Cloudy review Croc 2 Kingdom of the Gobbos
Our verdict · Decent
A lovingly made remaster that fans of the original and old-school platformers should play.
Pros
- Old-school charm with properly upgraded main characters
- Three gameplay modes: Classic 1999, Classic 2000 and Remastered
- Croc2pedia museum and 90-minute Croc2mentary
- Four villages and more than 40 levels
- No crashes or bugs in my time with it
Cons
- Pacing is a bit slow
- Intermittent jump delay in Remastered mode
On Xbox: Series X|S only, £24.99, not on Game Pass
See the game hub Croc 2 Kingdom of the GobbosCroc 2 Kingdom of the Gobbos is a pure remaster of a 1999 platformer, and that is how I have judged it. I want to give it a good review, because it is clearly trying so hard. Argonaut Games and developer Titanium Studios have put real effort into bringing this one back, from the updated look to the extras packed in alongside it. It isn’t really my kind of game, and I’ll be honest about that, but there is a lot here for the right player. If you want the release details first, our Croc 2 Kingdom of the Gobbos hub has everything in one place.
The story is simple and fits the era. Croc finds a message in a bottle on the beach at Gobbo Valley saying his birth parents are looking for him, so he heads to the mainland to find them. Meanwhile, the Dantinis have brought Baron Dante back, and he wants revenge on the crocodile who beat him the first time.
Who it’s for
I wasn’t big into Croc before. I remember it, but not much, so I came to this without much nostalgia. That matters, because a lot of the appeal here is getting a 1999 game back in a form that still feels like 1999, just cleaner and better looking.
If you loved the original, or you are an old-school platformer fan in general, I can see exactly why you will like it. It also moves at a slower pace than I would choose. If you enjoy slower, steadier platformers, that is likely to suit you better than it suited me.
Three ways to play
One of the more thoughtful additions is the Choose Gameplay screen. The game offers three gameplay modes, each tuned differently:
- Classic 1999 is described as the toughest challenge, with the gameplay balance kept exactly as it was when Croc 2 first launched on console in 1999.
- Classic 2000 is a refined challenge, using the gameplay balance tweaks introduced in the PC version from 2000.
- Remastered is a modernised take, with automatic checkpoints, saved progress towards bonus objectives when you replay levels, and other enhancements. The game recommends it for your first time with Croc 2.
I played on Remastered. I like that the choice is there at all. Purists get the original balance, and anyone newer to it gets a gentler route in, all from the same screen. I haven’t tried the two Classic modes yet, so I can’t tell you how they play.
What works
A remaster of a game this old should keep its old-school charm and give the main characters a proper upgrade, and that is what this does. I like the look of it. Argonaut’s own description promises “enhanced visuals and quality-of-life improvements”, and the three gameplay modes are a good example of the second half of that.
Love has clearly gone into it. You can tell the people behind it care about Croc, and that counts for a lot with a game from this era.
There is plenty to do as well. The game offers more than 40 levels of open-ended 3D platforming spread across four villages, each with its own Gobbo culture: the coastal Sailor Village, the wintry Cossack Village, the prehistoric Caveman Village and the mountaintop Inca Village. Alongside rescuing captured Gobbos and taking on missions, there are new Guardians to face, such as Soveena the Squid, Cannon Boat Keith and Flavio the Thermal Fish. Croc gets a triple jump on top of his jump and tail spin, and there are vehicles too: cars, speedboats, minecarts, a hang glider and an airplane.
Then there is Swap Meet Pete’s General Store. Pete is a fez-wearing cat who takes the crystals you collect in exchange for handy gadgets, and he can also teleport you between villages with his Crystal Ball. It means the crystals you collect always have a use.
On the technical side, I had no crashes or bugs while playing.
Extras and the Croc2pedia
This is where the effort shows most. As with the Crocipedia in the first remaster, Croc 2 includes the Croc2pedia, an in-game digital museum of production material. Argonaut says it includes full game design documentation, marketing assets, promotional merchandise, animation test videos, and 3D model galleries of characters, levels and items that were cut from the original game. There are also interviews with members of the original Argonaut team and the remaster developers, including the 90-minute Croc2mentary.
That is far more than most remasters bother with. If you care about how games from this era were made, it could be reason enough to pick it up.
What doesn’t
The pacing is a bit slow for me. That is a matter of taste rather than a flaw, and slower platformer fans may well enjoy it more than I did, but it kept the game from really grabbing me.
The other issue is a jump delay in Remastered mode. It isn’t constant, it comes and goes, but in a platformer jumping is the thing you do most, so I would rather it wasn’t there at all. As I haven’t played the two Classic modes, I can’t say whether they are any different.
And to be fair to the game, some of this is simply me. It isn’t really my kind of platformer, and a fan of the original will come at it from a very different place.
On Xbox
The Microsoft Store lists Croc 2 for Xbox Series X|S only, with no Xbox One version. It isn’t on Game Pass and it isn’t Play Anywhere, so you will need to buy it. It costs £24.99 on the Microsoft Store, the same price as on Steam. You can read more about the launch in our Croc 2 release story.
I played in Remastered mode, and that is where I saw the occasional jump delay. Beyond that, it ran without crashes or bugs for me.
Verdict
Croc 2 Kingdom of the Gobbos is trying so hard, and most of that effort lands. It keeps its old-school charm, the upgraded characters look good, the three gameplay modes let you pick how faithful you want it to be, and the Croc2pedia is a proper celebration of the game’s history. The slower pace and the occasional jump delay in Remastered mode held it back for me, and it isn’t really my kind of game.
That said, I don’t think my taste should be the last word here. If you are a fan of the original, you can happily pick it up at launch. If you love old-school platformers and don’t mind taking your time, it is well worth a look. I’m giving it 7/10.
