Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time Returns to the Series’ Roots

Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time was probably the worst-kept secret for the Summer Game Fest after logos, ratings, and screenshots leaked last week. Crash Bandicoot 4 launches October 2. Here’s what it’s all about.

The trailer sets up Crash 4‘s premise, which is charactersitically goofy and an excuse for new powers and crazy platforming levels. Neo Cortex was banished to the past and works with Uka Uka to rip holes in the space-time continuum, exposing a multiverse and setting Crash on a journey to restore order by collecting the Four Quantum Masks.

You’ll be playing as Crash and Coco, just like in Crash 3, and it looks like classic enemies including N.Tropy make a return as well. There’s also a stage showing Cortex handling some platforming challenges, and Geoff Keighley later confirmed Cortex is playable in Crash 4. You can choose between Crash and Coco at any point, and they both have the same moveset.

You’ll also encounter other characters at certain points, like Cortex, and you can use their special powers — Cortex’s ray gun for example — to add a different layer of challenge and strategy to getting through levels.

Paul Yan from Toys for Bob introduced two of the Four Quantum Masks as well, the Time Mask and Gravity Mask. The Time Mask lets you slow down time to deal with certain challenges (like getting away from explosive Nitro crates). The Gravity Mask lets Crash invert the laws of gravity to walk on ceilings or the undersides of platforms, among other things.

Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time! is from the minds behind the original Crash trilogy remaster and the Spyro remaster. Toys for Bob decided to go back to the original trilogy to try and build on it since reception for the N.Sane Trilogy was so positive.

Despite Crash 4 releasing over 20 years after Crash Bandicoot 3: Warped, it’s retaining the classic linear platforming level design of the originals. This, too, was based on fan feedback, where fans said returning to classic platforming challenges and “densely packed” level design was refreshing in the face of so many open-world, non-linear games.

As mentioned, Crash Bandicoot 4 launches October 2 for PlayStation 4, and Xbox One. Stay tuned to GameSkinny for more Crash 4 news as it develops.