The remake that all fans have been asking for for years has finally arrived. As with the Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy it has been remade to a near-tee. The nostalgia is once again intense once the disc gets popped in.
The additions to the original are largely the customisation that can be made to the characters and karts. You earn 'cash' by racing, more so when racing online, that can be spent on customisation items. It's well worth noting as well that this also includes the Crash Nitro Kart tracks.
I replayed the original not long before this and the only noticeable gameplay difference is the difficulty. To be successful on the hard difficulty here, you need to be a master of the turbo boost. It was a challenge on the original but not to this degree. On the other hand, medium difficulty is far too easy and most often a bore when racing against AI. This is its largest flaw and the major gameplay difference. Turbo boosting for a whole race is incredibly unappealing to me as a gameplay mechanic which is what you need to do to win against the best online or on the most challenging difficulty.
One of the other issues is the HUD. When you have one lap remaining or when you have knocked someone out in battle modes, the message pops up in the worst possible spot it could, obstructing your view. It's crazy that it passed through testing. I don't think this is dissimilar to the original, but after winning a CTR challenge, race or relic challenge I really don't need to see my character on the podium every time, particularly when these cut-scenes aren't instantaneously skippable. I also don't need to be taken back to the centre of that stage. Why can't you respawn near the track you've just played?
Overall, there are some minor annoyances and hopefully there will be some additions to the online side of things, but all in all it's what every fan wanted from the remake.
Gameplay 4.5/5
Graphics 4/5
Sound 4/5
Difficulty 4/5
Originality 3/5
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