In 2017, Activision released Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy, which remade the Naughty Dog Crash Bandicoot games with vastly improved visuals and new gameplay features. Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy was a hit with critics and fans alike, earning strong reviews at the time of its release and selling over 10 million units. The success of Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy proved that there was still a sizable audience for the classic platforming series, convincing Activision to give the greenlight to Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time, which is pretty much exactly what fans would want from a new game in the series.

Crash Bandicoot 4 completely ignores all of the Crash games developed by studios other than Naughty Dog, serving as a direct sequel to 1998's Crash Bandicoot: Warped. The game begins with antagonist Uka Uka using all his power to open a rift that allows Dr. Neo Cortex and N. Tropy to escape and start traveling to different dimensions. The benevolent magic mask Aku Aku senses this and once again recruits Crash and Coco for an adventure to save the world.

As far as storylines in Crash Bandicoot games go, Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time is easily the best to date, with great character moments, funny dialogue, and clever references to the series' past. It's not going to win any awards for storytelling, but it's more than what fans would expect from a Crash Bandicoot platformer, and the cut-scenes are a consistently entertaining treat from start to finish.

Crash Bandicoot 4's cast of characters is a big reason why the story is so entertaining. Crash and Coco are once again the stars of the show and are the main playable characters in the bulk of the levels, able to utilize the abilities they learned throughout the original Crash Bandicoot game trilogy. However, Crash Bandicoot 4 gives other characters some time in the spotlight as well.

Besides Crash and Coco, there are three other playable characters in Crash Bandicoot 4, and each one plays different enough that their levels feel genuinely fresh and inject a lot of variety into the experience. The standout playable character is an interdimensional version of Crash's old flame Tawna, who comes equipped with a useful grappling hook and can bounce off walls.

The developers have succeeded in rehabilitating Tawna's image in this game, turning her from a generic damsel-in-distress to someone that can hold her own in a fight and is genuinely fun to play. The wall-bouncing is a little touchy, but the grappling hook is a great addition that adds an interesting wrinkle to the standard Crash Bandicoot platforming gameplay.

Players also get the chance to play as some of the Crash Bandicoot franchise's most recognizable villains in Crash Bandicoot 4. Dingo Dile is one such playable villain, with his levels focused more on hovering over gaps and shooting enemies with TNT crates. Dingo Dile's stages play much differently than the Crash, Coco, and Tawna levels, which is definitely to the benefit of the game's pacing and keeps things from getting dull.

Dr. Neo Cortex is the final playable character in Crash Bandicoot 4, and his levels are the biggest departure from the rest. Cortex lacks the double jump capabilities of the other characters, and instead has to rely on a dash move to get across gaps. Cortex also can't hit enemies with a spin move, and instead uses a special ray gun that transforms them into platforms. Cortex can choose between concrete or bouncy platforms, and knowing when to utilize each one is key to success in his stages.

Getting to play as characters other than Crash and Coco is fun in Crash Bandicoot 4, but fans should make no mistake that Crash and Coco are the still the main focus. Their levels consist of classic Crash Bandicoot platforming gameplay, with players having to make perfectly-timed jumps while spinning away enemies and smashing as many crates as possible. It's exactly what someone would want from a new Crash Bandicoot game, and so for fans of the franchise, picking up Crash Bandicoot 4 is really a no-brainer.

While Toys for Bob could have emulated the classic Crash Bandicoot experience and called it a day, the developers have gone the extra mile to add some new gimmicks that shake things up a bit. In Crash Bandicoot 4, players have to utilize the Quantum Masks, which imbue Crash and Coco with special abilities like being able to slow down time, phase things in and out of existence, have an extra powerful spin attack, and even reverse gravity. The Quantum Masks are part of the more unique and challenging portions of Crash Bandicoot 4, and while they can be tricky to get used to, players will master them with enough practice.

