Way back in the early ’90s, Argonaut Software set out to make a 3D platformer starring Yoshi from the Super Mario Universe for the Nintendo 64. They created a small demo to present to Nintendo in hopes they could make a spin-off series starring Mario’s dino buddy. Sadly, Nintendo wasn’t impressed and it forced the developers to rework their original ideas. Thus, Yoshi became Croc, moved to the Sony PlayStation and the Sega Saturn and the rest, as they say, is history. I’ve previously only experienced the first game on the Saturn, never playing the sequel until recently. But I have to say, Nintendo really missed an opportunity here.
Croc 2 Kingdom of the Gobbos begins the night before Croc’s next big adventure. The inventor Gobbo witnesses the enemies from the first game the Dantinis resurrecting Baron Dante in some ritual. He is captured for seeing too much and Baron Dante formulates a plan to battle Croc once again to get revenge. Sending a message to the beach where Croc and his friends are playing, Croc thinks his parents are looking for him, he immediately sets out to find them, not knowing that the Baron is tricking him into another showdown.
As you progress through the world, you move free across the mainland and explore four different Gobbo villages, each with their own missions and challenges. You’ll rescue trapped Gobbos, collect tons of crystals and overcome nasty enemies trying to take you down. Throughout each world you’ll fight against new guardian bosses that present some good challenges as you try to figure out how to defeat them. All of Croc’s signature moves he had in the first game are back with the addition of a new Triple Jump that can really help get hard to reach crystals and find shortcuts.
There are also all new vehicles to use like speed boats and hang gliders that are really fun to master. There are 40 plus levels to get through, each with their own unique challenges. Reaching and riding moving platforms, swinging on ropes to clear huge gaps, and some maze-like elements where you can actually lose your way if you aren’t paying attention. It’s all super fun to experience and never really gets frustrating enough to give up.
Rounding out this remake is the The Croc2pedia, a digital museum containing lost production materials, documentaries and interviews, marketing assets, promotional merchandise, animation test videos, and 3D galleries of characters, levels, and even some items that were cut from the original game.
Controlling Croc is a breeze here, as opposed to the original game where you had to use Tank Controls to move through levels. I believe this control scheme was removed or made as a selectable option for the Croc 1 Remake a while back. I personally did not like how Croc used to control in the Sega Saturn version and am thankful that the sequel completely removed this. It just feels more natural to have full control of Croc’s movements and not spend time fighting the camera to make a jump.
The graphics are very colorful and a bit more detailed than the original game and certainly look better than the first game. Everything runs at a super smooth 60 FPS now with no slowdown. Sometimes the frame rate can seem to be going a little too fast and can cause you to overrun a platform and miss a jump on occasion. The music is light-hearted and fun but is not very memorable while the sound effects fit the overall feeling of the game’s world. Croc and friends make a few unintelligible noises but never get on your nerves.
Croc 2 Kingdom of the Gobbos is one of those “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” remakes that fix only what needed improvement from the original game, leaving everything else intact. The gameplay, fun factor and overall presentation is exactly that of the original with a fresh coat of paint. There needs to be more remakes like this. Big Boat and Titanium did a wonderful job here. While I wasn’t fan of Croc back in the day, I’ve certainly become one now. Give this one a try, it doesn’t disappoint.
Note: Argonaut Games provided us with a Croc 2 Kingdom of the Gobbos PS5 code for review purposes.
Click Here to buy Croc 2 Kingdom of the Gobbos on Amazon
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