by means of a Time Trial option which allows you to replay levels you’ve already beaten in hopes of besting your previous time and receiving a ‘relic’ as your award.  Gems are also scattered throughout the game and collecting them all will allow you to watch the ‘true’ ending of the game, but its unlikely that you’ll have the patience to replay the game after your first time through since the game can get very tedious after only a few hours.  Luckily, or maybe unluckily, the game only offers around 5 full hours of gametime – 5 hours ain’t worth a purchase no matter how you cut it.

Crash fans who dig the simple platforming dynamics of the past Crash outings will be pleasantly surprised with Wrath of Cortex, but if you are looking for an innovative and original experience that does justice to the series you’ll have to look elsewhere.  Platform games are lacking on the Xbox however and for most people WOC may be their only option.  For those people I would suggest giving this game a chance but only as a rental.

Gameplay: 7.6
Gameplay is about what you’d expect from a Crash Bandicoot game.  Control is simple with attack and jump being the main moves, which are performed by hitting the A, or X buttons.  The lack of camera maneuverability makes difficult to negotiate jumps on certain levels.

Graphics: 7.4
While somewhat cleaned up from the PS2 version graphics are sill somewhat unimpressive when you consider the potential of the Xbox.  Overall though, the visuals are colorful and crisp with animation rarely dipping below the 60FPS mark.  Graphical enhancements like real-time lighting reflections and a cool fur effect also help to propel this port slightly higher then its PS2 counterpart.

Sound: 8.1
Music is consistently fresh and memorable.  Each stage provides a new aural experience that actually enhances the overall enjoyability of the game.  Sound effects are bland and rarely stand out in any positive way.  Voice-overs are believable and there is even a cameo by Mark Hammill.

Difficulty: Easy
You’ll easily plow through this game in one night.  Collecting all the various gems and relics may prove to be somewhat time-consuming but it is unlikely that you’ll take the time to replay the game since aside from an alternative ending there is little reward given for the amount of time required to collect every item.

Concept: 5.2 
With the exception of enhanced graphics, a few new moves and vehicles this is basically your same-old Crash Bandicoot type game that was first released way back in 1996.  The developers of Wrath of Cortex have done little to innovate on the tried-and-true design that Naughty Dog created.

Overall: 7.1

If you’ve been hankering for some down-home Crash Bandicoot platforming action then you’ll be right at home with this title.  If however your tastes are a bit more discriminating then it might be a good idea to avoid purchase all together and opt for a single night rental.