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[Pikelet]

Before Crash characters had no emotion (Pacman, and even Mario), or one dimensional emotions (Sonic was “fast”). Crash had facial emotions that let him speak to you and gave him personal range.

Kind of oversold Crash there imo, just look at the rpg genre at the time. Chrono Trigger had characters with far more depth and range, despite a few less frames of animation, and it had come out a year previous.

Good read though, despite being about a game that never really struck a chord with me.

 

[Ninja Scooter]

Kind of oversold Crash there imo, just look at the rpg genre at the time. Chrono Trigger had characters with far more depth and range, despite a few less frames of animation, and it had come out a year previous.

Good read though, despite being about a game that never really struck a chord with me.

i think they meant in terms of physicality and facial expressions.

 

[Rlan]

Kind of oversold Crash there imo, just look at the rpg genre at the time. Chrono Trigger had characters with far more depth and range, despite a few less frames of animation, and it had come out a year previous.

Good read though, despite being about a game that never really struck a chord with me.

 

[Jazzem]

Kind of oversold Crash there imo, just look at the rpg genre at the time. Chrono Trigger had characters with far more depth and range, despite a few less frames of animation, and it had come out a year previous.

Good read though, despite being about a game that never really struck a chord with me.

Yeah that bit had me raising an eyebrow, came across as a bit arrogant and overblown. Plenty of 2D characters had frames of all sorts of different expressions, and you had examples like Lemmings with crazy animations. Sure what they did with Crash might have allowed for a larger range, but to say everything before him was completely flat? :/

Good read otherwise though, it's always fascinating how creators get around technological limits imposed on them. Had no idea it was such the case with the original Crash Bandicoot. I was particularly impressed by how good the controls were when I played it recently, I'm not sure how they did it but it's much easier to get him where you want to than you'd think it'd be.

 

[A Black Falcon]

That was interesting, game development stuff like this is often interesting stuff. There were lots of technical limitations to work with, with early 3d systems, it was clearly pretty challenging...

I found the "shaded vs. textured" polygons thing interesting, that generation all systems were better at doing shaded polygons than textured ones. Mario 64 for instance also mostly used shaded polygons for Mario's model.

Also, using a higher resolution definitely was a good idea, even with its limitations, anything to get away from the very low-res look of so many early 3d games...

I know the Jaguar wasn't really 64 bit, but this is the first time I've heard someone say the same thing about the N64. Not that it matters, but is this right?

Yes. It is a 32 bit machine but just like the jaguar but there is 64 bits in it, most of it unused because there was not enough ram in the machine to make use of it, hence that whole expansion pack shizzle was required to make certain games run. I thought everyone knew this by now.

That's not true, the Jaguar's main processors had some 64-bit parts, but they were mostly 32-bit only. The system did also have some 64-bit bus, but because a lot of the system was 32-bit, saying that it's not really 64-bit is true. The N64, though, has true 64-bit CPU and GPUs. The system bus is 32-bit though (though within the main chips it's higher of course). Also it is true that the CPU can run either 32-bit or 64-bit instructions, and most games use mostly 32-bit ones, but it is much more 64-bit than the Jaguar.

Why use 32-bit mode on the N64, and why does the fact that it's 64-bit matter either way? See this.
http://groups.google.com/group/rec.games.video.nintendo/msg/01765b0b98de9908

Also, the Expansion Pak was most often used for higher resolution support (640x480 mode usually requires the expansion pak for instance). Games also often required it for some features which likely required more RAM to support, such as moving objects (apart from the cars) and music while racing in Rush 2049, or the sixth, largest track, or for higher color depth and better textures, or for more complex environments with more stuff going on, such as Majora's Mask.

I've never heard of the extra RAM having much to do with whether 32 or 64 bit instructions are being used. I guess you think that because it is true that 64-bit instructions are going to take up twice as much space, but I've never heard of that specific issue being a factor. It's mostly because of reasons within the CPU itself, and because with the overall power of the system (more powerful than the competition, but still 5th gen) 64-bit just wasn't usually needed.

