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If you’ve read my Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time review, you know I love this new 3D platformer from Toys for Bob. That’s thanks in large part to the challenge of the game, which put my skills to the test and I rarely felt unfair.
I may have felt different if I had played in Retro mode. You see, before starting Crash Bandicoot 4, the game asks you how you would like to play. You can choose the Retro mode, which plays like the Crash games of yesteryear. You start with a few lives. If you die and still have at least one life, you return to the last checkpoint of the level. Die without lives and it’s game over. You have to start that stage from the beginning.
Modern mode, meanwhile, completely eliminates lives and games. Instead, each kill will send you back to the last checkpoint.
Above: Crash 4 lets you play without the threat of game over.
Live and Let Die
Look, I love retro games. I mean, obviously. I usually roll my eyes when people say that a game has “aged poorly.” I feel the same way I feel when someone tells me that they can’t see a black and white movie.
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But I even have to admit that the concept of lives and games can seem a bit archaic. This was something I felt when I replayed Super Mario Sunshine during my time with Super Mario 3D All-Stars. I would have fun during some of the more difficult sections of the game, taking a few deaths while navigating those difficult, platform-focused sections. Then I would run out of lives and, for no reason, I would return to the central world and have to waste my time running back to where I was.
Most games have moved away from extra lives. Even Nintendo has abandoned the concept with Super Mario Odyssey, which instead simply loots you coins for every kill. It can be a difficult concept to design your game. Dying represents some kind of failure on the part of the player. It should come with some kind of punishment. But that punishment can make a fun experience tedious if it means you have to keep playing through content you already master just to get back to that tricky part.
That’s why I immediately chose the modern mode of Crash Bandicoot 4. And I’m glad I did. I came across various sections that took me at least a dozen tries to get through. I do not care about that. I like to run into occasional moments that are very difficult, especially towards the end of a game. But my amusement could have quickly turned to rage if I had to start each level from the beginning after every few deaths.
Above: This level has some Fury Road vibes.
Image Credit: GamesBeat
Get a life
I admit that playing in modern mode has a downside: I played more sloppy. Knowing that a mistake would only send me back so far, I wasn’t as cautious as I would have been if I was worried about a game over.
And, hey, if that really bothers you, you can play in Retro mode. What I appreciate, however, is that Crash 4 doesn’t treat these options as an Easy or Normal option. They are just two different experiences adapted to different tastes. And the game makes it clear that you don’t get punished for playing in Modern mode. You still experience the same story and can unlock the same cosmetics, trophies and achievements as someone playing in Retro mode.
That is why I recommend that you play Crash 4 in modern mode. It is simply more convenient. It’s still a challenging experience, but Modern Mode lets you spend more time practicing against those tougher moments while giving up the frustration of wasted time.
The RetroBeat is a weekly column that looks into the past of gaming, diving into classics, new retro titles, or looking at how old favorites, and their design techniques, inspire today’s market and experiences. If you have any retro-themed or scoop projects you’d like to send me, please contact me.
