If Mind Over Mutant’s cut-scenes were a kids’ TV series, there’s no doubt that it would go down a storm with said fun-sized demographic. Through varying styles of animation, from shadow-puppetry to the garish fluorescent hues of Ren & Stimpy, these asides are not only of extraordinary professional quality, but are laugh-out-loud funny throughout. Far better, in fact, than anything we were expecting. Sadly, though, what comes attached in the interactive department is as functional as your average shelf.

Despite a few new abilities – digging underground, sliding along narrow ledges – Mind Over Mutant fails even to capture what made the original Crash Bandicoot on PSone anything more than risible. Run, jump, collect. That’s pretty much it. The impetus to make it from one end of a level to another with enough lives to take on the next, which was the sole reason to keep coming back to previous outings, is entirely foregone in favour of a far-too-generous compliment of lives. And even if you do have the hand-eye coordination of a handful of eyes, you’ll find save points all over the place that should allow you to nicely avoid taking any actual risks.

This is the same game as any number of other run, jump, collect boreathons, albeit with the one saving grace in the form of the aforementioned rib-tickling animations. Avoid it unless you’re under five, have never played a videogame before or just luurve tedium.