The N64 certainly had hardware limitations -- the fill rate (lots of those high res mode games have low framerates because the fill rate can't keep up with the number of polygons being put on screen), the small texture buffer, etc -- but the good points, and power, far outweigh the bad.

 

[SSJ1Goku]

We had been handed a document that compared Crash with Mario and Nights, or at least what was known of the games at the time. Though Crash was rated favorably in “graphics” and some other categories, two things stood out as weaknesses. The first was that Sony Japan didn’t like the character much, and the second was a column titled “heritage” that listed Mario and Sonic as “Japanese” and Crash as “other.” The two negatives were related.

This is why I really have no problems with what has happened to the Japanese game industry. That shit pisses me off.

 

[BlazeHedgehog]

This is why I really have no problems with what has happened to the Japanese game industry. That shit pisses me off.

It's a matter of culture. I see people writing off designs nowadays as being "too Japanese". It's the same thing. It's not wrong to want to have a style of design that appeals to your territory - think of it as a form of localization.

 

[njr]

Wow, what a great read. Crash did really well on it's PS1 days. It took me so long to get 100% on all of them. The first one had really hard levels, like Slipery Slope, and The High Road.

 

[PetriP-TNT]

This was cool, hopefully the story will continue sometime... I am always fascinated on how to overcome technical limitations via clever solutions.

 

[betweenthewheels]

Did Crash 2 or 3 have analog controls?

 

[SolidSnakex]

It's a matter of culture. I see people writing off designs nowadays as being "too Japanese". It's the same thing. It's not wrong to want to have a style of design that appeals to your territory - think of it as a form of localization.

It's also worth noting that the Crash games actually sold really well in Japan. Crash 2 and 3 sold over a million units each.

 

[Combichristoffersen]

Did Crash 2 or 3 have analog controls?

I think at least Crash 3 had analogue controls

 

[nincompoop]

Crash 2 and 3 both support analog controls, but they play a lot better with digital controls as the levels were designed around the digital controls.

Nice article(s).



I remember running from the boulder! Didn't you also have to jump over pits you couldn't see in that section? Not quite sure...

The camera was placed far enough in front of the player that you had time to react to the obstacles before you encountered them. Anyway, he's referring to the very beginning of the game, where you see Crash lying on the beach before he gets up and the level starts with a view of his ass.

 

[bistromathics]

Nice article(s).

And third, we would attempt the reverse of a Sonic ass level – the run INTO the screen – which became the legendary boulder levels.

I remember running from the boulder! Didn't you also have to jump over pits you couldn't see in that section? Not quite sure...

 

[Spiegel]

Part 6 (and last) is up

http://all-things-andy-gavin.com/2011/02/07/making-crash-bandicoot-part-6/

 

[bistromathics]

Was Gex not a 3d platformer? I played that on a 3DO before getting a PS1 and Crash. Can't remember anything about it, other than a James Bond Gecko, lol.

 

[Combichristoffersen]

Was Gex not a 3d platformer? I played that on a 3DO before getting a PS1 and Crash. Can't remember anything about it, other than a James Bond Gecko, lol.

Gex 2 and 3 were 3d, the first one was 2d

 

[MYE]

Personally when I first got my hands on Mario I was like WTF? How is anyone going to know what to do here? And although there was a pretty real sense of marvel in this funny new world, I never found it very fun. The early camera AI was brutally frustrating. And the Mario voiceover. I still cringe, “It’sa me, Mario!” Still the game was brilliantly innovative, although I remain convinced that if anyone but Miyamoto had made the game it would have flopped.

Critics loved Mario. Perhaps because many of them were Nintendo fan boys, perhaps because it was more innovative (and it was).

lol

 

[nincompoop]

lol

He's completely right, Mario 64 was a disgrace to any real platforming fan.

 

[Combichristoffersen]

He's completely right, Mario 64 was a disgrace to any real platforming fan.

