Crash Team Racing Nitro-Fueled

[ShiraNoMai]

I love the new box art. Way more action and movement that really excites you into the idea of a kart racer rather than a standard racer.

[Moonface]

As much as I'd love to get the Oxide edition for the skins, they're not worth $20 extra. I wouldn't pay that if that content was a skin pack sold separately, and I think the only reason there isn't a huge outcry about this is because of it being bundled in with the game to try and hide that fact.

Oh yeah! Did anyone else see this CTR Funko that got announced?
I'm not usually a fan of Funko's, but I really want this particular one.

[Mr EliteL]

Yeah, the Oxide Edition needs more to justify that extra amount.

The funko looks cool, especially the pose Crash is doing. Although it's annoying they've provided two images being mirrored to each other. Is Crash raising his left or right leg? Oh. *facepalm* Wait...hold on I wasn't paying attention and looked at only the outside box image of the first one. Inside the box it is his left.

[Moonface]

Crash Team Racing Nitro-Fueled - Customization Trailer
A new trailer has been released showcasing more of the games customization options, including original content as well as karts and skins from the N. Sane Trilogy, Crash Nitro Kart, and Crash Tag Team Racing!

The trailer also confirms the Crash Nitro Kart bosses Geary, Krunk, Nash, and Velo will be playable; the first three listed characters were only playable in the GBA version of the game. We also get our first view on N. Tropy in-game, and there's even a cameo tucked away of CTTR's Chick N' Stew in the background of one of the tracks.

Customization items will be unlocked by earning Wumpa Coins and "progressing through the Adventure Mode. Collect these coins by playing the game then visit the game’s Pit Stop area and unlock a greater number of goodies. This means you can practice your racing, take on the game’s challenges, and unlock customization rewards to create the kart of your dreams! (Activision)"

Activision also intend to go into more depth about the characters and customization of CTRNF tomorrow, so be on the lookout for that!

[Mr EliteL]

Awesome, customisation! Liking the look of pretty much everything showing there, going all-out with wacky stuff for racing as they should.

A bit late, but yeah, got to go check out whatever was shown the other day too.

[Moonface]

The stuff shown after that trailer on the following day was really nothing worth Activision trying to generate hype or expectation for. I didn't really see anything shared on that day that wasn't already known or just obvious if you thought about it.

I'm glad that some of the costumes are from N. Sane and even other times in the franchise. Very surprised that anything from the Radical era was used (I believe that's from CTTR onwards) considering that era is easily the lowest point of Crash Bandicoot and caused it to go out on bad terms rather than just slowly fade away on mediocre but at least decent attempts by prior developers, plus those games are not really popular at all except for a very small niche of people. Still, Beenox did a good job bringing it over without it standing out like a sore thumb or causing conflicts with the style of N. Sane, so credit to them for taking a very risky move and pulling it off.

I expect Wumpa Coins to be made into micro-transactions but as long as you can still earn them in-game at a decent rate, I don't care. I'll just see them like the Oxide Edition content; earnable decently but you can pay to skip doing it if you need to or just have cash to waste.

[Moonface]

A stream for Crash Team Racing Nitro-Fueled aired on Twitch a couple of hours ago, and it had a lot of new content shown off. If you want to watch the stream then click here, otherwise I've compiled a list of what gets shown:

• There are 14 kart bodies, 6 decals, 22 wheels, 43 paint jobs, and 101 stickers. As this isn't the final build, these numbers may not be final.
  
• Coco Park is played at 7:53.
  
• Crash Cove is at 12:10.
  
• Sewer Speedway is at 16:02.
  
• Extensive footage of Battle Mode starts at 20:10. The menu for Battle Mode is the only one in the entire stream seen for tracks of any kind, and shows arenas are split into CTR and CNK categories. The North Bowl (22:30), Terra Drome (27:33), Lab Basement (32:46), and Parking Lot (52:27) are played in either Limit Battle or Last Kart Driving modes. Other modes are Capture The Flag, Crystal Grab, or Steal the Bacon. AI is now present in Battle Mode, and it seems the maximum player limit is eight.
  
• N. Trance makes his first ever appearance at 26:56, however it is an alternate costume. I don't know where in the video this is, but his default appearance does show up: https://i.redd.it/wc3pyjle8my21.png
  
• Roo's Tubes is at 36:35.
  
• Papu's Pyramid is at 40:53.
  
• Out of Time is at 45:43.
  
• Cortex Castle is at 1:00:51. Nina and Brio can be seen on banners hanging from the walls, and Coco Cortex (Twinsanity) features on one of the stained glass windows.
  

There is apparently another stream on the way with Nolan North (not sure if anyone else is going to be with him) which might feature more new content too. The developer sitting in on this stream was very adamant that the track selection screen does not get shown and that anything on "the list" is not picked from it, so either the content isn't finished properly or there's something about it that Beenox are waiting to show off somewhere else.

Invisibility in Battle Mode seems to work differently to the original CTR. If memory serves correctly, your tyres would show up on your screen but would remain invisible to other players on their screens, but in CTRNF the tyres are visible to everyone. This wouldn't be so bad except that hover karts lack tyres, and therefore turn 100% invisible when using the power up, so unless something is done to balance that out I can see hover karts being favoured in any online battles because of that advantage.

I didn't watch every single track, but for what I did decide to see, the changes made to Out of Time are well done to compensate for the lack of anti-gravity at the clock section. The opening moment of Cortex Castle during the starting lights was tinglingly good to me and I'm hyped to experience that with the actual game audio on a surround sound system!

I hate that every time I see this game it makes me conflicted with the Oxide Edition. On the one hand, $20 for some skins is bullshit, but I so want to give Beenox that extra $20 just for the effort and work they've put into the game because skins aside, this package is worth $60 to me at this point! >w<

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The stream featuring Nolan North and Troy Baker finished up a little bit ago. There wasn't very much new in it, except for the footage of Inferno Island: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oSnW5x2M....be&t=3468

[Mr EliteL]

Agh, can't believe I missed this! I suppose it was too late for me, but ah I shall watch most of tomorrow and see a bit now. Cool those numbers aren't final for the customisation, and seems that's for kart only, and not character. Nolan and Troy are having a play? Ah, I'll watch that too, should be fun.

[Moonface]

Keep in mind I said they may not be final, and I'm basing that only on the fact this isn't the final build. It could easily be final for all I know, but there's nothing to confirm it either way.

I'm still hoping for a load of character reveals before release, hopefully around E3. I want to see Brio, Kong, Tawna, Nina, Spyro, and Komodo Moe added into the game, since four of those are already established characters who should really be added to CTR, Spyro makes sense as a guest character and should happen, and Nina was one of the few good post-ND characters to be added, plus she appears in Cortex Castle on the banners so she should really be playable too and I think Beenox could do a good job with her.

[Moonface]

Adventure Mode Changes Detailed
In a post submitted today on the PlayStation Blog, Beenox have detailed what changes can be expected from the Adventure Mode of Crash Team Racing Nitro-Fueled.

You will still be tackling the challenges that were present in the original Adventure Mode — trophy races, boss races, relic races, token races, and gem cups. However, the way content is unlocked in Adventure Mode has changed. Whereas you unlocked the pre-Oxide boss racers — Ripper Roo, Papu Papu, Komodo Joe, and Pinstripe — by winning Gem Cups, you will now unlock those characters immediately after you defeat them, including Oxide himself, who was never unlockable in the original game through any means. As a result of this change, Gem Cups will now offer new rewards, however Beenox are keeping the specifics under wraps.

As was described alongside the customization trailer earlier this month, winning challenges in Adventure Mode will now unlock new kart parts, character skins, or kart customization items. You can then use these items in Adventure Mode if you have selected to play through the Nitro-Fueled version. Better yet, you won't be locked to the original starting eight characters, which means you can swap out characters and parts whenever you want, including characters outside of that starting eight, such as N. Trance, and any items you unlock with Wumpa Coins in the game's Pit Stop! If you want to play through the original experience where you can't change your character or kart, then the Classic version will be for you.

Which version of Adventure Mode will you be playing when Crash Team Racing Nitro-Fueled released less than a month from now?

[Mr EliteL]

I'm probably going to go with Nitro-Fueled mode for Adventure. I think I'll use it kind of like Classic as I won't change character but customise kart and skin...or I just won't do that if I find using someone else is better. I dunno, I'll see. Although I'm going to want to train first since when I played yesterday, I could not get the hang of drift boosting.

[ShiraNoMai]

Yeah I gotta do the same, EL. But I do look forward to practicing more on launch!

[Moonface]

I'm probably going to go with Nitro-Fueled mode for Adventure. I think I'll use it kind of like Classic as I won't change character but customise kart and skin...or I just won't do that if I find using someone else is better.

This is basically what I'm going to do. I'd rather have the ability to change things and just not do it, than wish to have it and be locked out from it because I chose Classic mode. The only reason I'd pick that mode is if there's a trophy or unlockable attached to it.

I also hope there are customization options for the CPU too. I'd like to be able to determine if CPU can have alternate costumes and use any type of kart, so that I could have a race on a CTR track with just OG karts and skins, and the same for CNK tracks. Probably won't be a thing, but it would be nice to have the option.

[Moonface]

Dragon Mines and PS4 Retro Track Footage
PlayStation Underground has released exclusive first footage of Dragon Mines and the PS4 exclusive retro track, a low poly version of Turbo Track.

[Moonface]

Crash Team Racing Nitro-Fueled Launch Trailer

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The song they're using is my favourite remix of the Crash Bandicoot theme I've heard. Hyper Spaceway looks awesome, and it seems they changed the tubes you drove on the outside of to now be internal instead, since anti-gravity isn't a thing to do the former. Android Alley (opening trailer track) looks brilliant and I love the Ratchet & Clank vibe it has. I was a little bummed at first that there were no new characters in the trailer, but then I read that Coco was revealed for NST after its respective launch trailer, so I guess any last announcements are waiting for E3. Fingers crossed we get the missing ND characters and Spyro. Even if not at launch, I'll take them as later DLC if I have to. Just give them to me!