Oxide Station. The Nitro Squad. Spyro The Dragon.

The things I loved most about the original Crash Team Racing are back and better than ever in the Nitro-Fueled revamp, and I’m still crazy in love years after its release.

(Okay, so Spyro wasn’t originally a part of the magic…but to be able to say he is now just goes to show how much awesome was thrust into this “Beenox recreation.”)

I had never been so excited for a gaming experience as I was for the remake of CTR. Quite simply, I had trained for that moment. I had begged the gaming gods for that moment. And finally, in 2019, said moment arrived. A modern-day Crash Team Racing experience was born.

Everything about it – the details, the customization, the extensive roster of characters, the new tracks, the many challenges – was sheer perfection. Sure, there were some hiccups with online play that led to plenty of frustration – but in the end, I was just happy to be back on the tracks.

In Oxide’s hovercraft. As Megumi.

The girl power in this game, especially compared to other Crash titles? Unbelievable. The Nitro Squad’s design was completely revamped, taking them from hypersexualized trophy girls to ultra-cool competitors behind the wheel. Thanks to the fab four, as well as Tawna, Coco, Yaya Panda, Nina Cortex, and Pasadena O’Possum, Nitro-Fueled is positively teeming with choice compared to the original CTR.

Every track feels completely natural and true to its original counterpart. Not once have I found myself driving along thinking, “this isn’t what I remember,” or “this doesn’t feel right.” The vibrant backgrounds add so much dimension and life to the scene that surrounds your kart as it weaves around the track.

New details I hadn’t noticed before seem to catch my eye during every racing session. And, ultimately, to be able to drive in a custom kart, as my favorite characters, in funky outfits, racing against other Crash and Spyro lovers? It’s a childhood dream come true.

Call me juvenile, but there’s just something about the sense of imagination and nostalgia that is so entwined with the Crash and Spyro universes; seeing the two collide, and bringing gorgeous settings and skins along with them, is easily a more memorable and wow-worthy experience for me than a realistic racing sim. Bringing in so many references to iconic levels and characters showed a dedication to fan service pretty unlike anything I’ve ever seen before.

Which is why it was all the more disappointing when they decided to no longer contribute new content after only one year. I proudly reveled in a Top 5% finish for every racing season…except for the final installment, due to a trip out of town (and thus, a trip away from my console). Curses.

That being said, I’ll continue to dream big – after all, I wasn’t totally confident that this remake would come about to begin with, but it did. Perhaps an update or DLC package could be somewhere along the horizon, especially with the 20-year anniversary of Crash Nitro Kart coming up in 2023. New tracks, new outfits, new characters…the people would love it! (It’s me. I’m the people.)

And if not, well…I’ll just keep crossing my fingers for a new Spyro installment.