C Bandicoot Wrath of Cortex - Xbox

• Platform: Xbox.
• Genre: Action/Adventure.
• ESRB Rating: Everyone.

Product Description ------------------- Action and excitement are brought to new heights as everyone's favorite Bandicoot comes to the Xbox. Known worldwide as one of the most popular character franchises ever, C is packed full of incredible graphics, realistic effects and hilarious characters. Having been defeated one too many times, Dr. Neo Cortex has developed a super-secret plan to finally rid himself of his arch-nemesis, C Bandicoot. He discovers the resting-place of the Elemental Powers and unleashes their destructive energies upon the earth. It's up to you to help C foil his dastardly plot! .com ---- C Bandicoot, the famous marsupial video-game icon, comes spinning into yet another solid action platform game in C Bandicoot: The Wrath of Cortex. This is the first true platform game for the Xbox, and is suitable for cartoon-action lovin' fans of all ages. Evil is at an all-time decline, so C's arch-nemesis Dr. Neo Cortex is designing the ultimate weapon: Crunch, the extra-evil-bio-engineered-super-bandicoot! In order to complete Crunch, the good doctor needs more power--the kind of power that only evil, renegade voodoo s can provide. Enter the Elementals. Set free by the evil voodoo Uka Uka, the Elementals control various aspects of the environment. They are so powerful, and so dangerous, that they almost destroyed the Earth once, and were sealed in special crystals to protect the Earth from certain doom. Uka Uka believes that by harnessing the power of these evil s, Dr. Cortex will have all the power he needs to complete Crunch, and finally finish off C. So once again C returns to his crystal-collecting, box-bashing, bad guy-spinning ways. Can he stop the s? Will he defeat Crunch? Only time, and your weary game-playing hands, will tell. The Wrath of Cortex is the hardest game in the series' history. There are 30 levels, seven different vehicles, bonus levels, and a time-trial mode. As you progress through the game, you fight five bosses. Each time you defeat a boss, you unlock a new move (double jump, bazooka, tiptoe, C dash, and death tornado). Although the coolest feature is that you get to play as C's sister Coco on some levels. The game is good, but is it perfect? The graphics are solid, but not much of an improvement over the PlayStation2 version--the game definitely doesn't take full advantage of the Xbox's hardware. Also, the long load times for levels can be annoying. C Bandicoot: The Wrath of Cortex was not developed by Naughty Dog, the company that started the series. The game, while faithfully following the traditional feel of the series, misses some of the polished quirkiness that Naughty Dog is known for. Bottom line: The Wrath of Cortex is a great game for all ages, and will give you 40 or more hours of solid gameplay. --Bryan Karsh Pros: * Play as Coco * Seven vehicles * Fun new moves Cons:* New developer, new feel--it needs a little getting used to * Long load times * Good, but not great graphics--doesn't really look like an Xbox game