It was a far more innovative game than Crash Bandicoot, I'll give it that, but I still think Mario 64 is.. let's just say I don't find it fun to play at all, and don't think it's a very good game overall.

 

[nincompoop]

The part about their Dynamic Difficulty Adjustment system was very interesting to read. And this...

And we figured out that if you died a lot when running from the boulder, we could just slow the boulder down a little each time.

holyshit, MIND BLOWN.

 

[Lathentar]

Great read. The way they bent the system to run Crash was my favourite part.

A part of me is sad that the industry has moved away from the small team mindset (for AAA titles) because it seemed like a really fun and exciting time to be around in. We can still do smaller team stuff, but it's only really plausible for XBLA/PSN/mobile-type games.

Looking forward to part 6!

Its only fun and exciting until you want to have a life outside of work!

 

[spliced]

1. Holy cow are those guys full of themselves.

2. Seems like Mario 64 coming out and rocking the gaming world has left them with some extreme bitterness that rages on to this day. Mario 64 not fun??? HAHAHAHAHAHA.

3. Crash looked ok at best. The 2D parts looked not bad but the 3D was mostly bad and the character design was just terrible. Wipeout and Resident Evil looked good, Crash not so much.

 

[MYE]

He's completely right, Mario 64 was a disgrace to any real platforming fan.

Yes, thank god Crash Bandicoot was around!

 

[SolidSnakex]

1. Holy cow are those guys full of themselves.

2. Seems like Mario 64 coming out and rocking the gaming world has left them with some extreme bitterness that rages on to this day. Mario 64 not fun??? HAHAHAHAHAHA.

You obviously read something different from what I did as Jason talks about how much he loved Mario 64 and that he considered it to be a better game than the original Crash.

 

[Combichristoffersen]

Yes, thank god Crash Bandicoot was around!

It was a more entertaining game than Mario 64, at least

 

[Requeim]

Mario 64 is horribly overrated, Ocarina of time is the real star of that console

Also, Crash has aged wonderfully as far as graphics go (especially in comparison to most other 3d games on the playstation/n64). Mario 64? Not so much

 

[Onion_Relish]

Reading about all of the crazy shit these guys had to do just to get the game to compile for their first prototypes, let alone run in the finished product just reminds me of how little i've actually noticed about all of the different little improvements theyve made from generation to generation. So much thought goes into hiding this or that and leaves and occlusion and whatever, but all i can remember is having fun. In some ways it feels a bit disrespectful to all the hard work theyve done, but i suppose the fact that i have nothing but fond memories would make up for that.

fake edit: the only time I ever noticed jaggies was with street fighter 4's lights at the diner on the ps3 version. It isnt so much a light as it is a jagged line. I still dont know what screen tearing is

 

[Carl]

That was so fascinating to read. Thanks for posting

 

[jcm]

The part about their Dynamic Difficulty Adjustment system was very interesting to read. And this...

holyshit, MIND BLOWN.

I had no idea. Now I wonder just how much they slowed the boulder before I was able to beat that level? Damn. I feel like I should replay it.

 

[bhlaab]

fake edit: the only time I ever noticed jaggies was with street fighter 4's lights at the diner on the ps3 version. It isnt so much a light as it is a jagged line. I still dont know what screen tearing is

When the refresh rate of the image doesn't match up with that of the monitor/television quick horizontal movement will produce an image made out of two different frames of that horizontal movement at once, making it look like someone took parts of the screen and "tore" them askew

 

[Onion_Relish]

When the refresh rate of the image doesn't match up with that of the monitor/television quick horizontal movement will produce an image made out of two different frames of that horizontal movement at once, making it look like someone took parts of the screen and "tore" them askew

Ahhh i see. I'm sure thats happened to me before but I'd like to think I could remember something like a barrel cut in half. I plan on staying blissfully unaware of modern technological updates.

 

[anonymousAversa]

That was fantastic.

