Still one of the benchmarks for video game remakes. Although perhaps some additional quality of life improvements were needed here and there (especially for Crash 1, which hasn't aged particularly well). The N. Sane Trilogy looks great and Crash plays like he always did (for better and worse). The stages where Crash runs toward the screen haven't aged well, and some stages feature backtracking that just doesn't work with Crash's level design. Not to mention some elements are a bit too obtuse. But on the whole, Crash Bandicoot is a delight, and it's a shame the series kind of went off the rails after the PSOne era up until this remastered trilogy (and sadly, even that resurgence didn't last. Thanks a lot, Crash Team Rumble). The N. Sane Trilogy proves that this series had something special going for it, despite its flaws.
Brief reviews for each game:
Crash Bandicoot - The core gameplay is fun, breaking all those crates is satisfying, there's some solid levels sprinkled throughout. But some of the design choices are just illogical, and the difficulty often feels cheap. Don't even get me started on those bridge levels. Yeesh! It's not bad per se, but it feels incredibly unpolished. I kind of wish Vicarious Visions had touched up the game a lot more when making the remaster.
Crash Bandicoot 2: Cortex Strikes Back - A vast improvement over the first game (for the most part). The difficulty curve feels more thought out, better level design all around (although - as mentioned - having the player character run towards the camera was a novelty in its day that age has not been kind to). There are two gems to collect that feature some nonsensical backtracking to obtain, but at least it's limited to just those two. The boss fights feel a tad lazy though. However, Crash 2 is overall a great platformer, and the music is excellent (got to love that Warp Room theme).
Crash Bandicoot Warped - The best and most polished of the lot on the whole, though I do wish some of the gimmick levels (like the dogfights and motorcycle stages) were separate from the main stages, because they take up a good chunk of Warped's level count. Those stages are fun, but with how much Crash's platforming had improved by this point, it's a shame Warped doesn't feature more of it. So, while Warped may be the best overall game of the three, you could argue Crash 2 is the better platformer. Some might argue that Warped is the easiest of the three, but I would defend it because it's only the easiest entry because it lacks the obtuse nonsense of its predecessors and doesn't pull the rug out from under the player like the first game. The boss fights are nothing special, but an improvement over the other games. The soundtrack is another highlight.
Crash Bandicoot: The N. Sane Trilogy has its share of flaws, but it's an undeniable fun time. It was a great launching pad for Crash's resurgence (Crash 4 deserved more love than it got... again, despite some glaring flaws). Crash Bandicoot may not be a masterpiece, but it also doesn't feel like any other platformer. Once you get past the rough edges, there's a lot of entertainment to be had. Whoa!
