During today’s PlayStation State of Play livestream, Activision showed more of Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time. In doing so, they revealed new ways to play, new playable characters and new skins.
The all-new mode of play is called N. Verted mode, and it’s described as being a “a Bumpa-berry fueled mirror mode which lets players traverse through neon wastelands, old timey film sets that crank up gameplay speed and other awe-inspiring new takes on Crash’s world. This bizarre take on levels takes the concept of mirror mode and phase-shifts it into entirely new dimensions, giving players alternate perspectives, sound effects, music and in some dimensions, extra additional transformations to the gameplay experience. Players will be able to master every world all over again by replaying in N. Verted mode, earning Bumpa-berries instead of Wumpa fruit, with opportunities to rack up even more rewards.”
Crash and Coco will also be joined by other playable characters, including previously announced Neo Cortex. The second of these familiar faces — as revealed today — happens to be fan-favourite Dingodile.
“This is the first new game in the Crash Bandicoot series in more than a decade, so we felt it was important to introduce a brand-new style of play,” said Paul Yan, Chief Creative Officer and Co-Studio Head at Toys for Bob. “We teamed up with our good friends at Beenox to help us develop N. Verted mode, and they brought all of the same passion and expertise that went into the amazing Crash™ Team Racing Nitro-Fueled.”
Toys For Bob is also adding unlockable skins into the game, and those will be available through spending earned gems. From what we can gather, those gems will be awarded to folks who complete challenges. Two additional sets of skins will be exclusive to the PlayStation 4 version of the game, for a limited time. These skins, dubbed “Marsupus Erectus” and “Serious Upgrade,” will be available on other platforms no earlier than December 31, 2021.
“Toys for Bob has pulled out all the stops modernizing this classic franchise, from bringing to life visually stunning worlds, to creating a wide breadth of content and new ways to play, like N. Verted mode and additional playable characters,” said Michelle Bresaw, Vice President of Product Management and Marketing at Activision. “We’re confident this is a sequel fans have been waiting for, staying true to the franchise, while also bringing a fresh, new experience.
Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time will be released on October 4th, and can currently be preordered. It carries a suggested (American) retail price of $59.99, and has been seen at as high as $84.99 Canadian. That was said to be a placeholder, but we’ll see.
See below for today’s more than five minute long trailer, which takes the form of a narrated video: