Tag: Naughty Dog

From PlayStation to Xbox – Crash Bandicoot: N. Sane Trilogy now available via Xbox Game Pass (XGP)

From PlayStation to Xbox – Crash Bandicoot: N. Sane Trilogy now available via Xbox Game Pass (XGP)

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Welcome back Xbox fans, geeks and gamers!

In case you missed the news, Crash Bandicoot: N. Sane Trilogy was recently launched on Xbox Game Pass (XGP) effectively making the three classic games – Crash Bandicoot (1996), Crash Bandicoot 2: Cortex Strikes Back (1997) and Crash Bandicoot: Warped (1998) – available for millions of subscribers to enjoy. In fact, Crash Bandicoot: N.Sane Trilogy on XGP is already a massive success in terms of of player count increase reaching 2,808%!

A clip I captured while playing the remastered Crash Bandicoot of 1996 on my Xbox Series X.

The said release on XGP is very significant. Firstly, this is the initial offering for Xbox Game Pass that is directly connected with the Xbox-Activision-Blizzard-King deal. We are now living in the age of Microsoft-owned Activision and it should be remembered that Activision first released Crash Bandicoot: N. Sane Trilogy on PlayStation 4  (PS4) in 2017 before landing on Xbox One and other platforms.

Crash Bandicoot: N. Sane Trilogy on Xbox Game Pass is most likely the first of many Activision titles that will make their way on to the subscription service in the months to come. Think about the many Call of Duty (COD) games that will soon land on XGP and reignite public interest on the service which can help Team Xbox convince many players out there to start considering subscriptions.

Caution and precision in key segments like this one happened during a snowy level on Crash Bandicoot 2.

Secondly and more notably, the classic Crash Bandicoot games all started on the first PlayStation console and the titular character Crash (created by Andy Gavin and Jason Rubin during their time with Naughty Dog) served as the mascot for Sony Computer Entertainment until the year 2000.

Each PlayStation-exclusive Crash video game released from 1996 to 1998 was a million-seller and also a hit with video game critics of the era. Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy also sold millions when it was initially released on PlayStation 4.

From one of the 2D side-scrolling levels of the first Crash Bandicoot.

Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy on Xbox Game Pass is a clear indication that the PlayStation-related exclusivity on Crash Bandicoot games is over and there is nothing Sony could do to change that. With Microsoft owning Activision, it is only a matter of time before the Crash Bandicoot franchise will become solidly associated with Xbox commercially and culturally. I am speculating that Team Xbox and Activision must have plans for more Crash Bandicoot sequels and spin-offs with multi-platform releases and subsequent XGP releases in mind.

With my XGP subscription, I took some time out to replay parts of the three classic games in the Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy on my Xbox Series X console. I can say that regardless of which game I played, I enjoyed playing them again and it brings back memories of my enjoyment of them on the PlayStation console in 1996-1998. The remastered visuals (on gameplay and cinematic cut scenes) were nicely done and they looked lively on our UHDTV.

From the sea water level in Crash Bandicoot: Warped.

If you are an Xbox gamer who enjoys platform gaming or if you are an Xbox Game Pass subscriber looking for something new and fun to play, then Crash Bandicoot: N. Sane Trilogy is a good choice as it is fun retro gaming of the platform kind. I encourage you to play it while it is available and you can do your part by expressing your feedback to Team Xbox about having more Activision games on XGP.

For more details about Crash Bandicoot: N. Sane Trilogy, click https://www.xbox.com/en-US/games/store/crash-bandicoot-n-sane-trilogy/c27xpr5xdmft

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Looking good on the way to Xbox Series consoles launch, Part 5

Looking good on the way to Xbox Series consoles launch, Part 5

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The past few weeks, I’ve been discussing the launch games lineup and future games for Xbox Series S and Xbox Series X, the significance of backward compatibility the new consoles have and the tremendous impact of the Xbox-Bethesda deal on the games industry as a whole.

