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  • Crash Bandicoot: Warped (PlayStation)

    Posted on by Azrael Comment

    Crash Bandicoot: Warped is the third game in the Crash Bandicoot series. It was developed by Naughty Dog and published by Sony for the PlayStation in 1998. Like the other games in the series, Warped is a 3D platform game. The previous two games were Crash Bandicoot (released in 1996) and Crash Bandicoot 2: Cortex Strikes Back (released in 1997). Crash became the PlayStation’s mascot though it was at a time when mascots were becoming increasingly unimportant. Also, since the Crash series later became multiplatform, he is not as recognizable as a Mascot as Mario for Nintendo or Sonic for Sega. Ironically, Crash is now owned by Activision which is owned by Microsoft.

    This game picks up after the events of Cortex Strikes Back. Once again, as evil characters tend to do, Dr. Neo Cortex and his sidekick Dr. N. Tropy are again attempting to take over the world. Crash, along with his sister Coco Bandicoot and various other friends, must prevent Dr. Neo Cortex’s plans with the “Time Twister” from coming to fruition. With a device called the “Time Twister”, you know time travel will be involved. This game takes place in various historical time periods including the prehistoric age, medieval times, and ancient Egypt. Enemies feature not only Dr. Neo Cortex and Dr. N. Tropy but a variety of other bosses including the jester Dingodile, the armored dinosaur Pinstripe and others. The goal of the game is to defeat each boss and collect crystals necessary to defeat N. Tropy.

    The basic game play elements are similar to the previous games in the series. Like in the other games, Crash can still jump, spin, etc. through the various platform levels. However, there are some new game play elements introduced in this game as well including riding a motorcycle, flying an airplane, exploring underwater, and more. Also, in addition to the standard moves, various power-ups are introduced including the Super Belly Flop, among others. The game is centered around a series of “warp rooms,” each of which represents a different time period. These warp rooms act as hubs from which Crash can enter levels. This game makes good use of the time travel design to provide a wide variety of levels and bosses. As you might expect, there are also many secrets to unlock. To add to the variety, there are also mini-games.

    The graphics were some of the best available on the PlayStation at the time. The graphics and sound did an excellent job of creating a cartoon-like atmosphere. The game also makes good use of the various time period to provide a wide variety of graphic settings. Likewise, the soundtrack is excellent with a variety of catchy and upbeat songs. For those that played Warped back in the day, I’m sure these tunes trigger a wave of Nostalgia.

    Crash Bandicoot: Warped was probably the best game in the series up until that point. It is an excellent example of the capabilities of the PlayStation and overall, is an excellent platform game. If you like this style of game, then this is one you should at least try. The first two games in the series are worth playing as well. Warped was the last game in the main series to be released on the PlayStation though a racing game (Crash Team Racing) and a party game (Crash Bash) would be released for the PlayStation over the next couple of years. The main series would continue though it would become multiplatform series after Warped.

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    Originally posted here: https://peakd.com/retrogaming/@darth-azrael/crash-bandicoot-warped-playstation?ref=darth-azrael


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  • Clock Tower: First Fear (PlayStation)

    Posted on by Azrael Comment

    https://darth-azrael.tumblr.com/post/764829916914155520/obscurevideogames-2006japan2002-clock-tower

    Clock Tower: First Fear isn’t really a sequel to Clock Tower but an updated port. The original was released for the Super NES in 1995 while First Fear was updated and released on the PlayStation in 1997. These games could best be described as point and click survival horror games. To make matters confusing, this game was never released in the U.S. There was a Clock Tower released for the PlayStation in the U.S. but this was actually Clock Tower 2 in Japan.

    The premise of the game revolves around a girl with a split personality. A “normal” one and an alter ego named Mr. Bates. It’s sort of a Dr. Jekyl and Mr. Hyde sort of thing. Your role of course is that of the girl in question. To makes things worse, you have a family with homicidal members. Your goal is to figure out the source of your dual personality.

    While mostly the same as the original, First Fear does have some differences. First, the graphics have been improved. The remake took advantage of the improved hardware of the PlayStation over the Super NES. Improvements include better animation, 3D character models, and more detailed models among other things.

    Likewise, the sound and music were improved. The PlayStation allowed for things that were not really possible on the Super NES such as voice acting and animated cutscenes. The music was also improved not that the Super NES had bad music.