The Quantum Mask sections aren't the only challenging parts of Crash Bandicoot 4. In updating the Crash Bandicoot experience for modern audiences, Toys for Bob retained the series' tough-as-nails gameplay, with some truly brutal sections that will push players' skill to the limit. There was a section in one of the last levels where we died well over 50 times alone (the game keeps track), so fans should go in expecting a genuine challenge.

Crash Bandicoot 4 is an extremely challenging game, but it feels less cheap than its predecessors. The platforming is tighter, and most of the time, the player is at fault whenever they die. There are still some issues with depth perception and things like wall-bouncing/running don't always work like they should, but otherwise, the game stays fair. In fact, it even makes some concessions to ease frustrations compared to the older Crash Bandicoot titles.

Crash Bandicoot 4 lets players choose between a Retro mode or a Modern mode. Retro mode is old-school Crash Bandicoot, with players having to deal with limited lives on top of everything else. The Modern mode takes lives out of the equation, so players can infinitely restart at the last checkpoint. The game recommends players use the Modern setting, but Retro is slightly more fun. It makes exploring the levels more rewarding, as collecting the wumpa fruit becomes paramount to success, and since losing all of one's lives means restarting an entire level, the stakes are much higher.

In Modern mode, there is still at least some point to collecting the wumpa fruit, even if additional lives aren't a factor. Each stage in Crash Bandicoot 4 has multiple gems to unlock, with three gems earned by collecting the majority of a stage's wumpa fruit. Unlocking gems yields other rewards, particularly access to Crash Bandicoot 4's alternate skins, of which there's quite the variety. And they even appear in cut-scenes, which is a nice touch.

Crash Bandicoot 4 players can also find hidden gems in the levels or unlock them by smashing all the crates, but this is where the game becomes excessively difficult. Getting through Crash Bandicoot 4 normally is a tough challenge, but getting 100% completion in the game is absurdly hard, to the point where most players will likely not even think about making an attempt. And unfortunately, there are some interesting and important story developments locked behind 100% completion.

Crash Bandicoot 4's "endgame" content is a weakpoint. The game is a blast when playing through the initial story and the N. Verted levels' unique art styles are impressive, but the other extra content is either extremely difficult or tedious. Besides trying to smash every crate and collect all the gems, players can also complete Flashback Tape levels, which are short challenges that are presented as recordings of Cortex's initial experiments with Crash from 1996. There are also extra levels starring Cortex, Dingo Dile, and Tawna that show previously-completed story levels from their perspective.

What's cool about these bonus levels is that they explain why certain things happen in the Crash and Coco levels. Plus, they give players more opportunities to play as the fun new playable characters. On the downside, these levels also force players to replay long sections of stages that they've already completed, and so it comes across as padding.

Crash Bandicoot 4 has co-op and versus multiplayer modes as well, but they are nothing to write home about. The Pass n Play co-op mode is pointless, as all it does is highlight Crash and Coco in ugly, distracting neon colors with restrictions on whose turn it is. Players can accomplish the same thing without the neon outlines (which really serve no purpose since players aren't playing simultaneously) and can follow their own rules as to whose turn it is by sticking with the standard single-player mode.

The Crash Bandicoot 4 versus multiplayer modes include a race to see who can get to a checkpoint the fastest and another to see who can get the highest crate combo. There are no unique stages created for multiplayer, and instead it has players going through the same levels that they play through in the story. The multiplayer feels tacked-on, and it's unlikely that players will spend much time with it outside of unlocking some of Crash 4's trophies.

It's safe to say that the vast majority of people who are interested in Crash Bandicoot 4 won't be picking the game up for multiplayer anyway, though. And while players may find themselves lacking fun things to do after completing the story, the initial playthrough is an incredibly good time. The controls are tight, the challenge is stiff, and the graphics are second-to-none. Crash Bandicoot 4 is a highly-polished platformer and stands out as easily one of the best platformers available on current-generation consoles.

Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time is out now for PS4 and Xbox One. Game Rant was provided with a PS4 code for this review.