After 25 years, Crash Bash can still make your evenings great

For my 33rd birthday, I invited some friends over, and between glasses of wine and games of UNO and Exploding Kittens, being good Millennials that we are, we started talking about how the excessive use of the internet and social media has deprived new generations of such get-togethers at home - but how great is it to get old?!

Between criticizing the quality of TikTok videos and a rant about how AI is destroying young people's creativity, all with a side of "this is the generation that has less sex and drinks less alcohol," we then talked about how, yes, we over-30s also had our distractions as children - television and video games - but also how these were still geared towards social interaction.

From there, I couldn't help but dust off my PlayStation 1 and start one of the best party games ever: Crash Bash.
The best decision ever.

Reinventing Crash after Naughty Dog

In the late '90s, Crash had become PlayStation's unofficial mascot, and with over 18 million copies sold across its first three installments, the franchise had proven to be established, beloved, and, most importantly, profitable.

Naughty Dog, which created the PS1 trilogy for Universal Interactive, in 1999 released Crash Team Racing; a title that showed how the franchise had enormous hidden potential and was capable of offering different experiences without losing its essence.

However, after CTR, Naughty Dog decided to focus on the Jak and Daxter franchise for PlayStation 2, effectively abandoning Crash.
Meanwhile, Universal was not doing very well financially, which led to a hiring freeze at Universal Interactive and growing fears that the division might be closed.

It was then that the President of Universal Interactive, Mark Cerny, decided to leave Universal and form Cerny Games, a company that would allow him to continue working with Naughty Dog and Sony.

Universal saw Crash as a tool to bring new liquidity into the Interactive section, and entrusted Eurocom, which had already worked on titles like Hercules and Duke Nukem, with the task of creating a new title in the series.
However, given the limited time available, Universal found itself asking Naughty Dog to provide all available artistic material and contacting Cerny Games for Mark Cerny to help Eurocom maintain the franchise's identity.

Thus, the Eurocom team was faced with the heavy task of creating a new Crash franchise title within a maximum of 1 year.
Building a new plot and a new game world was unthinkable, so the choice fell on something easy and quick to play, and the genre of party games was chosen.

Creating a party game would not only avoid a comparison with Naughty Dog's trilogy but also allow for the creation of many fast mini-games, which averted the risk of betraying the saga's identity. 

Thus began a development process that was a true flow of ideas; every team member could propose their idea for a mini-game, it would be sketched out, and if it amused those present in the office, it would then be included in the game.

It's not Mario Party, it's not Crash Bandicoot. It only knows what it isn't

So, after 12 months of gestation, Crash Bash arrived on the market on November 7th in the American continent and November 29th in Europe, while Japan would wait until December 14th.

The game immediately attracted the curiosity of critics and fans, both because it was the new title in the Crash series and because of its party game nature - which was perfect given the approaching Christmas season.

However, the reviews, despite being well above average, were not on par with previous titles in the series. Critics praised some good ideas but compared - unfairly - Crash Bash to Mario Party, which had more than triple the mini-games of Crash Bash - but which also lasted 10 times less.
The nature of a Party Game clashed with the single-player campaign, which was truly punishing for its time, especially when trying to obtain the various relics, and featured an artificial intelligence that seemed solely focused on defeating the player, effectively creating 3-on-1 challenges.

Conversely, many players who played on PlayStation and therefore had no experience with Mario Party, and party games in general, greatly appreciated Crash Bash.
Games were quick to start and controls easy to learn, so the game was perfect for a quick match even with friends and family. Furthermore, the ability to play with 4 players using a multitap made it a perfect game for families.

Although there weren't many mini-games, some of them became legendary, with Pogo Pandemonium, Crate Crush, and Polar Bear still attracting many fans and players to compete in official tournaments - see ESA Summer.

Still great for evenings with friends

As I said at the beginning, Crash Bash is still great for spending evenings at home with your friends. 
Eurocom's title is perfect for quick games and manages to entertain even those who aren't very familiar with a controller.
In a historical moment when the video game industry seems solely dedicated to online experiences, the possibility of playing 4-player local multiplayer that Crash Bash offers is a breath of fresh air - at least for those who have blown out a few candles.

Regardless of personal judgment, over the years Crash Bash has been widely re-evaluated, with many understanding how senseless it was to compare it to Mario Party, which is totally different in both structure and gameplay proposition.
Eurocom's game has gradually become a cult classic with used prices now approaching those of a modern triple-A title.

The game also represents a good example of how it's possible to introduce many game design elements while giving each of them a strong identity.

After the N-sane Trilogy and CTR Nitro Fueled, a remake of Crash Bash seems like a formality; however, Microsoft and Activision don't seem to have any plans in this regard.

Although there are a number of fan-made projects circulating on the web, it's unlikely they will ever see the light of day.

So if you're organizing an evening with friends, a family Christmas, or your birthday, get yourself a PS1, a multitap, and a copy of Crash Bash. The best investment ever.