The way they tamed that hardware was incredible.

Yeah, damn. "Don't have the tools to do it? Write them."

 

[jett]

Andy has balls to hate on Mario 64. Unfortunately that means I consider him to be a crazy person. Jason Rubin ftw.

Crash is a really good looking game though, especially in motion. The animation in Mario 64 is quite rigid and robotic, unlike the smooth cartoon-like visuals of Crash. The environments are texture-rich and detailed. On the other hand SM64's environments are polystarved and lacking in texture quality, but much more open, obviously. They're just going for different things but upon first glance I imagine most people would point to Crash as being the better looking one.

 

[Hot Coldman]

Mario 64 is horribly overrated, Ocarina of time is the real star of that console

Also, Crash has aged wonderfully as far as graphics go (especially in comparison to most other 3d games on the playstation/n64). Mario 64? Not so much

I feel sorry for Mario 64. It made so much possible- Ocarina in particular owes itself to SM64 as much as LttP- but nowadays it's outclassed by every other platformer going. It's completely obselete as of the DS remake.

And yeah, Crash still looks great. Some of the first game's animation looks a bit too janky nowadays (especially Crash's 'gem face') but the sequels fix this up. CTR in particular- the design between that game and Mario Kart 64 are like night and day.

Heck, there isn't a single good looking Mario game on the N64, bar Paper Mario of course. The console just didn't suit cartoon styles, hence the reason games like Majora's Mask and Perfect Dark turned out to be the system's best. DK64 comes close, but the character design cripples that game anyway.

 

[SSJ1Goku]

In any case, this obstacle (the marketing woman) wanted to call the game “Wuzzle the Wombat,” or “Ozzie the Otzel.” Fortunately, after much yelling we prevailed and Crash Bandicoot became… Crash Bandicoot.

I can't breath ROTFLMFAO!!!!!!!!!

 

[DidntKnowJack]

Reading this stuff kind of reminds me of the old days, pre-internet (for me anyway) where all of the info I got for this kind of stuff was either through print magazines or the old Playstation Underground CD magazines. (Anyone remember those?) And the outtakes for the Playstation $149 commercial with the old rich couple talking about games like "Mash Bandicoot." Such simpler times.

 

[anonymousAversa]

Reading this stuff kind of reminds me of the old days, pre-internet (for me anyway) where all of the info I got for this kind of stuff was either through print magazines or the old Playstation Underground CD magazines. (Anyone remember those?) And the outtakes for the Playstation $149 commercial with the old rich couple talking about games like "Mash Bandicoot." Such simpler times.

demo CDs for the winski

 

[exwallst]

Who owns the rights? Crash seems ripe for an upgrade.

 

[JaseC]

Who owns the rights? Crash seems ripe for an upgrade.

Universal, which is why the franchise went to shit after ND moved on.

 

[nincompoop]

Taylor Kurosaki (One of the other guys on the development team) posted a comment on the last article:

Great stories guys! This really takes me back to an incredible, rewarding, grueling time. Looking back those were incredible days, and nights, and weekends, and weekend nights. I’m the most satisfied with Boulder Dash and Hog Wild- varying our core gameplay mechanic just enough to give the game more variety without invalidating the lessons we were constantly, mercilessly, teaching the player. Boulder Dash survives mostly unchanged even in Uncharted 2, although the boulder is now a truck trying to mow you down in an alleyway.

Dave and I did champion the name Crash relentlessly around the office, although, and I know this is heresy, I really wanted Crash Wombat to be the final name. I hated how everyone I pitched Bandicoot to would invariably say Bandi-who?

The thing I’m least proud of was just how brutally difficult the game was and still is. I was learning game design by the seat of my pants from Mark and in my mind I truly thought each and every challenge needed to be slightly more difficult than the one immediately preceding it. Oops! To this very day my mother plays Crash and I cringe at how unforgiving it is and try unsuccessfully to steer her to the sequel as we finally understood that a difficulty ramp shouldn’t be linear.