Today, I saw Zalker 87’s YouTube video focused on the fact that Team Xbox hired several game developers from Sony to beef up the growing roster of very experienced game makers in The Initiative, the one Xbox Games Studios team that Microsoft established in 2018 to create great, big-budget games for the Xbox ecosystem. To say the least, the future for Xbox fans and gamers in general is looking very promising, and the fun will start with the launch of Xbox Series S and Xbox Series X on November 10, 2020. Watch the video below…

A lot really has been going on at the side of Team Xbox. Apart from the many developments that resulted from the Xbox-Bethesda deal, Microsoft continues to pour in more funds into the many game projects under production from the many game studios under the Xbox Game Studios umbrella, and hire more people to work on their projects. Clearly Obsidian Entertainment, Ninja Theory, inXile, The Coalition, 343 Industries, Playground Games, Turn 10 and other 1st party studios of Team Xbox are all busy making their respective games right now!

To put things in perspective, Sony and its first-party PlayStation teams have a solid track record of producing high-quality, fun-loaded, story driven 3rd person action-adventure games which went on to receive huge acclaim from the game critics and sold a lot. Such games are what are sorely lacking on the side of Team Xbox and it only made sense for Microsoft to use its massive resources to hire the great game makers from Sony’s 1st party studios and put them in The Initiative.

The logo of the all-star team The Initiative.

More on The Initiative, the studio recently hired more talents from Sony’s acclaimed studio Naughty Dog: Lee Davis who worked previously as the head of melee animation and Lauren Garcia who was the character shading technical director. Under The Initiative, Davis is the lead gameplay animator while Garcia is the senior shading technologies executive. The two former Naughty Dog experts were involved in the production of Sony’s The Last of Us: Part 2. In a Twitter post, Garcia expressed happiness about joining The Initiative calling it an incredible team. He thanked Xbox chief Phil Spencer as well.

Before hiring the two former Naughty Dog experts, Microsoft also hired Christian Cantamessa whose best known work was writing (as lead writer) Red Dead Redemption for Rockstar Games, Brian Westergaard (the lead producer on God of War), Remi Lacoste (director of Marvel’s Avengers and Shadow of The Tomb Raider), Christine Thompson (the lead writer for Destiny 2) plus many others which The Initiative studio head Darrell Gallagher confirmed.

As you can see, The Initiative is literally an all-star team of very experienced and high achieving game makers who were previously involved in blockbuster games as well as other ambitious projects. Their first project still has not been revealed so far, although it has been alleged that it could be related to the Perfect Dark franchise which Microsoft owns. Whatever story concept it will have, whatever game design it will come with (note: I personally expect a 3rd person action-adventure in design with a cinematic feel and highly advanced animation for immersion) and whatever new characters it will introduce, you can bet that The Initiative’s expected first game will catch a lot of attention once Team Xbox makes the official unveiling of it. When and where? We don’t know and only Phil Spencer knows.

Ultimately, The Initiative is contributing to Xbox Game Studio’s upcoming wave of high-quality, 1st party video games that will be released for each of the next five years through the Xbox ecosystem (targeting users of Xbox Series S, Xbox Series X, Windows 10 PC and mobile phones supported by Project xCloud). In other words, Sony and its PlayStation division have serious competition coming.

In ending this, posted below are assorted gaming-related videos for your learning and excitement for the next-generation! Do not forget that Xbox Series S and Xbox Series X will launch on November 10, 2020!

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Thank you for reading. If you find this article engaging, please click the like button below and also please consider sharing this article to others. If you are looking for a copywriter to create content for your special project or business, check out my services and my portfolio. Feel free to contact me as well. Also please feel free to visit my Facebook page Author Carlo Carrasco and follow me at HavenorFantasy@twitter.com

For more Xbox-related stuff, check out the Xbox Series Philippines Facebook group at https://www.facebook.com/groups/XboxOnePH