    There were also some game play and control differences. While First Fear retained the same basic point and click interface, you could move the character around with the analog stick instead of having to point and click where you wanted to move. This made the game a little bit easier to play. Another change made was to the ending. An alternate ending sequence with more closure was provided.

    While whether or not some of the changes above are really improvements or not can be a matter of personal preference. However, I would say that if you were going to pick one of these games to play, I would go with the the remake, Clock Tower: First Fear, over the original Clock Tower. However, the original feels a bit more like the classic point and click adventures you would find on the PC. So at the end of the day, like I said, it comes down to a matter of personal preference.

    For the most part, I’m not a huge fan of point and click adventures but there are definitely exceptions. LucasArts made some great ones and I think the suspense that the survival horror theme makes works well with the genre. So if you are a point and click fan or a survival horror fan, this one is at least worth giving a try. There are fan made translations so it is possible to play in English language form even though there was never an official release.


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  • Resident Evil 3: Nemesis (PlayStation)

    Posted on by Azrael Comment

    While survival horror games existed before the Resident Evil franchise, I would say that the Resident Evil franchise is what brought that terminology into common parlance. “Resident Evil 3: Nemesis,” released for the PlayStation in 1999, is the third game in this franchise and like the others was published by Capcom. It immediately follows the events of “Resident Evil 2” continuing the story of the zombie infested Raccoon City. The main character of this game is Jill Valentine, a member of the Special Tactics and Rescue Service (STARS). The story involves her attempted escape from the city during the continuing zombie outbreak. And of course ther is a new major antagonist to deal with. This one is called Nemesis, hence the title of the game.

    The main goal of Nemesis is to hunt down surviving STARS members. Nemesis, of course, is much more powerful than your average run of the mill zombie. It also has a nasty habit of popping up seemingly at random. You might find it smashing through a nearby wall or otherwise sneaking up on you at any time.

    At least Jill isn’t alone in her struggle. In this game she teams up with Carlos Oliveira who is a member of the Umbrella Biohazard Countermeasure Service (UBCS). He also finds himself trapped in the city and like Jill, he is trying to escape.

    This game could best be described as a refinement of the two previous entries in the series. It has all of the zombies and various mutations of the previous games along with some new ones, most notably the Nemesis. The graphics are excellent for the time featuring pre-rendered backgrounds, detailed character models, and otherwise nice looking imagery. Likewise, the soundtrack and sound effects are excellent and help add to the sense of suspense. The voice acting is really just okay but it was about as good as you could expect based on the standards of the time.

    The game play mechanics are also refined. This iteration of the franchise introduced a more action oriented approach vs. the first two games. Whether this is actually an improvement or not is somewhat a matter of opinion. If you are like me, then you might prefer the slightly slower pace of the first two games. For those that prefer action though, I’m sure this was generally seen as an improvement.

    Nemesis does offer quite a bit of replayability so at least it isn’t (or doesn’t have to be) a game limited to one play-through. There are multiple endings based both on your choices and how well you do. However, assuming you survive long enough, you will eventually have a final showdown with Nemesis and escape (or not) the city.

    There are a variety of locations to explore throughout the course of the game. Thse include the Raccoon City police station, the streets of Raccoon City, underground areas leading to Raccooon City’s sewer system as well as a laboratory, and more. The environments are highly interactive and you will have to explore and solve puzzles to unlock certain areas. As mentioned above, there are multiple endings and the storyline ends up evolving from a mix of scripted events and player choices.

    If you are a fan of survival horror or the earlier Resident Evil games, then this is one you will definitely want to play. While it isn’t going to be the choice of most for best game in the series and it does not represent as big of a leap as Resident Evil 2 did over the original, it is still a solid game worth playing. In order to play the original you’ll have to grab a copy off of ebay and have an original PlayStation (or PS2) lying around or use emulation. Resident Evil 3 was also ported to the Dreamcast, GameCube and Windows however, despite some improvements, they are also flawed in various ways. It’s probably best to stick with the PlayStation version though the differences are not huge. While Resident Evil 3 was remade for various systems in 2020, I usually tend to always recommend the original. Having said that, the remake is said to do a pretty good job of recreating the feel of the original and it has the advantage of looking much nicer, especially on a high definition screen so there isn’t anything really wrong with the remake if that is the direction you prefer.


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