Crate Expectations

With CTR: Nitro-Fueled's monthly Grand Prix offerings over, we've now been awarded with all new goodies!

For April, developer Beenox has awarded players with all new characters and skins. Some of these you may even recognise from long-time fan BetaM's data-mining from earlier GPs. These are baby N.Tropy, baby Cortex, Lab Assistant, Fixed Rilla Roo and... a crate.

Some of the new characters will come as no surprise, but two of them will likely leave you as gobsmacked as I was when I first saw them. 'Fixed' Rilla Roo is exactly what you think it is. When the original character of Rilla Roo was unveiled in November's Neon Circus GP, fan reactions were... mixed, to say the least. After all, his face had been vastly remodelled from his original Crash Bash (2000) appearance, making giving him a toothy and jock-esque grin. My own reaction was of disappointment, especially as I was one of the ones who wanted in Rilla Roo, but little did I know he'd be even more of a joke than he already was. Now we have the new 'Fixed' Rilla Roo, which literally fixes up his face to how it should be, although he's surprisingly a whole new character. The original, dare I say 'Fake' Rilla Roo, is still available to play for anyone who somehow liked him.

The other surprising new character is the crate. I say this because I never thought a crate would be a playable driver. Ever. Clearly as important as Crash Bandicoot himself and having been around since the first game, the crate offers a whole selection of skins that mean you can play as a steel checkpoint, a wooden ? crate and even Crash Bash's purple ! crate.

But how do you unlock the crate? Well, it isn't bought through the Pit Stop, as per usual, but instead you'll have to work a little harder for it. For you see, each level now plays host to a hidden 'Beenox crate'. All you need only smash each one in every level (sans Retro Stadium) and you'll be awarded with the new crate racer. Various fans have already posted pictures and videos of each location if you can't be bothered to look for them yourself, but it does make for a fun challenge on each track.

Finally, there are also a plethora of new skins and a few new karts added to the Pit Stop. Most notably, Geary FINALLY has his own legendary skin. Best of all, it's the old Beenox mascot that used to appear before their logo in their old games.

Why not pop on CTR: Nitro-Fueled and check out the new content whilst it's hot? It's certainly a reason to go back and give the game one last ride!