The other thing I often reflect on was my decision to leave the company during the development of Crash 2. I was simply fried after the first game, and was so excited to get back to year one of the two year development cycle. I had spent months thinking about not only the expansion of Crash’s moveset but also the idea we had to turn the camera around, flip it 180 degrees if you started pushing toward the screen. I was thrilled for the R&D phase again, and once it became clear that we were going to start crunching all over to make what I called (wrongly) Crash 1.5, I knew I had to leave or I was going to snap. It was a difficult decision for sure, I felt terrible for bailing on this family we had become, but a decision which probably worked out the best for both Naughty Dog and I in the long run. The one thing that still amazes me to this day is the company culture instilled by Andy and Jason at Naughty Dog. The relentless iteration, the flat structure where everyone’s opinion was valued, that is what made Crash great and it’s what made Naughty Dog great. That spirit is alive and well and stronger than ever at Naughty Dog today. Thanks for everything guys.

Flipping the camera around while backtracking sounds like an awesome idea, I wonder why that didn't make it into the final game. Maybe it would've been too difficult to implement because of the way they used occlusion to keep polygon counts down? Either way, it would have made the handful of levels in Crash 2 and 3 where you're forced to backtrack to get all the boxes much less of a pain.

I also noticed in the comments that Andy Gavin refers to Jak & Daxter as "Jak 1". Anihawk am crying.

 

[SonOfABeep]

I forgot just how difficult this game is.

This article persuaded me to pick up the first game from PSN. It's really difficult in the later levels!

 

[apana]

Yes, thank god Crash Bandicoot was around!

Mario 64 is unmatched, incredible game. I still want a Crash revival though for all consoles. Or is it better for me to just let this go?

 

[Poimandres]

At the time as a Playstation owner I was pretty jealous of Nights and Mario 64. I thought Crash wasn't too inspiring as a character (compared to, say, Sparkster) and the platforming didn't feel as good as my 16-bit favourites.

The game does still look pretty nice though, and is still perfectly playable unlike many games from its era.

 

[cool_trainer]

I liked this picture.

Anyways it was a great read. The Crash games were some of my favorite games on the PS1. I loved the Crash commercials with him outside of the Nintendo America Building. It's too bad Sony doesn't own the rights to the IP anymore. It would've been nice to see a proper Crash game made by Naughty Dog.

 

[JaseC]

http://mascherato.files.wordpress.com/2011/02/miyamoto1.jpg
I liked this picture.

Anyways it was a great read. The Crash games were some of my favorite games on the PS1. I loved the Crash commercials with him outside of the Nintendo America Building. It's too bad Sony doesn't own the rights to the IP anymore. It would've been nice to see a proper Crash game made by Naughty Dog.

Sony acting as publisher meant the games were exclusive to the PSX, but at no point did they own the IP itself.

 

[Duki]

lmao @ that one guy thinking crash came close to mario

literally fun games though

fuck that password system

 

[cool_trainer]

Sony acting as publisher meant the games were exclusive to the PSX, but at no point did they own the IP itself.

Oh ok, my mistake.

 

[Kraut]

I wish stories like these were compiled and released in a book. Game Developer Magazine does great post-mortems, but a collection of in depth and first-hand stories would be awesome.

 

[Bizzyb]

Mario 64 is horribly overrated, Ocarina of time is the real star of that console

Also, Crash has aged wonderfully as far as graphics go (especially in comparison to most other 3d games on the playstation/n64). Mario 64? Not so much

True, Crash has aged better, but Mario 64 was, imo, a better game and not overrated at all, at least for it's time.

I remember watching this young lady play the game at Best Buy (before the launch of N64) back when Best Buy had the awesome videogame area with the HUGE Jumbo screen display. She was just enamored with the game and when Mario slid down a hill and into a tree and went "Oomph", she lit up like a Christmas tree. It was little stuff like that that really made you feel like you were playing an innovative next generation game.