Crash, the orangey bandicoot that helped launch the career of Sony’s original PlayStation back in 1996, has been leaping platforms and spinning through swathes of enemies for eleven years and fourteen games now. Mysteriously, for this latest pun-laden outing he looks younger than ever, his fresh face emblazoned across packaging that looks to have been precisely aimed at the younger end of the games market. It’s a suspicion confirmed by the simple story which concerns ‘Mojo’, a mysterious, newly-discovered substance which the evil Doctor Neo Cortex is using to create an army of obedient mutants from the inhabitants of the Wumpa islands.

The player is tunnelled through twenty levels ranging in theme and style from a green forest, a mining area, and the obligatory lava level on the way to Cortex’s final ostentatious bachelor pad. Within each the aim of the game is to move forward to the goal, attacking enemies with punches, kicks and a Taz-from-Looney Tunes style spinning move, collecting Mojo (to unlock new moves) and taking control of the game’s larger enemies in a new feature dubbed ‘jacking’.

When Crash encounters one of the game’s larger enemies he must chip away at its health until it becomes stunned. While in this dazed state a simple tap of the B button will see Crash launch himself into the air before landing onto its back and slipping a mask onto its face at which point the helpless enemy becomes a vehicle to ride, complete with its own special abilities.

It’s a good idea and riding a hulking dinosaur around impaling mad scientists on your tusks is compelling, if simple fun. To keep the interest up Crash has a number of non-combative moves to manoevre himself around environments with. A backwards, Mario-style, high-jump allows players to access high ledges while tapping the X-button in freefall sees Crash spin in mid-air to slow his descent providing access to faraway ledges. The character is quick and easy to control and, when joined by a second player in co-operative mode, skilled players will make short work of each episode.

The game is solid and colourful but lacks the detail and intricacy of, for example, Viva Piñata’s similar art style. The dialogue is whimsical and silly and will appeal to a certain type of younger gamer. The music is interesting and varied and while all of these presentational elements are good, if unremarkable, the game is ultimately let down by its repetitive mechanics and linear, corridored environments.

Indeed, while there is some fun to be had from collecting all of the various items and unlocks in each episode, Crash of the Titans lacks the variety and expanse of even much older platforming games. The ingenious combat mechanics make up for this a little but, as they don’t require much attention other than simple button mashing, they are cheapened somewhat.

Crash is a game that combines simple platforming with simple item collecting and simple combat. The jacking idea does add interest but, sadly, interest that likely won’t last the course of the game to anyone over a certain age.

2 out of 5