Crash Bandicoot
A platform game series originally made by Naughty Dog.
Where Crash Bandicoot comes up1 episode or test
Naughty Dog used the squint test on Crash Bandicoot to check that the critical path visually dominates a level. It also added false paths that dead-end, so a linear game feels larger and players feel they chose their route. The sources give no numbers. Lesson: guide players with visual hierarchy, and use short dead ends to create a sense of choice.
- 1Squint at the sceneBlurs detail, keeps shape, brightness, colour contrast
- 2Judge the critical pathIs it the most dominant thing?
- 3Watch random playersBack the quick check with real movement
From Naughty Dog's level design on Crash Bandicoot
What was said about Crash Bandicoot
Naughty Dog's squint test started on Crash Bandicoot. While making Crash Bandicoot, level designers squinted at each scene to see whether the critical path through the level was the most dominant thing in it. Squinting blurs detail and leaves shape, brightness and colour contrast, so it is a fast check.
The check should be backed by watching random players move through the level. Quote: "see if the critical path through the level was the most dominant thing in each scene".
Crash Bandicoot's dead-end side routes let players feel they chose their path. In Crash Bandicoot, as in Uncharted, leaving the critical path often leads to a dead end, yet players feel they chose their route. The side doors and routes make a linear game feel bigger.
Players keep stumbling on new content, so they assume the other exits lead to new spaces too. Quote: "It makes the world feel bigger and less linear than it really is."
Why Nathan Drake Doesn't Need a Compass
Is where Naughty Dog's squint test originated, and leaving the critical path often leads to a dead end, yet players feel they chose their route.
Naughty Dog's squint test started on Crash Bandicoot. While making Crash Bandicoot, level designers squinted at each scene to see whether the critical path through the level was the most dominant thing in it. Squinting blurs detail and leaves shape, brightness and colour contrast, so it is a fast check.
The check should be backed by watching random players move through the level. Quote: "see if the critical path through the level was the most dominant thing in each scene".
Crash Bandicoot's dead-end side routes let players feel they chose their path. In Crash Bandicoot, as in Uncharted, leaving the critical path often leads to a dead end, yet players feel they chose their route. The side doors and routes make a linear game feel bigger.
Players keep stumbling on new content, so they assume the other exits lead to new spaces too. Quote: "It makes the world feel bigger and less linear than it really is."
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